ABSTRACT
In a changing world of work and governance, there is a widespread perception that the traditional professions are under siege. Their authority and status, their exclusive access to specialised knowledge and their right to regulate their own affairs are all seriously being challenged. No longer able to claim special privileges as disinterested, altruistic occupational groups acting detachedly in the public interest, professions are finding their traditional values and loyalties eroded. The challenge is coming not only from a better informed and less deferential public, but also from governments sensitive to public concerns, from the media which reflect and amplify them and from the organisations in both public and private sectors which employ their members. This chapter discusses the ‘new model of professionalism’ that has been mooted and one involving a more open and inclusive, more dynamic and flexible, more pragmatic and service-oriented service. Lessons are learned and future directions are advanced.
