Philip Mc Grath

Philip Mc Grath

Senior Governance Specialist

Philip Mc Grath is a Senior Governance Specialist with the Governance Global Practice of the World Bank. Previously, he was a senior civil servant in Ireland’s central government department responsible for the reform and modernization of the public sector. In his most recent role, Philip was Head of Public Service Transformation delivering initiatives to enhance innovation, user-centric design, digitalization of public services and open government. He was also responsible for emerging technology policy, including the deployment of robotics and AI in public sector organizations. Philip was a board member of the National Shared Services Office and represented Ireland on the European Commission’s Expert Group for Public Administration and Governance. He also served as Public Sector Innovation Lead, creating Ireland’s first public sector innovation unit and strategy. Philip worked for 12 years in Ireland’s Department of Justice in the areas of asylum law and anti-money laundering/terrorist financing regulation.  Philip holds a degree in law, a degree in human resource management, a postgraduate diploma in regulation and a Master’s degree in innovation and leadership for the public sector. He has taught modules on public administration in several colleges and universities to help maintain currency between theory and practice.