102 Approaches to HRM and L&D of the considerations affecting the sector and its main characteristics. These are dealt with in the first three parts of this section. The role and the contribu- tion of HRM in the sector are examined in the next two parts of the section. Definition of the public sector The public sector was first defined by Adam Smith (1776: 1220) as: ...those public institutions and those public works, which though they may be in the highest degree advantageous to a great society, are, however, of such a nature that the profit could never repay the expense to any individual, or small number of individuals, and, therefore, it cannot be expected that any individual, or small number of individuals, should erect or maintain. Today, the public sector can be defined as containing those organizations and activities that exist to provide services for the state, the community and individual citizens. Public sector organizations at national or local level execute political policy decisions but senior or specialized members of such institutions will provide advice to politicians on the factors affecting po- litical policies and on their implementation. Public sector organizations are concerned with revenues and expenditures but do not exist to create profits. They are, in effect, owned by the public and not, as is the case in private