Public Sector Re-organisation: Five Year Vision for the Public Sector

STATES OF JERSEY

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PUBLIC SECTOR RE-ORGANISATION: FIVE YEAR VISION FOR THE PUBLIC SECTOR

Lodged au Greffe on 20th April 2004 by the Policy and Resources Committee

STATES GREFFE

PROPOSITION

THE STATES are asked to decide whether they are of opinion

(a ) to approve the Five Year Vision for the Public Sector dated March  2004 (attached as an Appendix)

in order to deliver overall improvements to the public sector and make savings of £20 million per annum and make value improvements of £9 million per annum, without cutting services;

(b ) to require all Committees to work with the Policy and Resources Committee in order to implement

the Vision within the timescales defined;

(c ) to request the Finance and Economics Committee to identify the source of the £9.4 million funding

required to implement the necessary changes; and

(d ) to request the Policy and Resources Committee to ensure that human resources policies across the

States are sufficient to enable the reduction of 300 posts to be achieved by managing turnover, redeployment, voluntary redundancy or early retirement.

POLICY AND RESOURCES COMMITTEE

Notes: The Finance and Economics Committee supports the Report and Proposition on the basis that it will

provide ongoing savings of £20 million per annum for an initial investment of £9.4 million. This saving will undoubtedly aid the future financial position of the States and deliver the efficiencies within the public sector that have been notably demanded from the Public in recent consultation exercises.

T h e Finance and Economics Committee will require that analysis of the related expenditure and savings

will be amalgamated within the Fundamental Spending Review process, the Annual States Business Plan and subsequently the annual States' Budget, in order that the costs and savings are transparent and that targets are endorsed by the States.

T h e F  inance and Economics Committee has identified unspent balances from 2003 which the Committee

intends will be made available for the express purpose of funding the Visioning Strategy should the States approve this Report and Proposition.

S u c h funding will be ring-fenced within the cash limit of the Policy and Resources Committee and

released only with the express approval of the Finance and Economics Committee further to the consideration of detailed business cases

REPORT

Introduction

1. T h i s Report provides thebackgroundtothe Proposition and in particular explains the proposals contained in the 5 yearVision for thePublicSector, March 2004.
2. D u ring the latter half of 2003, the Corporate Management Board, at the request of the Policy and Resources Committee, brought together a group of senior officers from across the public sector to consider radical change in responsetogrowing political andpublicuneaseabout the efficiency and the cost ofthe organisation. Thisgroupof officers, called the VisioningTeam, were asked:

– to d evelop a high-level vision for the Public Sector;

– to p roduce a high-level cost benefit, implementation and resource plans; and

– to en sure that the plans will reduce costs by £20 million over 5 years.

3. S o m e of the key issues identified were to:

3 .1 P u t the customer first;

3 .2 R e duce the chronic departmentalism;

3 .3 E n courage "Joined up" policy settings and strategy;

3 .4 R e duce duplication through consolidation and efficiency;

   3 . 5 D e velop a flexible workforce;

3 .6 D e velop an agile organisation that takes timely and effective decisions;

3 .7 E n able a "horizontal" flow of information;

3 .8 Im  plement one way of doing things;

3 .9 D e liver better services at lower cost.

4. T h e results of this work are proposalswhichput the customer first and deliver better, cheaper and simpler services without the necessity for any cuts in those services. This is achieved through a combination of approaches which for the first time looksacross the boundaries which currently existinthepublic sector administration. As a consequenceofthese proposals, andinordertomakethesavings, it is expected that the public sector will reduce byapproximately300posts over a 5 year period. This will be carefully managedby the CorporateManagement Board answeringto the Policy and ResourcesCommittee.The timescale and scale of change should ensure that the reduction will be achieved by turnover and redeployment, with voluntaryredundancyorvoluntary early retirement where necessary. If staff and their representatives actively engage in the changes thereshouldbeno need for compulsoryredundancy.
5. O n 6th February,2004, the Visioning Team presented the vision to the Corporate ManagementBoard, which,following a detailedworkshopon the 2nd March2004, agreed the proposals.
6. D u ring March 2004 the proposalswere presented to the meetingofPresidents, to States members, to senior managers and to employee group representatives. In addition, the report was considered and supported by the Policy and Resources Committee andtheFinanceand Economics Committee.

Main themes

7. T h e key messagesin the five year vision for the public sector areasfollows: T h e C  ustomer will beattheheartof everything we do

7 .1 T h e vision describes how the customer can access services through one point of contact, called the

Customer Services Unit, and that they can do this in a number of ways. They can telephone the call centre which would also have evening working hours to improve access. They could drop into a contact centre and deal with an assistant face to face, again this would be open beyond normal working hours to suit customer demand, and finally, there would be increasing use of e- mail contact which would be available 24 hours a day 7 days a week.

7 .2 T h e customer access model would be supported by information held electronically in a robust

database, which is kept up-to-date and accurate, and which allows cross departmental issues to be handled by one assistant. Front line employees would have as a target the satisfactory resolution of  80  per  cent  of  all  enquiries,  the  remaining  20  per  cent  being  passed  to  an  appropriate professional for action.

7 .3 T h e Customer Services Unit handles not only enquiries from the public, the external customer, but

also deals with enquiries from members of staff or other service areas of the States, or internal customers,  who  wished  to  access  the  common  support  services  of  Human  Resources,  ICT, Property and Finance. In order to achieve further economies, these support services are grouped together in a Support Services Centre as part of the Customer Services Unit. External and internal calls will be handled through the same processes. For example, in relation to HR, this might mean that a member of staff might call the Customer Services Unit in order to find out about maternity leave for example or other policies, or to pass on details of training courses attended, or leave of absence for recording.

7 .4 V e ry often the experience of the customer in the past has been that they have to approach a

number of departments to try and discover which department can answer a particular enquiry. Because  individual  departments  do  not  have  detailed  knowledge  of  the  workings  of  other departments, they may not be able to provide the correct information in order to direct the customer to the correct department. The proposals describe how the customer would ring one number and speak to one assistant, who would be able to access information for the customer and advise him or her how to go about making an application for any number of functions, would be able to forward any application forms necessary in respect of any department or service area, and also would be able to make bookings and check the status of transactions. The end result would be the customer being impressed by the service received and feeling that they had had a good experience.

7 .5 I t is not proposed to remove the direct dial facilities by which customers, both internal and

external, can contact an individual employee as this may not be perceived to be an improvement to the service where working relationships between customers and officers are already be in place. However, it is anticipated that as customers experience the levels and quality of service from calling the Customer Services Unit the number of calls that are made directly to individual employees will decrease.

7 .6 A s a result of this the States of Jersey will be recognised as providing a cost effective first class

service, modern in our outlook and valued by our community as a whole.

W e a ll work together for the benefit of all concerned

7 .7 In order to combat competition, barriers to progress and the silo mentality that currently exist between departments the vision describes how the Corporate Management Board and all service

areas will work together in a new structure. The whole organisation will act seamlessly to deliver one set of prioritised aims which has been agreed by the States in a single unified strategic plan.

The Corporate Management Team will be responsible for breaking down barriers to improve performance. They

will be supported by a Change Management Team which will drive the process forward.

7 .8 It is proposed that in between the service delivery areas and the Corporate Management Board

there should be an Integrated Policy Network unit responsible to the Corporate Management Board. The unit works by seconding staff with particular expertise from other service areas to work on projects or policies, after which these officers return to their usual employment. A major benefit of policy being developed in a central unit is to ensure that policy making across the States of Jersey is joined up', and that policy developed for one service area neither conflicts with that of another service area, nor allows the development of gaps in provision between service areas. This joined up' thinking ensures that criticism, such as that levelled in the Kathy Bull Report (2003), should not happen again.

7 .9 T h e Corporate Management Board will also need to take the lead on integrating and rationalising

the States property portfolio. This will be in accordance with the decision of the States in July 2002 to approve the report and proposition "Machinery of Government: Proposed Departmental Structure  and  Transitional  Arrangements  (P.70/2002),  with  regard  to  the  transfer  of  the management of the States property portfolio to the Treasury and Resources Department. This would include policy responsibility for all the fragmented arrangements across departments for property maintenance, design and procurement.

C u lt u re Change

7 . 1 0 U nderpinning the  change  is the  culture  for both employees  and  the organisation  as whole.

Comprehensive training will be provided to our managers and employees to develop a way of working that is fast moving, forward thinking, customer serving and flexible. By means of training and assessment all employees will be allowed to develop a can do' mentality and work to shared principles and goals. As a result of this all will feel a sense of pride and achievement in what they do.

B u s in ess Process Re-engineering

7 .1 1 B usiness process re-engineering (BPR) is fundamental to making savings across the organisation,

particularly in the areas of customer access and support services. The public sector currently has many different processes and ways of working. Business process re-engineering ensures that, where possible, only one method or process is adopted for similar business processes and that the selected process is based on best practice.

In t e ll igence Led Government

7 .1 2 T he proposals describe how the States Strategic Plan, supporting plans, operational work and

employees will all be subject to ongoing performance measurement, review and improvement in order to deliver services in better, simpler and cheaper ways. This approach will ensure resources are coordinated to work together efficiently and effectively across the whole organisation. The employees in the organisation will be trained, developed and held accountable for delivery of service and each employee will be clear through service level action plans how their own work and the work of the service area contributes to the overall strategic aims. Managers at every level will be accountable against clearly defined outcomes. This will result in economies of scale, less bureaucracy, cost and post savings and resources being focussed on where they are most needed.

Benefits

8. T h e Policy andResources Committee believes that this approach can succeedinimproving services and reducing States of Jersey costs in orderto meet the overallobjective of saving £20 million per year whilst delivering a visible andmeasurableimprovementin service levels.

9. D  es pite the best efforts of fellow officers to assist, muchof the information requested by the Vision Team is simply not held at present.Thislackof available information across the Statesmakesit difficult to predict accurately the savings that will be realised and further work is planned to consolidate these figures. However, initial estimates, which have erredon the side ofcaution,suggest that savings of at least £20 million per year (after 5 years), with improvements in customer service and service delivery valued at a further £9 million, and approximately 300 post savings are achievable if this vision is supported andimplemented enthusiastically.
10. T h e CorporateManagementBoard,working to thePolicy and ResourcesCommittee, will manage the loss of jobs by natural turnover,redeployment, retraining, voluntary redundancy (including seeking volunteers for redundancy from those unaffected by the changes) and voluntary earlyretirement.
11. T h e estimates ofimprovementsand cost savings are basedon a high levelanalysis of current staffing and volumes (e.g. telephone call numbers).Then, a conservative estimate ofthelevelof saving hasbeen based on the experiences of other similar organisations. Thus Business Process Engineering will be fundamental to releasing savings across the organisation, particularly in the areasof customer accessand support services.The objective will be to movetheorganisation from oneofdisparate and fragmented methods ofworking and delivery to an integrated organisation.

Costs

12. In order to make this vision a reality a significant investment, estimatedat £9.4 million, will berequired, mainly inyears 2 – 5 oftheplan, in orderto provide the requiredtechnology, staff, consultancy, premises and training.
13. It s houldbenoted that this is significantly less than investments madeby similar sizedlocalgovernment organisations for theirchangeprogrammes. This reflects the investments wehave already made,or are currently making, in such initiatives as the JD Edwards system, network infrastructures and other corporate ICT projects. In addition it is planned that the implementation will be largely effected using existing staff and training them where necessary.
14. In March2004 the Finance and EconomicsCommitteeendorsed the visioningarrangementsand agreed in principle that it would be prepared to provide the necessary funding from a sourceyettobe identified.

Implementation Plan

15. W  ith this in mind, thefirststageoftheimplementation plan is to refine the high levelbusinesscasefor each project bymeansof a series ofproofofconceptprojectsinorder to justify further investment. Sufficient funding for this first stage will need to bemade available by theFinance and Economics Committee.To achieve changeof this nature requires a new approach to management rather than the continuous analysisand review which is currently the norm.Having made the decisionwe must take the lead andallworktogether to implement the change.
16. I n order to test this approach, it is proposed to review and integrate the processes, document and information flows associated with the HumanResourcefunction for all departments in order to design and implement more streamlined and lessbureaucraticways of working.
17. It i s planned that the followingprojectswillbecompletedbyDecember2004:

1 7 .1 In vestigate feasibility and develop business case for Customer Call Centre and Contact Centre; 1 7 .2 D evelop a strategy for the Public Sector;

1 7 .3 In tegrate Pilot dept(s) into Customer Services Unit;

1 7 .4 D evelop or refine HR, IT, Finance, Property and Purchasing Strategies;

1 7 .5 D evelop and agree Core Values;

1 7 .6 R eview capability and gap analysis of IT (with regard to vision);

1 7 .7 D evelop management training requirements (including culture change);

1 7 .8 U ndertake a Staff survey;

1 7 .9 D evelop Performance Management proof of concept based on benchmarking project; 1 7 .1 0  Proof of Concept of Business Process Re-engineering across HR function;

1 7 .1 1  Develop External and Internal Communications Strategy;

1 7 .1 2  Undertake a Customer Survey.

18. B a sedonthe information gained duringtheproofofconcept process a detailed businesscase will be made in order to releasefundingfor the full implementation of the vision by2009.
19. T h isapproach will provide an opportunity to review the contributioneachprojectmakesto the overall programme andamendingplanstoproduce the most beneficial return.

Manpower

20. F o r theprogramme to succeed all Committees will beaskedto demonstrate commitmentto the change project and project teams.The first majortaskin the changeprogrammeis the establishmentof a fully resourced Changeprogramme office staffedby full time secondmentsand contract roles whererequired. The Change team will consist ofpeople with project management,BPR,HR,communication,IT, finance and performancemanagement skills and will take responsibility forcoordinating and leading the work sub-projectgroups.
21. T h e staff resource requirements do not, in the main, relate to new permanent posts as they can be resourced by internal secondments,temporary contracts where specific skills and expertise are required, and offset against savings realised through thechangeprogramme. This approach will require the full support of the CorporateManagement Board if it is to succeed.The implementation programmefor the change process runs for 5 years.

Summary

22. T h e States are asked to request the Financeand Economics Committee to identify the source ofthe £9.4 million funding required to implement the necessary changeswhich will deliver overall improvementsof some £28 million each year and will reduce the sizeofthe public sector byapproximately300posts. A conservative estimate of the cash savings is £20 million perannum made upof £15 million runningcosts and an additional £5 million per annum capital receipts. Thesesavings will be realised whilst improving the service provided to ourcustomers.
23. S a vings will beachievedbybreakingdown boundaries, all workingtogethertowardscommonagreed objectives, continuallymeasuring and improvingperformance and, for the first time, cutting across the organisation in orderto simplify and improve processes.
24. T h e use of a consistent Business Re-engineeringapproach will be used to identify actual improvements and savings.
25. T h e Corporate Management Board believes that the vision, although radical, will revolutionise both the way the States of Jersey worksand the wayservices are provided to the island. Such anapproachrequires

a significant commitment both in terms of leadership, working together and funding and in return will deliver

better services at a cheaper cost.

26. T h e successful implementation of the vision will mean that by 2009:

2 6 .1 C ustomers will find it easy to access services and obtain reliable information and advice;

2 6 .2 D epartments have no boundaries but work together for the benefit of all concerned in the most

cost effective way;

2 6 .3 A ll staff are working to shared principles and goals and feel a sense of pride and achievement in

all they do;

2 6 .4 W e are recognised as a first class service, modern in our outlook and valued by our community as

a whole.

APPENDIX

Contents

1. S u m mary
2. I n tr oduction
3. S c o pe
4. D ri vers forchange
5. T h e Vision – wherewe will bein2009
6. C o m monthemes
7. C o s tsandbenefits
8. R i s ks
9. I m p lementation
10. M e asures of success
11. N e xt steps
12. T h e Five Year Visionfor the PublicSectorteam
13. A c knowledgements

1 S u mmary

The aim of this document is to provide an overview of the Five Year Vision for the Public Sector (the Vision'). The Vision is a plan, developed by a team of senior staff from across the States that aims to improve service, achieve annual savings of £20 million within five years and as a consequence reduce the public sector workforce.

By putting people at the heart of everything the public sector does, the Vision aims to deliver:

• c u s to mer focused delivery;

• a u n i ted, flexible organisation;

• p e r fo rmance and efficiency.

There are four fundamental parts or cornerstones to the Vision:

• C u s tomer Focus: This cornerstone enshrines our overall objective of providing customer focused

delivery.' The most visible sign of Customer Focus will be a Customer Services Unit which will handle all contacts from the public whether in person, or by telephone, email or letter. It will aim to deal with 80 per cent of all enquiries at the first point of contact and will open outside of normal business hours to meet customer needs. The Unit will also respond to all internal public sector staff queries. Efficiency will be improved by standardising everyday processes so that, where workable, there will be only one way for a common process to be carried out across the public sector, based on best practice.

• W o r king Together: This cornerstone delivers a united, flexible organisation'. Key to its success is the

restructure of the public sector. Areas of responsibility will be based around the ten newly created ministries. Common services such as Human Resources, ICT, Property and Finance will be provided centrally and form the basis of the new Support Services Centre (located within the Customer Services Unit). Cross cutting policies will be developed centrally. This will ensure that policy developed for one area does not conflict with other areas and that there are no gaps' between service areas.

• I n t e lligence-led Government: This cornerstone delivers performance and efficiency. It necessitates a

clear and unifying strategy for the public sector so everyone is aware of and aiming to achieve the same goals. People will work to a clear set of objectives, and progress and individual and area performance will be measured.

• C  u lt ure: This cornerstone is pivotal to the success of the Vision as a whole. In order for it to work,

everyone in the public sector must support a new way of working, underpinned by new values. To achieve this objective, each public sector staff member must understand the strategic vision, their role within it and the importance of their own performance.

Achieving the Vision will require strong leadership, commitment from all stakeholders and significant investment. The estimated one-off cost of the changes proposed is £9 million.

The Vision will deliver financial, quantifiable and observable benefits. The annual financial savings generated by the end of the fifth year are estimated as £20 million.

The plan has been approved by the Corporate Management Board and this document is designed to inform States members and staff about the proposals.

2 In t roduction

During the latter half of 2003, the Corporate Management Board brought together a group of senior officers from across the public sector (the Visioning team') to consider change in response to growing political and public unease about the efficiency and the cost of the organisation. This team was asked to develop a vision for the States and produce a plan for how the organisation might move from the current state to the future one, while ensuring that those plans would lead to savings rather than additional expenditure.

The Corporate Management Board described its broad vision as " better, cheaper, simpler". These became the team's principal terms of reference. In short, the vision was to be focused around three fundamental principles –

• customer focused delivery;

• a united, flexible organisation;

• performance and efficiency.

The overall task was to –

• improve service; and

• reduce costs by £20 million over five years.

The team made a presentation to the Corporate Management Board on 6 February 2004. This document builds upon that presentation, outlining the business case for structural, cultural, business process, performance-based and customer focused change and providing more detail about how that change might be implemented.

3 S c ope

The Visioning team was given 20 days to produce the Vision and carry out the first level of planning – in effect to draft the roadmap which gets us from where we are to where we want to be. A lot more detailed work needs to be done within the various work streams before implementation starts. The project scope might be described as peeling back the first two layers of the onion – there are several more to go.

The timescale given, and the size, range and diversity of services provided by the States of Jersey, means that the group could only produce a report to a certain level of detail. It is also worth noting that despite the best efforts of fellow officers to assist, the information requested is simply not held at present. Therefore, both the expenditure and savings estimates must be viewed in that light. This information deficit, however, is in itself another reason for change.

4 D r ivers for change

The need for change in the public sector is being driven by major external changes and a general political unease generated by poor public perception of the States of Jersey and the public sector.

This can be summarised by the following fundamental drivers for change: –

• Machinery of Government Reforms – the States of Jersey has approved the transition from a committee system of government to a ministerial and cabinet style of government;

• Fiscal issues – competition in the finance industry is likely to lead to a loss in tax revenue of £80 million a year from 2009. An increase in the basic rate of income tax is not contemplated, and therefore genuine

efficiencies need to be achieved in the provision of services to contribute towards reducing the deficit; Public perception – the people of Jersey enjoy high quality services but are critical of what they see as a burgeoning public sector, the increasing costs of the provision of these services and the fragmented

organisation that delivers them; Public expectation – the people of Jersey want continued access to high quality public sector services in

a way that is more convenient to them, not the organisation;

• Political unease – there is a disconnection between the electorate, politicians and the public sector in Jersey that is unhealthy and breeds frustration and mistrust throughout the community;

• Employee feedback – staff experience much frustration with the workings of the States of Jersey. Operational practices often hamper the response to customer needs. Employees need to feel that the

organisation they work for values their skills, ideas and attributes, and provides opportunities for development and progression.

All this means that much good work carried out by public sector staff is overshadowed by frustrations experienced by customers – both internal and external. Too often, the public sector is viewed as unresponsive, inaccessible, uncaring and expensive.

A further driver for change is the fact that although the number of services delivered to the public has increased, these services have been added in an ad hoc way without re-thinking the way we do things to improve efficiency. Together, all these factors make a compelling case for a one off, effective step change, rather than the tweaking of parts of the public sector, which would not result in the productivity gains and service improvements that are now required. To do nothing is not an option.

5 Th e Vision – where we will be in 2009

In the future, the customer or user will be at the heart of everything the public sector does. Services are designed around the customer's needs. Everyone, whether they are a member of the public (external customer), or a member of staff (internal customer) is treated efficiently, fairly and without prejudice.

When a customer contacts the public sector (the States'), in person, by telephone, email or by letter, every effort is made to meet the customer's needs in the initial contact. If this is not possible, the customer request is automatically transferred to the appropriate area for action. The creation of shared common services, such as HR, Property, Finance and ICT, together with an updated computer system which shares common data across the public sector, means the customer is directed to the person they need as effortlessly and straightforwardly as possible. Importantly, the onus for resolution has shifted from the customer to the staff member. If, for example, the customer has a request or a problem which cuts across several departments, all these separate elements will be handled by the front line staff member until the issue is resolved satisfactorily. The customer is not contacted unnecessarily until their request has been concluded. The system tracks and monitors the service provided, allowing managers to monitor and improve performance.

With the benefit of accurate, automatically generated management information for analysis, the public sector develops integrated strategy, policy and plans to meet individual, service delivery and organisational targets. Every member of staff understands the importance of their position within the public sector, reinforced by effective performance review and appraisal.

The public sector is outward looking and seeks views and opinions from customers, citizens and businesses which use the public sector service. Citizens and staff feel connected with, and are proud of their public service, and customer satisfaction and positive perception of the public service go hand in hand.

The Vision rests on four essential elements, or cornerstones –

Customer Focus;

Working Together; Intelligence-led Government;

Culture.

1. Co rnerstone 1: Customer Focus

The customer is at the heart of the organisation: services are organised around the needs of the customer in a consistent manner and at times to suit. The customer is informed of and understands, the help available.

Customer access model

The customer chooses how to access services - they may telephone or call in at a Customer Services Unit where enquiries are handled over extended office hours. Alternatively, they may access the interactive web site 24 hours a day, where they can find out information, pay bills, submit requests for action, etc., or call at kiosks located Island-wide to help. Access to most services is also available through partnerships developed with other agencies and based at, for example, post offices and parish halls, and a customer may still write and expect a speedy response.

Staff in the Customer Services Unit are trained to answer many of the queries received from customers, supported by information held on a computer database. This database enables the staff member handling the problem or query to investigate cross-departmental issues. The target for front line employees is to resolve 80 per cent of all enquiries satisfactorily; the remaining 20 per cent are passed to an appropriate professional for action.

The Customer Services Unit handles enquiries from the public and deals with queries from public sector staff who wish to access the common support services of Human Resources, ICT, Property and Finance. This enables the professionals in these areas to concentrate on what they are best at, releasing further staff savings as a result. In order to achieve further economies, these support services are grouped together in a Support Services Centre, as part of the Customer Services Unit.

All common support service processes have been standardised to ensure that there is only one way (based on best practice) for a common process to be carried out across the public sector. The States intranet infrastructure has been developed and improved to allow it to become the preferred method of doing business with Support Services.

The Customer Services Unit, together with the integrated Support Services, delivers the fundamental principle laid down in the vision of the Corporate Management Board for customer focused delivery.

2. Co rnerstone 2: Working Together

The public sector is one employer, there is one culture across the organisation and employees carry out common functions in different areas in the same way using common information systems.

The structure of the organisation has changed in order to break down the artificial boundaries that existed between departments. In the new structure, shown in figure 5.2 below, the customer is the main focus, and there is a single customer contact point through the Customer Services Unit. Linked to this Unit is the Support Services Centre which hosts corporate services such as HR, ICT, Finance and Property. Calls for these areas also come through to the Customer Service Unit.

Behind the Customer Services Unit are the various different service delivery areas', formerly departments, which make up the public sector. These areas are aligned to ten executive directors, who report to ten States Ministries (as set out in the report and proposition, as amended, approved by the States entitled Machinery of Government: proposed  departmental  structure  and  transitional  arrangements', P.70/2002).  These  executive  directors  are members of the Corporate Management Board, and are responsible and accountable both for the delivery of services in their area, and any strategic aims of the States allocated to them by the Chief Executive as head of the Public Service. Two additional directors have been appointed to the Corporate Management Board to look after responsibilities which affect all or most areas – such as Customer Services.

In between the service delivery areas and the Corporate Management Board sits the Integrated Policy Network responsible to the Corporate Management Board. The unit works by seconding staff with particular expertise from other service areas to work on projects or policies, after which these officers return to their usual employment. A major benefit of policy being developed in a central unit is to ensure that policy making across the States of Jersey is joined up', and that policy developed for one service area neither conflicts with that of another service area, nor allows the development of gaps in provision between service areas. This joined up' thinking ensures that criticism, such as that levelled in the Kathy Bull Report (2003), cannot happen again.

Responsible for being a customer!

Customer Service delivery Responsible for customer service

access delivery

Support services

Responsible for States-wide Integrated Policy Network policy development

Responsible for service delivery Corporate areas and delivering strategic Management Board aims

Council of Scrutiny States Responsible for setting policy Ministers Committees Members

Figure 5.2 Proposed organisational structure

The  revised  structure  provides  a  model  which  breaks  down  the  risk  of  chronic  departmentalism,  or silo approach'. Combined with the realignment of services around the customer and the single, standard way of doing things, this delivers the second fundamental principle of a united, flexible organisation.

3. Co rnerstone 3: Intelligenc-eled Government

Intelligence-led government means that the public sector is informed by customer feedback and responds to good practice elsewhere. Decisions are made on the basis of valid and timely information from service delivery areas. The public sector has a clear set of aims and objectives and measures its progress towards them. Behaviour is driven by relevant performance measures and continuous improvement at all levels.

The public sector has strong leadership and every member of the organisation works to achieve the same goals. The needs and expectations of customers drive the Vision and Strategy. A five year Island Strategic Vision, created by the Council of Ministers and approved by the States is put into meaningful practice by the Corporate Management Board through the development of a Public Sector Strategy. This is translated into Service Delivery Action Plans for each service area. Employees in the different service delivery areas work towards delivering the overall strategy thanks to a culture of continuous improvement and accountability. Staff development is fostered by an improved performance management system with individual targets and objectives (see fig 5.3).

As a result, efficiency savings are achieved by a better, more effective way of working, rather than by cuts in service. The public sector continuously improves the service it offers and achieves its high level aims and objectives by ensuring that everything done by the service delivery areas is in line with the overall Public Sector Strategy. This is reviewed and assessed regularly.

There has been a fundamental change in culture since the public sector started to define clear objectives, develop effective monitoring systems and hold managers to account for delivery.

This has been achieved because –

• a clear distinction has been drawn between the role of the political sector and that of the public sector in defining and delivering government strategy. The political Island Strategic Vision sets

out the desired economic, social and environmental vision of Jersey as a place to live, to visit and to do business, and defines the financial parameters within which public sector services must be delivered. This is underpinned by a Public Sector Strategy which describes what the public sector will do in order to deliver the overall vision;

• there is an integrated planning and review process and cycle. This is based on stakeholder needs, information from performance measurement, benchmarking and research. The planning process is

owned by the Corporate Management Board; the Public Sector Strategy provides a reference point against which policy decisions, performance and resource deployment can be reviewed by the Corporate Management Board. It is underpinned

by action plans, developed at service level, which set out how individual services will contribute to overall strategic aims, through direct and shared objectives;

• the Public Sector Strategy sets meaningful aims and targets which, where necessary, cut across service boundaries. Accountability is driven at all levels through a corporate performance

management system informed by dynamic performance data; managers at every level are held accountable against clearly defined outcomes. Competing resource demands can be evaluated against strategic aims and objectives and value judgements

can be made based on timely performance data.

Figure 5.3 Strategic planning and performance management framework

Together with the improvements to processes and procedures, and the simplification of service delivery, this cornerstone delivers the fundamental principle of performance and efficiency.

4. Co rnerstone 4: Culture

The culture of the public sector reflects a transformation in the way in which things are done. Public sector workers understand and share the Five Year Vision for the Public Sector and support the organisation's core values. Everyone understands their role and performance is managed effectively.

There has been a significant investment by people across the public sector to help transform the organisation into one which is customer serving, fast moving, responsive, flexible, innovative and value for money.

In order to show the importance placed on this transformation, considerable effort is made to make staff aware of

the guiding principles that reflect the core values of the organisation:

By working together we: –

• T r e a t  our customers and each other as individuals, with respect, dignity and courtesy;

• P r o v id  e a publicly accountable service that is responsive, listens and learns and acts in the best interest of Jersey;

• A c t  w  ith integrity, professionalism and respect confidentiality;

• P r o v id e choice and added value, making a difference and taking pride in all that we do;

• R e s p o nd in an appropriate, honest and trustworthy manner; be reliable, consistent and fair;

• D e m  o nstrate the power of teams, working creatively and innovatively;

• F e e l  v alued and appreciated, as do our customers.

All members of staff are encouraged to embrace the core values. Communications strategy and HR policies work together to make sure the customer is at the heart of the organisation.

6 C o mmon themes

As the Vision developed it became clear that there were a number of themes that cut across the service delivery areas. These are important factors in improving service and reducing costs. (Culture also appears as a cornerstone, given its importance as a part of the vision.)

1. T h eme 1: Culture

Support for a set of shared values across the public sector is essential. The organisation needs to be singing from the same song sheet' in order to deliver this plan. Furthermore, the necessary cultural change will require the following seven levers for change to be applied.

1. Structure and role of Human Resources

The HR service is pivotal in achieving any change in public sector culture. The HR role must be to act as change agents, to motivate and support senior management and to be dynamic in delivering policies and services that support strategic aims.

2. Establishing and communicating a clear strategic vision and goals

Many of the gaps between current and desired cultures stem from the absence of a clear strategic direction for the public sector, understood and owned by its members, against which decisions can be made, personal and team goals can be aligned, and performance can be managed.

Employees at all levels need to see that:

• C l e a r  strategic direction exists, consistently supported by the Corporate Management Board;

• A c t io  n  s and decisions are taken in line with that direction;

• T h e y   have a pivotal role to play in delivering those strategic goals;

• T h e y   are recognised for contributing to success;

• P r o g re ss is measured and feedback provided.

3. Identifying and embedding a set of values for the States of Jersey

A set of core values already identified (paragraph 5.4) must be promoted by the Corporate Management Board and should inform all activities, interactions and exchanges, both internal and external.

4. Customer service

Customer focus is one of the cornerstones of the Vision and it is recognised that changing to a customer-focused organisation will require cultural change.

5. Communication

The Vision proposes considerable cultural change which will affect staff in different ways. Excellent communication within the public sector is essential. Employees need to be informed of plans for change, and to be given opportunity to ask questions, find out more about proposed changes, and to feedback their views. There is no single public sector communications network that reaches all employees. In order for change to be effective and sustainable, the organisation needs an effective communications network to be established.

It should: –

• B e   a p rimary source of relevant and timely information about proposed public sector changes;

• E m p h asise and invigorate two way face-to-face communication;

• G i v e  l ine managers the tools to help drive change through the organisation;

• Excellent internal communication should be a priority. It should be regarded as a core management responsibility and senior managers should lead by example in consulting staff,

disseminating information and seeking feedback.

6. Performance management;

Effective performance management is as much about culture as it is about processes and management style (see paragraph below). Good management is fostered by a clear sense of overall direction, and management buy-in to that direction. The comments made earlier about establishing and communicating a clear and consistent set of strategic goals and values are fundamental to improving performance management.

7. Management style

The scale of change necessary to deliver the vision requires a massive shift in culture. This in turn is dependent on the Corporate Management Board adopting a style of management which is consistent with the vision and identifies them as leaders and role-models in this process.

Best practice shows that training for the top team and senior managers on leading and managing effective change produces significant benefits. It is proposed that the initial management training effort should be focused here.

2. T h eme 2: Human Resources