SPS Leadership Development Strategy

2013 - 2015

SPS Vision
To build a community of leaders that supports national recovery and builds renewal through innovation and excellence, strengthening cross-organisational collaboration, supporting continuous personal and professional development and inspiring others to achieve high performance in a common purpose.

Table of Contents

Page

Chapter 1: Public Sector Leadership 5

1.1 Background 5 1.2 Impetus for SPS 6

1.3 Current Composition of the Senior Public Service 6

1.4 Governance 7

1.5 Purpose of Strategy 7

1.6 Evidence Base 7

Chapter2:KeyDrivers,Vision Values 9

2.1 Key Drivers and the Case for Change 9

2.2 Programme for Government 9

2.3 Public Service Reform Plan 10

SPS Vision and Values

2.4 Vision 10

2.5Values 11

Competencies

2.6Leadership Competencies 12

2.7CompetencyReview 13

2.8Other approaches to defining leadership capabilities: The Leadership

Code 14

Chapter 3:Gap Analysis 15

3.1 Gap Analysis 15

Chapter 4: Leadership Strategy Objectives and

Programmes 17

Programme1– Coaching and Mentoring 19

Programme2– Development Programmes 21

Programme 3 – Group learning 22

Programme 4 – Lateral Mobility 23

Programme 5 – Succession Planning Programme 24

Chapter 5: Implementation and Evaluation25

5.1 Implementation arrangements25

5.2 SPS Action Plan25

5.3 Evaluation 25

Appendices

Appendix 1: Current SPS Membership27

Appendix 2: Protocol on Mobility for the Senior Public Service32

Appendix 3: SPS Development Strategy Action Plan34

Senior Public Service Framework & Strategy

Chapter 1: Public Sector Leadership

1.1 Background

Context

The environment in which the Public Service operates has changed dramatically in the last number of years. We operate in a more complex environment that poses challenges to the structures, systems and strategies that have served us in the past. Factors such as the economic crisis, the increased importance of citizen orientation and quality of public services in addition to the need for permanent reform and change, demands strong strategic and operational top management.

Public service leadership is exercised within the framework of political authority and accountability. Within this context there is a need for effective leadership at senior levels of the Public Service in order to deliver on key challenges facing the country. These key challenges include:

  • Making savings in public expenditure
  • Improving service quality for a broad range of stakeholders
  • Making Government operations more efficient
  • Improving the effectiveness of policy development, decision-making and implementation

A number of particular leadership challenges identified by senior management in the Civil Service have been outlined in a NUI Galway study (2011) - Leadership in the Irish Civil Service[1]. The challenges relate to:

  • Leadership and Risk
  • Rigidity of the Organisational Structure and Process
  • Political System Influence and Competing Priorities
  • Culture in the Public Sector
  • Resources to Cope with Demands
  • Recruitment, Selection and Promotion Constraints
  • Lack of Systems that Enforce Accountability

The Public Service Reform Plan which includes a set of cross-cutting initiatives focused on delivering the necessary structures, processes, ways of working,technologies and capabilities across all of Government also represents an important leadership challenge. This need for strong and effective leadership is recognised in the HR Strategy currently being developed for the Civil Service, which highlights leadership as a key element in delivering on the business strategy of civil service organisations.

1.2 Impetus for a Senior Public Service

Senior Civil Service structures are a feature of many public administrations in Europe and beyond. The OECD Review of the Irish Public Service, Towards an Integrated Public Service recommended the development on a phased basis of a single, integrated Public Service leadership cadre, through the creation of a Senior Public Service with a membership drawn from elements of the broader Public Service which would allow Ireland to strengthen a system-wide perspective at the leadership level and to reinforce core values through the Public Service. This proposal was supported by the Task Force on the Public Service which recommended that the Senior Public Service should be established initially in the Civil Service before being extended to other equivalent groups across the wider Public Service.

In the intervening period, the economic crisis has reinforced the urgency of building greater leadership capacity across the public service. The current Programme for Government contains a commitment to “create a new tier of senior public service management structures….to nurture the collaborative culture needed to tackle the biggest cross-cutting social and economic challenges”. The establishment of the Senior Public Service provides an opportunity to develop a shared public sector leadership and corporate resource which is consolidated by common public service values and experiences, but which also challenges established mindsets and culture and seeks to adapt in the face of new norms, risks and challenges.[2].

1.3 Current Composition of the Senior Public Service

Membership of the Senior Public Service currently comprises civil servants at Director level and above[3]. The total current SPS membership is 238 with 181 of those at Assistant Secretary level (July 2012) and 15 at Director level. Current membership comprises career civil servants and those who have joined the Civil Service at senior management levels in recent times. A breakdown of membership is included at Appendix A.

For the period of this Strategy – to end 2015 - the core membership of the SPS will come from within the Civil Service. However, linkages with the wider public service will be further developed over this period through networking and other developmental opportunities. It is expected that membership will subsequently be extended to senior management in the wider Public Service in the medium term on an incremental basis.

1.4 Governance

The SPS Management Committee was established in December 2011. It is chaired by the Secretary General, Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and comprises the Secretaries General of the Departments of the Taoiseach; Social Protection; Agriculture, Food and the Marine; Transport, Tourisms and Sport; and Defence.

The SPS Management Committee oversees policy in relation to developmental initiatives for the SPS, including this Strategy. The SPS Secretariat reports to it quarterly in respect of implementation of those initiatives. A subgroup of the Management Committee manages SPS mobility in line with the mobility protocol (Appendix B).

The SPS Management Committee does not have a role in relation to the management of individual SPS members. The membership of the Management Committee will be amended as it is extended to the wider Public Service.

1.5 Purpose of Strategy

This Leadership Development Strategy sets out the learning and development programmes which will be implemented for the Senior Public Service in the period 2013-2015. The Strategy reflects the need to support the ‘whole of Government’ philosophy of Civil Service management by supporting the top management cohort as a single resource, with mobility between organisations and a structured development programme for the members of the Service. The goal is to equip the SPS with the skills and supports necessary in meeting the key business challenges facing the Civil Service. It also aims to create a shared sense of purpose and focus in meeting these challenges.

1.6 Evidence Base

In devising the strategy, a number of sources of evidence have been drawn on, including:

  • OECD Public Management Reviews IRELAND Towards an Integrated Public Service (2008)
  • Third Report of the Organisational Review Programme (2012)
  • NUI Galway study (2011) - Leadership in the Irish Civil Service[4]
  • Senior Public Service Talent (2009) Perspectives on selection, development and mobility of senior managers in the Irish Public Service Public Appointments Service
  • Development Needs Analysis and Career Details Forms of SPS members
  • International public service leadership development models
  • Private Sector best practice approaches

In addition, there has been an extensive level of consultation with:

  • Secretaries General
  • The Assistant Secretary Network Executive Committee
  • The Assistant Secretary Corporate Group
  • The Association of Assistant Secretaries and Higher Grades (AASHG) and Association of Higher Civil and Public Servants (AHCPS)
  • Focus groups with members of the SPS

Chapter 2: Key Drivers, Vision, Values and Competencies

2.1 Key Drivers and the Case for Change

The economic crisis affecting the country is a clear driver for greater efficiency, value for money and delivery of results, in particular those set out in the Programme for Government and the Public Service Reform Plan. Effective leadership also requires that we see beyond the immediate crisis and build for the future. What type of leadership is necessary to support economic and social recovery? What vision and values will underpin that leadership? How will it be different in emphasis to the current model of competencies and behaviours?

This chapter sets out the key drivers for change, the gap between desired outcomes and the current position, and the strategic interventions proposed in this Leadership Strategy to address the gap. It should be emphasised that central initiatives are only one lever for supporting change and that this Strategy provides a framework within which the SPS Management Committee, Secretariat, SPS members and Departmental management can target their resources and reinforce each other’s efforts in a common cause.

2.2 Programme for Government

The Programme for Government provides the overall framework for setting Departmental Statements of Strategy, objectives and priorities. Achieving these commitments with fewer financial and human resources poses leadership challenges at both political and administrative levels. It underlines, in particular, the need to examine closely the skills and behaviours that are needed at senior management level within the Civil Service.

Achieving the Programme for Government commitments also raises the issue of the interface between political and administrative levels. This dimension is explicitly recognised in the current Secretary General competency framework (see below), but not in the current Assistant Secretary set of competencies, despite the fact that in practice, effective communication and management of that relationship is a key element of the role.

2.3 Public Service Reform Plan

The Public Service Reform Plan addresses a set of cross-cutting initiatives which arefocused on delivering the necessary structures, processes, ways of working,technologies and capabilities across all of Government. Within this context, thefollowing five major commitments to change, address the need to improve the customerexperience and address costs:

1. Placing customer service at the core of everything we do;

2. Maximising new and innovative service delivery channels;

3. Radically reducing our costs to drive better value for money;

4. Leading, organising and working in new ways; and

5. Strong focus on implementation and delivery.

These five commitments require strong and effective leadership. The SPS Leadership Development Strategy aims to put the necessary systems and development programmes in place to ensure that the SPS have the leadership capabilities and culture required in delivering on the important reform agenda.

SPS Vision and Values

2.4 Vision

While the Programme for Government and Public Service Reform plan are of key importance in setting medium term goals, the SPS also requires a longer term vision which transcends the political cycle. The following statement sets out a shared vision for the SPS. The aims of the SPS are derived from this vision and it provides a framework for the Leadership Strategy and the development initiatives proposed. The vision for the SPS is:

To build a community of leaders that supports national recovery and builds renewal through innovation and excellence, strengthening cross-organisational collaboration, supporting continuous personal and professional development and inspiring others to achieve high performance in a common purpose.

2.5 Values

The following values are derived from this vision. They both inform and are informed by the prevailing culture, which in turn impacts on the achievement of work-related outcomes. They include well established values and those which are of increasing importance in the context of driving reform and accountability.

Competencies

2.6 Leadership Competencies

Leadership competencies set out the behaviours and skills that are required for effective performance. The competencies contained in Figures 1 and 2 are those which have been in use for a number of years in respect of Assistant Secretary and Secretary General levels, including in the context of the appointments process operated through the Public Appointments Service and Top Level Appointments Committee.

FIGURE 2:Assistant Secretary Competencies

Leadership / Judgment / Managing Relationships / Personal Drive
for Results
  • Leads on the Management of Change
  • Focus on Human Resources
  • Corporate Contribution
/
  • Analysis & Thinking Skills
  • Strategic Contribution
/
  • Managing Critical Relationships
  • Communication
/
  • Organisational Skills
  • Results Orientated Approach

FIGURE 3:Secretary General Competencies

Leadership / Judgment / Managing Relationships / Personal Drive
for Results
  • Establishing Vision and Purpose
  • Providing Developmental Leadership
/
  • Judgment and Systemic Perspective
  • Steering throughthe political environment
  • Environmental Awareness
/
  • Managing Relationships
  • Communication
/
  • Managing for Results
  • Personal Drive and Accountability
  • Professional Integrity

2.7 Competency Review

A process is currently underway by the Public Appointments Service and Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to review the Assistant Secretary competency framework in the light of current challenges and priorities, taking into account gaps identified in the context of this Strategy. Any adaption of the competency framework will in turn be reflected in the content of the leadership programmes.

While the review of the Assistant Secretary competency framework was still ongoing at the time of the finalisation of this Strategy, initial consultation with a number of Secretaries General, Assistant Secretaries and other stakeholders, together with previous research carried out in relation to the NUIG study and the Public Appointments Service suggest that the following areas require particular attention in the context of training and other development initatives for the Senior Public Service:

  • Resilience and self-knowledge, energy and self-development
  • Values and ethics, serving the public interest, accountability
  • Management of Staff – in particular day-to-day interface with colleagues, visibility, motivation, performance management, building morale, mentoring
  • Teamworking, working across boundaries
  • Achieving results in a way that strikes an appropriate balance between speed/delivery of results and the need for proper planning/long term strategic direction, risk management;
  • Project Management skills in particular the supervision/oversight aspects of project management ;
  • Strategic HR and Corporate Contribution –talent management, supporting the career and skills development of others; succession planning at both Divisional and corporate levels; For new Assistant Secretaries, the step up to the management board/corporate responsibilities.
  • Managing relationships with the political system
  • Credibility, presence

2.8 Other approaches to identifying Leadership Capabilities: The Leadership Code

There are many models of leadership available. The following approach, known as the Leadership Code [5], was used in the NUI Galway study and has been identified as a useful framework for its integrated approach to strategic and human capital development. It has a focus on both current effectiveness and long-term strategic planning. Most importantly, the Code places personal proficiency and self-development at the core of effective leadership, which has traditionally been insufficiently emphasised in senior civil service competency frameworks. Its emphasis on human capital development is also of key value given the importance of succession planning, workforce planning and capacity building in developing a leaner and more effective Civil Service at all levels..

FIGURE 4:The Leadership Code

Chapter 3: Gap Analysis

3.1 Gap Analysis

In order to make the SPS shared vision a reality and determine what is required in a Senior Public Service Development Strategy, it is important to assess the current leadership situation and compare it to the desired outcome. The challenges and themes highlighted by senior civil servants in the NUI Galway study [6] (outlined in Part 1) are reflected in the current leadership issues set out below. The Gap Analysis is measured across a number of dimensions – (1) Workforce Planning (2) Leadership Culture (3) Leadership Skills/Behaviours.

(1)Workforce Planning

CURRENT DESIRED

Insufficient strategic focus on developing Strategic focus on developing the

the SPS of the future future members of the SPS

Insufficient focus on human capitalA culture which promotes the development at senior management level important role of senior management in supporting staff to manage and develop their careers with a strategic focus on the future skill and competency needs of the organisation

Low female representation at senior Gender balance at senior levels of

management levelsCivil Service organisations, supported through mobility and other policies

Senior management levels largelyA senior leadership cadre which

built through internal promotion can draw on the skills and experience of both career

civil servants and those with external experience

(2) Leadership Culture

CURRENTDESIRED

Cross organisation collaboration Cross organisation collaboration

is ad hoc and often limited to through formal and informal

Departmental representation on networks and communities of