Public Sector HR Podcast

Working in the public sector has attracted some negative publicity in recent times. In this edition of the show, I talk to three people in the know, to find out what public sector managers really think.

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Jo Hennessy is Director of Research at Roffey Park, the executive development and research institute and she talks about the findings of their latest Management Agenda research. Now in it’s 11th year, the annual survey canvasses managers views and experiences across a wide range of organisational issues and of almost 500 participants, 25% were from the public sector.

The key findings for the public sector are:

• HIGH LEVELS OF EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT - public sector managers enjoy a better work-life balance, more flexible working and work less hours than their counterparts in the private services sector in order to be seen to be successful

• A HIGH PREVELANCE OF CHANGE - 92% of managers in the public sector have experienced change in the last two years compared with 78% in the private services sector. The public sector managers also said that there is room to manage change much better in their organisations 

• HOW UNDERPERFORMANCE IS TACKLED - only 4% of public sector managers said that this is dealt with effectively

• HIGH LEVELS OF BEAUROCRACY - 66% in the public sector against 45% in the private services sector

According to Jo, the challenges facing public sector managers include:

• HOW TO CONSOLIDATE THE BENEFITS OF CHANGE

• HOW TO MANAGE EMPLOYEE MOTIVATION THROUGHOUT CHANGE

• HOW TO ENSURE SOME REVIEW AND LEARING FROM ANY CHANGE PROGRAMME

To get a copy of the Management Agenda 2008 report visit www.roffeypark.com/research/managementagenda.html 

To give an ‘insiders view’ I talk next to Jan Parkinson, Managing Director of the Local Government Employers and Sian Thomas, Joint Acting Director of NHS Employers.

Jan is surprised by the Management Agenda findings and they don’t reflect her personal experience of working within the public sector. She agrees that there is some change weariness, but points to LGE research that shows public sector managers are very good at handling change. Jan also states that the best managers she has ever met have worked in the public sector, this she believes, is because the issues they face are so complex that they have to be incredibly innovative to deal with them.

Jan’s advice to HR Managers looking to improve performance in the public sector includes:

• DEVELOP A SUITE OF HR POLICES AND STRATEGIES THAT ARE COHERENT AND ALIGNED TO THE SAME GOAL

• GET SENIOR MANAGERS TO BUY INTO THOSE POLICIES  

Sian is also taken aback by the report and feels that although the survey sample size is reasonable, the NHS Employers own research of 300,000 NHS employees indicates that the day-to-day challenges faced by them, are the very reason why people come to work in the public sector. They have found that change is a motivator for a lot of people, as is a sense of massive responsibility early on in their careers.

She does agree that bureaucracy is the biggest demotivator and that middle and more junior staff find a lack of control somewhat limiting.

Sian’s advice to HR Mangers looking to tackle areas of weakness includes:

• SHAPE THE CULTURE - organise practices around a sense of well-being

• DEVELOP TALENT AND SKILLS - it’s a critical role for HR

• SUPPORT LINE MANAGERS - in managing change

To find out more about Local Government Employers visit www.lge.gov.uk or NHS Employers visit www.nhsemployers.org

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I would love to hear your feedback and any suggestions for further shows. Either email me directly at karen@publicsectorhrpodcast.co.uk or click on ‘Comment’ underneath the show title and type away.