Report of the Deputy Chief Executive and City Treasurer

This report provides an update on the development of a plan on a page version of Our People Plan in support of Our People.

The Sub Group considered the report of the Deputy Chief Executive and City Treasurer that provided Members with an update on the development of a plan on a page version of the Our People Plan in support of Our People.

The Head of HR Operations referred to the main points and themes within the presentation which included: -

·         Providing context and an overview of the Our People Plan;

·         Presenting the Plan on a Page; and

·         Next steps.

Some of the key points that arose from the Sub Group’s discussions were: -

·         Staff personal responsibility as employees needed to be included in the Our People Plan;

·         More information was requested on the strategy to support and develop BAME staff into senior roles;

·         What were the identified barriers to succession planning, noting the changes to job roles and descriptions; and

·         Noting the length of time previous departmental reviews had taken and the impact this had on staff.

In response to the comment regarding staff development and career progression, the City Solicitor stated that as the lead officer with responsibility for equality she was actively engaging with a number of staff groups to progress and inform this important area of work and to deliver an inclusive and meaningful action plan. The Deputy Chief Executive and City Treasurer reiterated the importance of this work and commented that the findings of the BAME review would also inform the development of that action plan and noted that the findings of the review was scheduled to be reported to the Sub Group at an appropriate time.

The Chief Executive stated that the Our People Plan reflected and built upon the existing Our Manchester Values. She further commented that specific Directorate Work Force Development Strategies were being progressed to support staff recruitment and retention, in addition to a corporate approach to staff development. She further commented that the findings of the BAME review and the Our People Plan would inform the approach to workforce development.

The Head of HR Operations stated that it was recognised that there were many levels of bureaucracy across the organisation and the intention was to train managers to ensure that they were equipped with the appropriate skills set to deliver their role effectively and make decisions. The Deputy Chief Executive and City Treasurer commented that by empowering managers to make decisions this would support the delivery of any future departmental reviews, noting that whilst she acknowledged the comment from the Chair regarding timescales to implement departmental reviews and restructures, there were examples of where these had been delivered in a timely manner.

The Deputy Chief Executive and City Treasurer further stated that the Our Manchester approach supported the implementation of services delivered in neighbourhoods, with staff working in multidisciplinary teams to deliver improved outcomes for Manchester residents. She added that this model of service delivery would be facilitated by managers who possessed the correct skills set and who were empowered to make decisions, commenting that the staff in HROD were well equipped to support this activity.

The Deputy Chief Executive and City Treasurer stated that whilst it was recognised that departmental structures and job roles would change, the fundamental skill set for team leaders and senior managers remained the same and staff would be supported to develop these skills.

In response to a question from a Member, the Chief Executive stated that work was currently ongoing to permanently recruit to the post of Director of HR, commenting that this whilst Manchester was recognised as an attractive employer with an ambitious agenda the market remained very challenging.

Decision

To note the report.