1. Support Services Review Update and Final Proposals to Corporate Board
22nd September 2014

2. This presentation will cover…
The aims of the review – what does great look and feel like?
The whole organisation conditions needed to ensure the future success of support service arrangements.
Functional groupings and join ups that will ensure “the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.”
Structural proposals along with opportunities, risks and evaluation against issues identified.
Corporate Board is asked to comment, challenge and agree a final approach to take to Members

3. 1. Overarching aims of the review…
Successfully re-integrate large parts of SCS and Capita.
Reach an agreed approach to Transformation.
Ensure Support Services are best positioned to successfully support current and future organisational challenges.
Provide strong support to Corporate Board and LAG to;
Facilitate decision making on future strategic plans,
Understand and communicate whole organisational performance in delivering agreed corporate priorities.

4. 1. Key considerations in the review…
A steer from Corporate Board on 30 June to simplify current arrangements.
Stakeholder feedback and research into arrangements in similar organisations.
Board Director Resources view about what would work best to resolve the identified issues and challenges, in particular which join-ups would be most impactful in the context of Stronger Together.
High importance attached to providing better support to Corporate Board and LAG around strategic decision making and corporate performance, in the context of the Chief Executive’s proposal to position Corporate Board as;
“a place where Chief Officers comer together to provide the Corporate organisational leadership that will drive forward the Council’s strategic agenda and in particular;
The five Council properties
All the elements of Stronger Together
One Swindon
A clear line of sight on the Medium Term financial Plan.”

5. 1. What does great look and feel like?
New support service arrangements will play a lead role in achieving the following strategic aims:
There is a strong, common purpose based on a clear corporate strategy and plan that is shared between Corporate Board and LAG. Through a sustained focus on what matters, there is clear two-way accountability for delivery of organisational priorities. Having a good understanding of each others’ perspectives and their individual and collective responsibilities means that officers and Members can work well together.
There is a shared understanding of whole organisational performance based on evidence and data. As a result, Elected Members and the organisation generally feel well equipped to have meaningful discussions with communities.
Through engaging with them in different ways, residents, Members and staff have a good understanding of the context in which the Council is operating, the additional demands being placed on it through changing local and national circumstances and the reality of the funding constraints. In this environment, Members feel equipped to make difficult decisions about priorities.

6. 1. What does great look and feel like?
Data is used intelligently to provide new insight that informs choices on the nature of the Council’s role in delivering services and supporting communities and individuals. This, with a consistent application of change methodology and the right skills and resources, enables a speedy move from exploration to implementation.
Residents and customers feel that the Council has a good understanding of issues they face and is responding positively to make a difference to their lives. As a result, residents feel motivated and inspired to take a more active role in their neighbourhoods.
The Council has a good reputation locally and nationally and is well understood in terms of what it stands for, what it delivers and how it works with people. Staff are proud to work for the Council and partners want to work with it.

7. 1. What does great look and feel like?
Additionally, new support service arrangements will play a lead role in improving the following areas of operational performance:
A consistent approach to measuring, monitoring and managing performance is in place that ensures members and staff understand and value the power of good information and measurement in improving the organisation. Managers and staff have the skills to set and monitor delivery against measurable targets.
Information and insight, both quantitative and qualitative, is being provided to ensure the right questions are being asked when services are being reviewed and re-designed.
Organisational changes are managed consistently through a common approach that staff and residents can understand, engage with and feel involved in.
A common standard to interaction with customers is in place and consistently adopted, resulting in increased customer satisfaction and reduced costs.
Managers can access independent professional advice, support, information, technology and tools, that helps them identify solutions to challenges.
We will work to a structured, annual cycle of understand, plan, do, review that will be embedded in our “DNA”. We recognise that agile responses will needed on issues as they arise, but will, over time, reduce these to a minimum.

8. Clarity of expectation with Board on ownership of key activities
2. What are the conditions needed for success?
Clarity of expectation with Board on ownership of key activities
In the development of Stronger Together, we recognised (in the report to Full Council) that;
“A number of conditions must be met for the new [Stronger Together] model to deliver the benefits we seek:
Clear, shared goals which are collectively owned by the leadership team
An approach to resource management that includes an increasing use of matrix management and pooled resources that can move across the organisation to meet peaks in demand
Strong governance supported by enabling processes that facilitate timely progress
Clearer accountability, strong performance management, trust and collaboration”
These key themes have naturally re-emerged through the support services review.

9. Clarity of expectation with Board on ownership of key activities
2. What are the conditions needed for success?
Clarity of expectation with Board on ownership of key activities
In this context, while support service leads will hold individual accountability for a range of activities and outputs, it is proposed that Board Members should share collective ownership for the following:
Medium to long-term strategy for the organisation
Corporate Plan and corporate narrative
Relationship with LAG
Corporate performance, against the Corporate Plan and wider, including re-directing resources as necessary
Performance appraisal delivery
It is also felt to be highly desirable that Board Members feel a shared accountability for successful delivery of more specific issues, including:
Strategic Commissioning
Community Capacity
Engaging and inspiring the workforce
Partnership engagement
Organisation reputation

10. 2. What are the conditions needed for success?
Board and Organisational support for the positioning of support services leads as Functional Leaders
A simplified structure need not mean that all similar/like functions are pulled together under the control of a single lead manager;
We are a very diverse organisation;
Statutory roles require direct line of site to performance data/information.
However, consistency in approach helps ensure that a Council-wide view can more easily be reached of organisational health.

11. 2. What are the conditions needed for success?
Board and Organisational support for the positioning of support services leads as Functional Leaders
It is proposed that the prime role of support service leaders would be to bring strong functional leadership. When coupled with clear accountabilities, this can support a matrix approach, where different roles across the organisation are understood and valued.
In order for this to be successful, support services leads will be expected to:
broker their desired approach and priority areas of focus with Board; and
through building strong relationships, ensure their functional leadership is felt consistently across the Council
Alongside this, Board Directors and Senior Leaders will be expected to:
acknowledge the functional leadership role of support services leads; and
support them in fulfilling their professional accountabilities

12. 3. Key join-ups across support services functions
Stronger Together provides the context and framework – an expectation of strong relationships and collaboration within the Council and, beyond it, with individuals and communities. Examples (not exhaustive) across support services include the following;
Customer Services and Business Support:
Capturing and disseminating insight from customer contacts both corporately and to individual services (“voice of the customer”)
Working with front line services to review end-to- end processes, around the needs of the customer
Finance and Strategic Programmes:
Sharing the skills, tools and resources to ensure services are both supported and challenged to fundamentally review what they deliver and, where relevant, introduce new models
Providing expertise to interpret and explain the Council’s medium-term resourcing challenge in a way that allows it to be made available through different media to stakeholders inside and outside the Council
Law & Democratic Services:
Joining up Overview and Scrutiny Committee requirements for data and insight on service performance with corporate and service performance management and reporting arrangements and research resources
Advising on optimum governance arrangements that maintain transparency while ensuring speedy decision making
Information and Technology:
Ensuing that the technology platform is robust in supporting flexible and remote working, that provides a platform for transformational change
Capturing and holding information assets in a consistent, secure way that enables data analysts to create a whole system picture of communities and service users

13. 3. A joined up approach to developing strategic options…
Informs and delivers
SBC vision & strategy - ‘Stronger Together’
Informs and delivers
Finance & Strategic Programmes
Performance, People, Engagement
Makes sense of changing context so we respond in an agile way to deliver against our priorities and intent
Establishes and holds the medium to long term intent for the organisation
Strategic planning
Understands what resources we have
Understands how best to align our resources to our priorities
Strategic/Change programmes
Holds overall enabling change resource
Reports on big strategic/change programmes
Corporate planning
Agree strategic priorities – five years
Agree how to measure progress
Annual articulation of above points in business planning process
Corporate performance
Tracks delivery against our priorities
Reporting and action

14. 3. And, importantly, across Performance, People and Engagement
SBC vision & strategy - ‘Stronger Together’
Framework for measuring & delivery
Reinforces & brings to life
Informs
Research
Intelligence
Data Analysis
Consultation
Engagement
External & Internal comms
News & Information
Campaigns
Marketing (Social)
Print & Design
Consultation
Engagement
Corp. performance
People management
Business planning
People performance
Risk management
Reward strategy
Workforce/l’ship development
Drives
Drives
Aligns
Aligns
Insight & intelligence

15. 4. Structurally, what would work best?
Structural options for Tier 2 posts (and Tier 3 in some areas) have been developed for consideration by Board
This is supported by an assessment of how different models that could be adopted for Performance, People and Engagement best address the issues raised

16. Approx 100 staff +£3m contract Approx 20 staff +£5m contract
4. Across support services, the following is proposed…
Director of Law and Democratic Services
Head of Customer and Business Services
Head of IT and Information Governance
Head of Finance and Strategic Projects
Performance, People, and Engagement
Changes to Tier 2 responsibility
Gains Technical Finance , PFI, operational Capita services (temporary), resourcing the strategic projects and Procurement
Changes to Tier 2 responsibility
Loses ICT, Corporate Performance & Capita Partnership
Gains HR & Payroll Admin, operational responsibility for former Capita services
New function
Approx 100 staff +£3m contract
Approx 350 staff
Approx 20 staff +£5m contract
Approx 80 staff
Approx 40 staff
Responsibilities
Communications and Engagement
Research and Intelligence / GIS
People Management
Workforce / Leadership Development
Staff Performance and Reward Strategy
Corporate and Business Planning
Risk Management
Corporate Performance Reporting
Changes to Tier 2 responsibility
New stand-alone function bringing all IT and co-ordination of information governance work under a single tier 2 post
Changes to Tier 2 responsibility
Gains Revenues and Benefits
Some changes, but largely based on current core arrangements

17. 4. Why change the current structure for PPE functions?
There is a recognition and agreement that the Council needs to have a stronger focus on organisational performance
There are significant challenges to re-integrate Capita services, re- shape working arrangements and develop and introduce a new, customer offer. Therefore the proposed Customer Services and Business Support function deliberately does not include corporate performance management. It follows then that no change to PPE is not an option.
While it is reasonable to expect that some changes can be made through building relationships, the web of current relationships is simply too complex.

18. 4. PPE Proposal – a different approach…
Board Director Resources
Responsibilities
Range of functions (TBD) and linkages between them
Other functions
Head of PPE
Responsibilities
Corporate Performance Reporting
Organisational performance culture
Corporate and Business Planning
Risk Management
Professional advisor to Board & Cabinet
Realising the PPE vision
Head of HR
Head of Comms & Intelligence
Responsibilities
People Management
Workforce / Leadership Development
Staff Performance and Reward Strategy
Responsibilities
Communications and Engagement
Research and Data Analysis
Performance & Planning Team