1. Joint meeting of ESF PAG, INTERACT and Commission 23/10/2018
Staff engagement initiatives – two case studies
COMM CN network presentation of “The SG we want to be"
The idea of this project was born after the Commission staff survey of 2016 revealed room for • improvement in the way senior and middle managers of the SG communicate and engage with their people.
Colleagues asked for better
• two-way communication,
◦ guidance about the mission of the SG,
◦ encouragement for innovation and cross-functional cooperation,
◦ support of individual career developments.
Additionally, many new colleagues, including (senior) managers, have arrived to the SG recently. This situation emphasized the need to focus on management-staff communication.
The Secretary General initiating this project, Alexander Italianer has considered this project as a high personal priority.
End-2016 He launched a comprehensive consultation process involving all SG staff aiming to find concrete ways to improve communication and to find solutions to the other shortcomings identified. This was done via various management forums, two sounding boards with staff from across the SG, various unit/diretorate level meetings and finally, in the summer of 2016 an all SG reflection day.
Viktória Kovács,
European Commission, Secretariat-General,
Directorate for Transparency, Efficiency & Resources

2. …and to be made available to all staff
Video messages with colleagues from all-over the Commission produced for the management seminar of the Secretariat-General …
…and to be made available to all staff
Show that the (top) management is interested in ideas from staff from all-over the Commission
Independently from the formal function or grade
Video produced for Commission Secretariat General management seminar
By Secretariat-General together with DG HR
Objectives:
1st level objective: show (top) management of SG some feedback from colleagues from around the Commission around three areas and give some inspirative thoughts for their further reflections
How to better work together within the organization
How to better work together for more innovation
How to work better together to better deliver for the citizens
Video was first shown during the mid-September seminar to a circle of about 90 people
2nd level objective: publish video on the Commission’s intranet visible to all staff with the objective to:
Show that the voices and ideas of staff matter to the (top) management of the Commission
The collleagues in the video were experienced colleagues but except one person, with no formal managment functions (we avoided to mention the formal job-title, as it is about the individual and the ideas and not the title)
Attempt to show the potental of collective intelligence
Encouragement to colleagues to aim to improve the organization
Assumption that ideas for collaboration that are up to the individuals coming from peers, and not from top down, are more effective
Show the potential of collective intelligence
Encourage to aim to improve the organisation
Both by having ideas, as well as better collaboration, listening to suggestions from colleagues/peers

3. SG we want to be initiative
Bottom up approach
Strong senior management support
Empowerment of ’Just do it’ reforms
Focus on people
Use of different tools
SGS WWTB / why
Bottom up approach
Staff survey results
Intial study of results
Discussion in various management meetings
2 Sounding Boards
Reflection Day
Senior management support
Focus on people
Different tools

4. SG We want to be how
SG Talks
Encouraging and showing bottom up improvements
Material and explanations to help breaking the silos within the organisation
Help improve the working spaces to make them more collaborative and creativity boosting
Make the most out of digital communiation technologies
A dedicated series of talks to help to build individual careers
With a focus on those who are not often in the lime-light
Give all a voice – also trainees
Newsletter as a carrier of these messages