COMMENT
civil servants with flexible, modern equipment that would work both remotely and in the office.
In addition to looking at the previous targets that had been set out, the report also looked over the Civil Service as a whole and identified what reform still needs to be addressed.
Heywood said: “Like any organisation of great longevity, we need to continue to refresh,
modernise, improve. We need
a culture of continuous improvement to become embedded.”
First chief executive for the Civil Service
The prime minister has appointed the first-ever chief executive of the Civil Service: John Manzoni, the previous head of the Major Projects Authority.
Manzoni, whose 30 years of experience in the private sector includes time as CEO of BP Downstream and of Talisman Energy, steps into a role that was created in the wake of Sir Bob Kerslake stepping down last month.
He became a controversial figure at BP when he was criticised for his role in the Texas oil refinery explosion that killed 15 people in 2005. An internal report said he failed to heed “serious warning signals” prior to the Texas explosion, and Manzoni stepped down a month later. The report cleared him of serious neglect or intentional misconduct.
Cabinet secretary Sir Jeremy Heywood has reclaimed the full title ‘Head of the Civil Service’, while Manzoni will have control over the key functions that make government as a whole work more efficiently. This includes being in charge of the Efficiency and Reform Group and the Civil Service Reform programme.
David Cameron said: “As part of our long-term economic plan, we have cut the costs of Whitehall and improved the way government is run. But the job of changing our country is far from done.
“This is why I am delighted to appoint John Manzoni as the first chief executive of the Civil Service. John’s experience of business and the private sector puts him in the perfect position to accelerate the pace of these reforms in the years ahead.”
At a briefing in Whitehall attended by PSE, the minister for the Cabinet Office, Francis Maude MP, said: “One of the many advantages that John has is that he has already spent six months in the Civil Service and has emphatically passed the ‘tissue rejection test’.”
He also stressed that Manzoni’s time in the private sector had given him high-level experience in both line management and functional management, which are both key skillsets needed for the role.
He said: “John is an excellent choice as the first chief executive of the Civil Service. Last year alone our Whitehall reforms helped save taxpayers £14.3bn compared to a 2009-10 baseline. But there’s much more to do to accelerate the pace of reform and embed a new, more efficient approach to government. Hard-working people expect us to spend their money carefully and this appointment will help us do just that.”
Commenting on his new role, Manzoni said: “I am excited to take up this post at the heart of government at this crucial time. My priority is building on the existing momentum to strengthen the execution muscle of Whitehall and embed a sustainable productivity agenda across government. I look forward to playing my part in leading the Civil Service along with Francis Maude and Jeremy Heywood.”
The other key areas targeted in the report were the culture of the Civil Service and its
A key target for further reform is digital. The report said that government needs to greatly expand its digital capabilities during the next Parliament.
“The shift to digital will not stop with the 25 exemplar services. If we are really to change how people use government services, all government transactional services – where possible – should be available online and easy to use. More government transactional services will follow this route,” said the report.
workforce. In the foreword to the report, Maude and Heywood say civil servants must deal “competently and straightforwardly” with ministers, providing open debate and candid advice. “But once a ministerial decision has been taken, civil servants have a professional duty to make a reality of that decision,” they write.
Culture of the future
They have a clear vision for the culture of the future: “We need culture change that supports innovation,
challenges the bias to inertia,
makes us more receptive to relevant experience from other organisations so that all parts of the Civil Service are as good as the best, and makes the most of the formidable talents at our disposal, regardless of gender, ethnicity, sexuality or disability.”
Maude and Heywood identify leadership as the key to changing culture in Whitehall and plan to develop a new leadership statement to make clear the expectations on all leaders in the Civil Service.
The report also says that more people from outside the civil service will be brought in to address skills gaps, with more training and support for existing civil servants. As part of this there will be a new presumption that senior civil service appointments below permanent secretary level should be open to external candidates. Civil servants applying for permanent secretary posts will be expected – and after summer 2016 required – to have completed an appropriate business school leadership course before taking up an appointment, ensuring that leadership skills are prioritised for the top management posts in the Civil Service. Maude did say, however, that there was a mixed record of success with people coming straight from the private sector, with plenty of examples of “tissue rejection”.
He will hope that this will not apply to the appointment of John Manzoni as the first chief executive of the Civil Service (see box out). Announced alongside the release of the report, the hiring of Manzoni is the first key move in achieving these new targets.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
W:
www.gov.uk/government/publications/ civil-service-reform-plan-progress-report
public sector executive Oct/Nov 14 | 19
© John Stillwell PA Wire
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76