social partnership learnings
DESCRIPTION
Reform within social partnerships - How to manage change with the support of unions and professional associations. Unions and professional associations are one of the critical success factors in public sector change. Key factors: Deep democracy or equivalent; Agreement, concordat or equivalent; On going joint governance and monitoring.TRANSCRIPT
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Reform within social partnerships
Nigel C Carr
www.reformprogramme.com
Reform within social partnerships
2012
www.reformprogramme.com
Reform within social partnerships
Name Reform within social partnerships
Problem How to manage change with the
support of unions and professional
associations
Assumptions Unions and professional associations
are one of the critical success factors
in public sector change
Examples Workforce Agreement Monitoring
Group (WAMG)
Acceptance
Criteria
• Genuine partnership
• Respect for individual perspectives
Deployment • Deep democracy or equivalent
• Agreement, concordat or equivalent
• On going joint governance and
monitoring
This pack is part of a library of
resource freely published by the
Reform Programme
• It is based on the results of real
programmes in the public sector
• Resources have been kept as
close as possible to the actual
deliverables
• Resources are reasonably self-
contained
For information on other resources
please contact The Reform
Programme
www.reformprogramme.com
What is a social partnership?
A formal concordat between diverse service and workforce
representative organisations to provide the critical role to
ensure the implementation of an agreed set of challenging
objectives. This is couple to a commitment to continue
working collaboratively on progressing the wider agenda.*
The term “social partnership” in the United Kingdom has often been associated with bilateral
relationships between unions and employers that are focused on resolving conflicting priorities. The
above definition of social partnership, and the references throughout the document, are based on a wider
understanding of the role of all stakeholders in defining and achieving the aims of public policy.
Within Europe the term Social Concertation is often used as an alternative to social partnership and
usually includes business representatives.
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Characteristics of reform How public/private sector transformations deliver reform
Reform value chain
• Changes at the point of service delivery are
driven back up the service value chain after
stimulating demand for support
• Process, content and relationship sequence of
priorities for reform is the reverse of “normal”
change management order
• Change channels as part of the capacity building
as well as communication
Reform resources
• Implementation resources usable by staff on the front line
• Leveraged model using mainstream resources rather than by-passes
• "Cascades" of KPIs that make sense at the point of service delivery as well as nationally
Reform monitoring
• Sustainability of the change outcomes in regard to a balanced scorecard
• "Cascades" of KPIs that make sense at the point of service delivery as well as nationally
• Single integrated reform support and monitoring organisation forms the basis of the change agent relationship management
Reform cultural change
• Use and management of change agents as part of local “social partnership”
• Managing practical "cultural change“ as behaviour change rather than management theory
• Differentiated approaches, not “one size fits all”, across and along the service value chain
www.reformprogramme.com
Reform needs to be managed across two
different delivery strategies
Mainstream delivery …
• Use of the existing local
management and service delivery
mechanisms (public and private
sector)
• Local knowledge and intelligence
supported from the centre
• Front line management and service
based teams implementing service-
led reforms
• Costs are mostly in training and
quality assurance
Bypass delivery …
• Use of new resources – but often
end up seconding people from
existing system
• Costs are mostly in secondment
costs
• Use system bypass if the change is
small and/or the system doesn’t
have an ongoing role in supporting
the service units
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Our learning about key characteristics
of a reform channels …
• Capability is concentrated at the centre
– Based on expertise and experience of the central resources
– Based on gathering new good practice from the field
• Cascade develops homogeneous capacity in the system’s own
resources
• Training and development to create capacity
• Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) to ensure there is capability
within the capacity
• Feedback and coaching relationships built to ensure rapid take up of
new skills/behaviours
• System develops ownership of the change agenda, facilitated by the
change agent
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Our learning about forming social
partnerships
• The basis of the Social Partnership is a signed concordat:
– Aspirational objectives desired by all
– Schedules are progressively more difficult over time
– There is a defined on going role for the social Partnership in the
implementation
• The objectives will need to be based on a new perspective for all
– Challenging traditional assumptions of roles and disciplines
– Not based on least worst compromise
• Objectives can include commitments to deal with more difficult issues
when appropriate progress has been made but to be concluded
before the final third of the scheduled time
• When a detailed implementation plan cannot be defined then the
concordat should define the creation of a reform team for which the
Social Partnership acts as a steering group
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Our learning about managing social
partnerships
• The whole social partnership needs to meet regularly to fulfil its on going role
in the implementation
• Subgroups can be created to handle specific issues
– They need to report to the main meeting
– They often need to comprise all organisations in the partnership and engage wider
officials
• The networks of the organisations in the social partnership are key sources
on intelligence on progress in the implementation
– However, these networks are not on their own appropriate to deliver the
implementation
• The chair and location for the meetings should rotate. Strategy summits to
consider wider aspects of the implementation should be held as the regular
meetings often need work at mainly a detail level
• If there is a reform team then should act as an honest broker across the
partnership and be present at all the meetings for steering
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Public sector reform critical success factors are key to the
development of reform channels
Service-level
reform levers
Critical
success
factors
Social
partnership
Challenge to the
system
Enabling
programme
Implementation
resources
Mainstream
delivery
Public sector
resources
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• Private/public sector acceptable performance is
different:
•“full” failure is/isn’t allowed
•Competition/service aspirations
• Change needs to be planned and executed at this
lowest level in target resources, structures, processes
and boundaries in services
Service-level reform levers
Why is it important?
• Standards agenda and Industrial agenda are actually the same
•Workforce vision of new professionalism
•New performance management (Balance Reform Scorecard)
• The identified problems are shared - relevant and important to both the
change sponsors and targets
Service-level reform levers …
• Mainstreaming change into
permanent roles/responsibilities
and concurrence on
implementation
• Overwhelming majority of
unions/associations in the game
What are the implications for private/public sector reform?
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Social partnership
• Develop new joint objectives
• Provider led reform - reform is done on behalf of the
vast majority of resources
• Produces a coherent vision of the future
• Partnership between public and private sectors
Why is it important?
• Single agreed versions of advice and guidance signify solidarity of
purpose within the sponsors
• Other aligned advice providers are not competitors
• All stakeholders will have to take new positions
• Not about finding only the common denominator (committee)
• Not compromise (collective bargaining)
Social partnership …
• Government, representative
bodies, unions, employers and
experts working in concert
• Foundation for future
cooperation and system
transformation
What are the implications for private/public sector reform?
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• Most expertise in change is based on private sector
ideas in product industries
• This doesn’t apply to private/public sector service
industry
• A system can’t challenge itself from within with quick
coherent results
• Current system is focused on cost (customer/public
purse) rather than long term value (private/public service)
Challenge to the system
Why is it important?
• Role models the future behaviours required by the reform including
modelling to social partners
• Perceived to be working independently of sponsor and target - builds
capability to change and acts as a fixer
What are the implications for private/public sector reform?
Challenge to the system …
• Independent change agent as
critical friend
• Key role of data and evidence for
CQI and to invoke change
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• There are defined progress, outcome and support
measures of the reform
• Change at the point of service delivery is the priority:
• Increased capacity for future change; inclusive team
driving change; coherent at the point of service
delivery; services leading reform
Enabling programmes of support
Why is it important?
• Change is not seen as a professional activity in service teams
• Front line change process has key checkpoints, supported by events
to share learning and experiences
• Local measures drive “support planning” for
service teams
What are the implications for private/public sector reform?
Enabling programme …
• Expert change agent working
"beneath the surface"
• Public/private partnership
creating success for the system
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• Private/public sector is weak on process (tools and
techniques) and strong in content and relationships
• This is not about leadership; this is not about training
and development
• This is about building capability and capacity to change
• Initiate change in the place where there will be least
resistance to change – and then bring change up front
in the implementation
Implementation resources
Why is it important?
• Resources are given away – where possible carrying the system’s
badges
• Resources pay explicit attention to rational, political and emotional
requirements - incorporate buyer and user behaviours
What are the implications for private/public sector reform?
Implementation resources …
• National network of local
management and service-based
advisers
• Training and skills transfer of the
highest order
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• Differentiated local delivery for a national programme
• System emulates success – part of their CPD; not a
theoretical central model
• Not prescribed nationally or locally
• Only use system bypass if the change is small and/or
the system doesn’t have an ongoing role in supporting
the service units
Mainstream delivery of Transformation
Why is it important?
• Removes fortress culture around service boundaries
• Integrated channels – person-to-person, web, helpdesk
• Specialist channels
What are the implications for private/public sector reform?
Mainstream delivery …
• Use of the existing local delivery
mechanisms (public and private
sector)
• Local knowledge and intelligence
supported from the centre
• Service-based teams
implementing service-led reforms
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www.reformprogramme.com
• Fostering informed practice and collaboration between
service teams
• Progress data owned locally; assessment of progress
and action planning locally and facilitated/normalised
centrally
• Drives prioritisation of support in the reform – acting on
progress monitoring requires the capacity to have “the
difficult conversations”
Multiplier effect of current public sector
resources
Why is it important?
• Costs are mostly in training and quality assurance – not in
secondment costs
• Allows scaling up of a core team capability to the capacity required
by the project –must be a core team capability
What are the implications for private/public sector reform?
Public sector resources …
• Effect of national core network
greater than sum of its parts
• Buy-in, trust and credibility
established locally and nationally
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Structuring next steps Some of the key considerations in developing an approach
Different geographies have very
different demographic and socio-
economic profiles
There needs to be a number of
different local service teams types
included in the Pathfinder
Consideration Conclusion
How to ensure that the Pathfinder
is replicable
The conditions must be the same
for the Pathfinder as for the roll out
(e.g. no pump priming)
How to ensure that the Process is
sustainable
The reform must be about building
ownership, capacity and capability
at a local level – for local solutions
Building a change agent network
takes time and we want to get it
right first time
Use a Pathfinder approach and
prepare for the national roll out in
parallel
There are many organisations
involved in this field who will be
only too willing to help
Focus the effort through the local
teams, but leverage resources on
a national basis
www.reformprogramme.com
Public Sector Mgmt
Private Sector Mgt
Assessment
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Change Agents and existing tools How Change Agent ways of working fit into the existing toolsets
Evidence
Specific Practical Advice
Benchmarking
Service Mgmt
Training
Conclusions
Develop training for use
in the wider community
targeting at reform
Application of a change
process for use in the
wider community
Continue to develop and
enhance
Action plans
To be capable of
delivering the change
process to local
organisations
Tools and advice
available
Current support programmes needs to place more emphasis on assessment and targeted change processes
www.reformprogramme.com 20
Establishing the Reform How to create the conditions for success in the largest reform issues we face
Service Regional/Local National
Service
Regional/ Local
National
International integration
Political
National integration
Public sector
Private sector
Monitoring
Establish Reform Pathfinder
Delivery
Key:
Capacity building
Single reform change process working
across sectors and disciplines
Cross-party support to reform approach secured
Innovation
Local cross party communication
aligned to national organisations
Coherence with Treasury Reviews
National/Local conferences on opportunities for
future-safe development
Geopolitical analysis of UK energy/climate/
carbon scenarios
Service knowledge networks
established across public and
private sector disciplines
Local support and capacity building propositions
developed in collaboration with front line service
teams
Reform progress and outcome measured co-created
Local reform delivery adopt change agent roles with support and
monitoring roles
Balanced scorecard of national consistent and locally meaningful
measures
Regional/local incubator and research
delivery Multi-sector priorities agreed for innovation objective
Coordinated local government and local
authority response
Differentiated regional and local reform teams through traditional existing funding
streams
Differentiated empowered service teams with local
communities
National venture funding pools
Private/public funded ventures
& markets
Communication and information provided in the context of the
reform change process
Single reform change process working
across sectors and disciplines