New research by the Chartered Management Institute reveals that although alcohol and drug misuse has an estimated 3.5 billion pounds annual cost to UK organizations, almost half of managers would have difficulty in identifying possible signs of drug misuse in their colleagues. More than one in ten would find it hard to recognize signs of alcohol misuse.The research showed that the hidden menace not only affects individuals, but can also impact on overall organizational performance through increased risk of accidents, poor judgment or prolonged absenteeism. US studies show that substance abusers are 33% less productive, three times as likely to be late, four times as likely to hurt themselves or others at work, and ten times as likely to miss work.
The worst fears of local government managers about their changing role have been realized in a report prepared by the University of Birmingham and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. ‘Continuity or Change? Officers and New Council Constitutions’ examines the impact of the new political structures on the roles of officers in councils. Most councils have changed to a cabinet system of governance with a leader, others now have elected mayors. The report identifies a trend towards stronger political leadership with a consequent disempowerment of managers.The effect on the role of the chief executive is varied, depending largely on the strength of political leadership. In most cases the greater involvement of the cabinet and executive council members in decision making has had an impact on the chief executive. In some councils the role is changing from chief executive to managing director, with less involvement in policy development. A result of this trend is that a number of chief executives have taken the opportunity to retire, whilst others have moved to different types of posts.
Most people who resign from their jobs are not moving for money or career progress but because they are sick of their immediate boss. Personality clashes or general dissatisfaction with managers are the biggest single reason for people leaving their jobs. The conclusion drawn from a survey by Manchester Metropolitan University is that weak management pushes good employees to leave. The finger is pointed at young, inexperienced supervisors who have not been in the job long enough to benefit from watching good managers at work. Each time an employee leaves, the costs to the organization are between 50 and 250 per cent of his or her annual salary. But few organizations ever find out the real reasons for their departure, because they are usually reluctant to say anything that could burn their professional bridges. Instead, they give positive reasons for leaving such as career advancement, a better salary, or neutral reasons – family circumstances.Published by The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. http://www.cipd.co.uk 24.99 pounds.
The outsourcing of Brighton and Hove City Council’s refuse and street service proved disasterous. As well as service failures it resulted in staff doing the same jobs on different terms and conditions, because of contracts signed with different contractors. The council terminated the contract with the final contractor in October 2001 and transferred the service back under direct management.A thoroughgoing review has resulted in a switch in the focus of the waste service from refuse to recycling. The recycling service has been expanded and staff transferred from refuse to recycling collection. The Recycling and Refuse Services have been integrated and managers made jointly responsible for refuse and recycling collection crews.
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Managers are moving up the learning curve in negotiating deals with private sector contractors under the public finance initiative. Over 500 PFI deals have been signed so far, but when the earlier deals were negotiated the public sector managers, unlike the contractors, did not understand the complexities of raising finance for the projects. The terms of the contracts were agreed on the basis of the rates of interest charged by the financial backers. Contractors did not reveal their intention to re-finance projects when they reached implementation, because at this point the risk of something going wrong was reduced substantially. Consequently money could be borrowed at a much lower rate.Auditors from the Nation Audit Office discovered what was happening and set up discussions with industry representative to agree a code of conduct that would give the taxpayer a better deal. The Office for Government Commerce launched a voluntary Code in October and it has been widely accepted by PFI contractors. The Code specifies that gains from any re-financing will be split on a 50-50 basis between both parties.
By Patrick LencioniThe author describes the ultimate leadership crisis: uniting a team in disarray. This is a gripping tale and serves as a timeless reminder that leadership requires as much courage as it does insight. Throughout the story, Lencioni reveals the five dysfunctions which go to the very heart of why teams even the best ones-often struggle. He outlines a powerful model and steps that can be used to overcome these common hurdles and build a cohesive, effective team. This is a powerful yet deceptively simple message for all those who strive to be exceptional team leaders.
Call centres providing a range of public services are managed better by private sector companies. They provide a better service and make more effective use of staff. These are conclusions from the National Audit Office report ‘Using Call Centres to Deliver Public Services’.The NAO survey found that call centres managed by private sector companies are generally better equipped, particularly with IT systems. They also have more flexible staffing arrangements to manage the volume of calls so that people rarely get an engaged tone. Where calls cannot be answered the caller hears a recorded message and is able to leave contact details for the centre to call back. The report quotes the department run Child Benefit Centre which answered 2.6 million calls in a year, but a further 5.4 million calls received an engaged tone. The Centre does not know how many times these callers had to redial and whether they eventually got through to an agent.
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More than 100 council leaders have signed up to a pledge that commits their councils to either give or receive support to improving services. The pledge ‘Moving towards excellence’ is sponsored by the Local Government Association and its aim is to make sure that there is no need for the Government to intervene in the running of any council by 2006.The Comprehensive Performance Assessment tables published last week showed 13 councils performing poorly, with a further 22 in the weak category. This assessment was limited to the largest 150 councils and the remaining 300 smaller councils will be brought into the assessment process in December next year. Councils in the bottom, poorly performing, category are subject to special monitoring and intervention by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister if there is no marked and rapid improvement.
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By John Redwood and Nick SeatonThe authors calculate that if all the money followed the child, state schools would have a sum equivalent to the independent sector. They argue that with this funding all state schools could be freed from government and given the same legal status as an independent school. Headteachers would then have the same degree of autonomy and the state would pay a specified sum – in the region of 5,000 pounds per year – directly to the school. New schools would be allowed to open and existing ones to expand. All state schools would become Public Trust Companies, taking control over staffing, admissions, transport, management and assets from the LEA. Parents would then have direct control over their child’s education. Government would be seen as a funder and regulator, not a provider, of education. Teachers would be seen as responsible professionals. LEAs would become service providers, catering to the needs of schools which want them, on a competitive basis.
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has called for further Government action to reduce poverty. A new report by the Foundation highlights how changes have helped low-income households, such as falling unemployment, rising school achievement and better housing, but calls for extra measures to raise the incomes of the poorest families. New evidence shows that without further action the Government will have difficulty meeting its commitment to reduce child poverty by a quarter by 2004The report shows that out of 50 key indicators of poverty and social exclusion, 24 have improved over the past five years, while only six have grown worse. Increased spending on public services such as health and education has also tended to benefit the poor more than people on higher incomes.