Soft skills such as communication, teamworking and staff development, are increasingly recognized as essential if leaders are to deliver high levels of staff satisfaction. This growing emphasis on soft skills has been recognized by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development which has introduced two certificates to give them a greater professional status.An Advanced Certificate in Coaching and Mentoring has been launched in conjunction with the Oxford School of Coaching and Mentoring. The programme which supports the certificate takes account of the new evidence which is emerging about the importance that coaching and mentoring styles have on the success of all types of organizations.

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One of the main weaknesses of large scale project management across government is being tackled with the introduction of a new specialism. Currently managing change programmes and large scale projects is a once in a life time experience for civil servants who have to cope with a steep learning curve. Most of the expertise from the intense learning is lost at the end of the project with the move back into mainstream work.The Office of Government Commerce and the Cabinet Office Corporate Development Group have launched the Programme and Project Management Specialism to allow people in departments and other public bodies to make a career in project management.

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By Carole Johnson and Stephen P. OsborneThis article analyses the Government’s approach to using Local Strategic Partnerships in Neighbourhood Renewal. The Government claims to have established a policy framework that combines co-ordination and co-governance. However, it appears that there is an unbalanced approach to supporting these two aspects. Co-ordination is supported strongly through funding, target setting and the accreditation process, while co-governance has only weak funding and accreditation processes to ensure its success. The authors conclude that the Government is keen to keep control over the levers of regeneration and is therefore more than slightly ambiguous over its espoused aim of encouraging co-governance.

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