Issue - meetings

Change Programme

Meeting: 18/11/2010 - Council Excellence Overview and Scrutiny Committee (Item 80)

80 Transforming Business Support/Strategic Change Programme pdf icon PDF 179 KB

Verbal Update

Minutes:

Further to minute 63 (28 October 2010), the Director of Technical Services/Programme Director (Strategic Change) provided an update in relation to the Strategic Change Programme and, in particular, the work undertaken in relation to Common Administrative Processes/Transforming Business Support. Initially, HR and payroll systems were being considered with a view to moving away from paper based processes, in order to identify savings and maximise the benefits. However, none of the projects had yet been submitted to the Strategic Change Programme Board and, in response to questions from Members, the Director indicated that it was not possible at the present time to provide an indicative level of saving for next year’s budget.

 

Resolved – That the update report be noted.


Meeting: 28/10/2010 - Council Excellence Overview and Scrutiny Committee (Item 63)

63 Strategic Change Programme pdf icon PDF 38 KB

Update to be provided by the Director of Technical Services.

 

At the request of the Chair, Cabinet minutes and reports related to the Strategic Change Programme, from meetings held on 14 January and 22 July 2010, are attached for Members’ consideration.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Further to minute 43 (21/9/10) the Director of Technical Services provided an update on the Strategic Change Programme. The report outlined progress made to date including the establishment of the Strategic Change Programme Office (SCPO) under the Director of Technical Services and also of a Strategic Change Programme Board (SCPB).

 

A corporate project management system (ProjectVision, Cora Systems) had been procured and configured against the delivery arrangements established by SCPB. Training on the use of the system had begun and was due to conclude on 16 November 2010, for key project managers. Additional training for members and Chief Officers would take place as required.

 

The Director described the “decision gate” approach to programme delivery which had been developed. This approach established a number of decision gates projects had to pass through during the project life cycle. If a project failed to satisfy specific criteria, SCPB would not approve progression to the next stage. An assurance framework had been agreed and would be delivered by the Director of Finance, providing independent assurance of the programme to SCPB.

 

The Strategic Change Programme Board had provisionally agreed three delivery channels in which the projects would be categorised:

 

·  Strategic Change Projects – These projects will be managed using the delivery arrangements and assurance framework agreed by SCPB. The progress of these projects will be monitored by SCPB.

·  Business as Usual Projects – those projects which will be primarily managed through normal governance processes i.e. Cabinet decides, Executive Team implements, scrutiny monitors. However, some projects will be significant in terms of the efficiencies to be delivered or the risk to the organisation that SCPB will require some oversight.

·  DASS Programme - These projects have clear dependencies and linkages to each other and should be managed as a single programme.

 

The existing programme agreed by Cabinet on 14 January 2010, had been reviewed to establish if projects were still relevant to the Council’s objectives, had the ability to be delivered or could be enhanced or stretched to provide additional outcomes. Any new or emerging ideas had also been assessed by SCPB for inclusion.

 

All projects were awaiting SCPB approval. In some cases this approval was the continuance of an existing project, whilst in other cases it would be approval to start project delivery. There had been a further proposal to group these projects by themes, which might assist in the future development of the programme. These themes were draft at this stage and would be more fully developed following the consultation exercise and refresh of the Council’s Corporate Plan. The processes established in restating the change programme and monitoring its delivery allowed for the expansion of the programme, enabling emerging ideas to be developed into new projects under the “project conception” stage. These ideas were received from several quarters including the staff suggestion scheme, response from staff to the Leader’s emails, the recent MBA projects and members of the public. This process would also be applied to ideas and recommendations resulting from the recent consultation exercise.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 63


Meeting: 22/07/2010 - Cabinet (Item 100)

100 Review of the Strategic Change Programme pdf icon PDF 89 KB

Minutes:

Further to minute  (24/6/10) the deputy Chief Executive/Director of Corporate Services presented a report summarising the findings and recommendations of a review of the Strategic Change Programme.

 

Resolved: That

 

(1)  the recommendations of the review as set out in section 4 of the report be agreed;

 

(2)  a Strategic Change Programme Board be established, comprising the Leader of the Council, the Deputy Leader of the Council, the Deputy Leader of the Conservative Group, the Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group, the Chief Executive, and the Lead Chief Officer for the Programme;

 

(3)  the Director of Technical Services undertakes the role of Lead Chief Officer;

 

(4)  the Chief Executive, in consultation with the Programme Board, be given delegated authority to take all decisions relating to the Strategic Change Programme, including those relating to staffing and resourcing (so far as such decisions are not contrary to the Council’s budget); and

 

(5)  a Strategic Change Programme office be established under the control of the Lead Chief Officer comprising existing staff relocated and/or seconded on a time limited basis with specialist assistance as outlined in para 4.6 funded initially from the Council’s Efficiency Fund.