Effective Leadership in a Complex and Changing World

1
Effective Leadership in a Complex and Changing
World
A view from the Coal Face
Free State Province SMS Conference 28 29
August 2008
2
Observations on the government challenge in South
Africa

• Government in a developmental state is a complex
  activity
• change typically involves thousands of staff
• who are unionised
• often trapped in archaic organisation structures
• with weak or broken processes
• That leads to poor overall morale
• All unfortunately compounded by too frequent
  changes in organisation and/or strategy that
  exacerbate our very real shortages in skills and
  experience

3
Government is BIG
4
and staff are heavily unionised
5
Staff are often trapped in archaic organisation
structures e.g. Home Affairs office
Office Head
Immigration admin etc.
Ass. Director x2
SAO IDs
SAO BDM
SAO Aux Serv
SAO Serv Del
SAO Passport
CAC IDs
CAC BDM
CAC Serv Del
CAC Passport
SupervisorIDs
Registry x3
Security x1
Late reg process x2
Queries x1
Cleaning x2
Floorwalker x1
Birth cert. x3
Capturing x2
Collections x2
S/Board x1
Handouts/ queries x2
Late reg apps x1
Collection x1
Intake x2
Amendments x1
Sorting filing x2
Fingerprint x1
Death cert. x2
Intake x2
Processing x2
Marriages x1
Telephone x1
Cashier x1
Solemnising x1
Fingerprint x1
Unabridged births proc x1
Issue EPS x1
Data x2
Cashier x1
6
or a Provincial Office of the Premier
Premier
Private Office of the Premier
Office of the Premier
Branch Gov. Integration
Branch Inst. Improvement Development
Branch Dept. Operations
Administrative Support
Administrative Support
Administrative Support
Chief Dir. Legal Services
Chief Dir. Policy Development
Directorate Legislation
Chief Dir. Inst. Assess. Developmt
Dir. Corp Legal Adv. Services
Directorate Litigation
Dir. Policy Strategy Analysis
Dir. OD Interventions
Dir. Diagnostic Surv
Dir. Provincial Growth Dev. Strategy
Dir. Constitutional Roles
Dir. Intvt. Assmt
Chief Dir. Prov. Co-ord
Chief Dir. Human Capital Development
Chief Dir. Policy Implementation
Dir. IGR Interntl Rel.
Dir. Knowl. Mngt
Dir. HR Dev.
Dir. Soc Dialogue Hum Rights
Dir. Cabinet Decisions Supprt
Dir. Soc Dialogue Hum Rights
Dir. Cabinet Decisions Supprt
Dir. Labour Rel.
Dir. HR Mngt.
Chief Dir. Monitoring Eval. Review
Chief Dir. Dept Strategy HR Admin
Chief Dir. Social Capital Development
Dir. Provincial Evaluation
Dir. Provincial Monitoring
Dir. Prog. Design
Dir. Prog. Implementation.
SubDir. Dept Coord
SubDir. Dept Strat. Dev
Dir. Provincial Rev. Reporting
Chief Dir. Performance Mngt
Dir. Dept Pers. Mngt Spec. Prog
Chief Dir. Communication
Dir. Inst Wide Perf. Mngt.
Dir. Func.nl Indiv. Perf. Mngt
Dir. Perf. Mngt Sys.
Dir. Dept Finance Admin
Chief Dir. E-Innovation
Media Public Relations
Dir. Communicat. Programs
Dir. Conceptualisation Research
Health Soc Serv.
Educ. Culture Sport
Planning Dev
Policy Strategy
Transversal GITO
Econ. Gov. Admin
7
or a Provincial Department of Education
8
Where productivity is often half of a modern
team based structure
Transactions per staff member per day
2-3
No. of Staff
6-10
18-25
70-100
9
Weak or broken processes also undermine
productivity, frequently in critical support
services e.g. SCM
HOD
CHO (DDG)
CFO (DDG)
COO (DDG)
CD
CD
IT Committee
Procure-ment
D
D
D
D
D
Province
DD
DD
DD
DD
Area Manager (CD)
Area 1 Manager (CD)
Area 2 Manager (CD)
Area 3 Manager (CD)
Area
District Manager Ilembe
District Manager eThekwini
District Manager Ugu
District Manager
District Manager
District Manager
District
Clinical Pro-grammes
Service support
Finance
DHS
HR
Hospital Manager
Hospital 2
Hospital..
District IT Committee




8 months!!







PHC




HR
Finance/ Systems
Medical
Nursing
PRO
Institution
Need new printer big delay in outpatients!!
10
Or in a provincial hospital where, whilst the
annual report states that delegations have been
finalised, clearly these have not been
implemented Perhaps this explains why so many
posts are vacant
Request to advertise
HRA verify
Signed by component manager
CFO
Head HR Province
HOD
MEC APPROVES
Advert placed
Shortlist
Submission To appoint
Interview
CFO
Head HR Province
HOD
MEC APPROVES
This is the process to fill all posts, including
the filling of a cleaner post
Total cycle time is 15 months
11
WHICH NEED NOT BE e.g Social grant process for
Child Support Grants PRE-SASSA
Applicant arrives and sits in queue
Prescreen check docs status on SOCPEN
1st attesting officer interviews and fills
application form (manually)
2nd attesting officer checks application
2nd attesting officer completes register
Files re-checked and sorted into type and category
Files batched at Registry
Yes
Go and get documents
Applicant told to return in 3 months
No?
Query or non-approval
No?
Data capture
Registry batches and sends weekly to Regional
Office (RO)
RO Registry accepts files and signs
Data processing and approval
Load approval onto SOCPEN
Beneficiary has bank acc?
Print letter
No?
Yes
Yes
Cycle time 3-6 months
Payment initiated
Files moved to electronic registration
File prepared for scanning
File scanned
Files moved to registry (RO)
Files batched and moved DO
File batched
File to Registry
DO Registry
File to enrol-ment officer
Applicant returns to enquire if approval granted
Applicant queues for enro-lment officer
Enrol-ment officer logs approval
Applicant to CPS officer for payment card
Beneficiary leaves to collect payment
12
compared to the redesigned SASSA IGAP process
Applicant arrives at office
Screening and check relevant docs
Interview and fill in application form
Senior admin officer manually verifies approves
Data capturing
System verification and approval
Letter generated and given to beneficiary
Total cycle time 2 hours
Beneficiary collects 1st payment within next
payment cycle
Beneficiary collects card at pay point
13
The combination of weak processes and
organisation design and poor delegations
inevitably leads to low staff morale (further
lowering productivity)
Very good
Good
OK
Poor
V. poor
14
Too frequent changes in organisation and strategy
also hinder progress
How long between reviews of your departments
strategy and/or organisation?
61 lt 3years of an MTEF cycle
Number of months
AIA SMS survey of Khaedu participants
15
driven largely by changes in leadership
What is the most common reason for change in
strategy?
Most common
Least common
Source Survey of 580 SMS Managers, 2005-07
16
which exacerbates our delivery issues
particularly given our skills shortages at local
and provincial government level
What is the most critical barrier to you doing
your job better?
Most critical
Least critical
Source Survey of 580 SMS Managers, 2005-07
17
Yes it is a complex and changing
worldBUTare we making it more complex by
our policies and actions and are we trying to
drive too much change, too quickly relative to
our capacity?
18
Glossary of Terms and Abbreviations at the front
of a municipal IDP

• AIDS Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome
• AQMP Air Quality Management Plan
• ASGISA Accelerated Shared Growth Initiative of
  South Africa
• ATTP Assistance to the Poor
• BMS Bridge Management System
• BRT Bus Transit System
• CAPEX Capital Budget
• CBD Central Business District
• CBP Community-Based Planning
• CDWs Community Development Workers
• CMTF Consolidated Metropolitan Transport Fund
• Coega IDZ Coega Industrial Development Zone
• CUP Comprehensive Urban Plan
• DWAF Department of Water Affairs Forestry
• ECDOH Eastern Cape Department of Health
• EDTA Economic Development, Tourism and
  Agriculture
• ELR Environmental Legal Register
• EPWP Expanded Public Works Programme
• FIFA Federation of International Football
  Association

• MSDF Metropolitan Spatial Development Framework
• MUMs Management-Union Meetings
• MURP Motherwell Urban Renewal Programme
• NASA Nation State of Address
• NMB Nelson Mandela Bay
• NMBMM Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan
  Municipality
• NMBT Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism
• NMMOSS Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Open Space
  System
• NMMU Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
• NSDP National Spatial Development Perspective
• NT National Treasury
• OPEX Operational Budget
• ORP Orange River Project
• PE Port Elizabeth
• PFMA Public Finance Management Act
• PGDP Provincial Growth and Development Plan
• PGDS Provincial Growth and Development Strategy
• PMS Performance Management System
• POSA Provincial State of Address

19
or the process to produce a PGDS
ABC
ABC
ABC
20
The Fleisch-Kincaid scores for selected PGDS
21
The Fleisch-Kincaid reading age scores for
selected PGDS
22
almost matched by the complexity of National
Department White Papers
PHD
Masters
Bachelors
Matric
Grade 8
23
We also seem to write policy as if one-size fits
all e.g. IDPs
In control, capable of planning execution
Level 1
Level 2
In control, limited planning execution
Level 3
Limited control planning little effective
execution
Not in control, very little planning or execution
capability
Level 4
Source 2004 audit by Development Works
24
where the nature of intergovernmental relations
might be dictated by some form of a maturity
model
Province/National Resources
Municipal Resources
In control, capable of planning execution


In control, limited planning execution


Limited control planning little effective
execution


Not in control, very little planning or execution
capability


Source 2004 audit by Development Works
25
An Alternate Model?
Standardise
Replicate
Monitor
Simplify

• Pilot, pilot, pilot
• Create a painting by numbers guide to further
  roll-out
• Leave no room for mis-understanding
• Find things that work and build on them dont
  reinvent the wheel
• Set realistic time frames

• Create readily teachable problem-solving skill
  sets with an emphasis on on-the-job learning
• Build teams of implementers (from the ranks of
  our unemployed graduates) capable of rolling-out
  the standard and managing the ME function

• Build in simple, robust ME from the start
• 5-10 of the project cost
• Monitor both the project and the outcomes

• Focus the goals
• Max 3-5 measurable outcomes
• Target the 80 that can be implemented, not the
  100 perfect answer
• Ensure a balanced portfolio of large smaller
  projects
• Avoid Big IT until people and process are solved
• Avoid donors efforts to increase complexity
• Create a win-win with labour