PUBLIC SERVICE OPTIMIZATION FOR EFFECTIVE AND EFFICIENT ... · efficient and effective service...

PUBLIC SERVICE OPTIMIZATION

FOR EFFECTIVE AND EFFICIENT

SERVICE DELIVERY: THE WAY

FORWARD FOR KENYA

By

Mrs. Mary W. Kimonye, MBS

Principal Administrative Secretary

State Department for Public service

Ministry of Public Service, Youth and Gender

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OUTLINE

Mandate of the State Department of Public

Service

The Public Service Perspective

Definitions

Public Service Optimization

Enabler conditions for optimizations

Prevailing context

Attempts at optimization

Key issues, challenges and lessons learnt

The Way Forward

Conclusion2

MANDATE OF THE STATE DEPARTMENT FOR PUBLIC SERVICE

The State Department for Public Service, in the

Ministry of Public Service, Youth and Gender

Affairs was created in June 2018.

The Department is responsible for providing

strategic leadership and policy direction in public

service management.

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The functions of the State Department entail:

Public Sector Reforms and Transformation including

operational standards and process engineering;

Co-ordination of Huduma Centres;

Government Human Resource Information Systems

and Services;

Government Payroll Policy and Standards;

Shared Services;

Research Development and Public Service Delivery

Innovations;

Public Service Career Planning and Development; and

Counselling Policy and Services. 4


The State Department is organized into three (3)

technical Divisions namely:

Human Resource Development,

Human Resource Management, and

Management Consultancy Services.

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THE PUBLIC SERVICE IN PERSPECTIVE

The collective of institutions, people and

organizational frameworks and concepts put in

place by Governments to manage public

resources (complex, complicated).

The Public Service is the principal national

integrater. It has to bring multiple players with

diverse interest and resources to ensure they

perform as ‘one whole’.

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THE PUBLIC SERVICE IN PERSPECTIVE

The centrality of the Public Service in the socio-

economic and political development of a nation

cannot be over emphasized.

Its voice is communicated through:

Policy

Legal and regulatory

Guidelines

Attitudes and behaviors of office holders

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DEFINITIONS

Optimization:

Processes, systems and people across all functions to ensure efficiency, productivity and effectiveness.

Involves choice, prioritizing, skilling, tooling, compensating and support to ensure you maximize positive outcomes such as productivity, satisfaction, responsiveness reliability, performance while minimizing negative outcomes such as waste, costs, loss and apathy.

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DEFINITIONS

Optimization cont’d:In the Kenyan Public Service, optimization is

complementary to institutional and organisational review, whose objective is to improve performance and productivity through

performance and productivity improvement.

The term optimization has often been erroneously equated with terms such as downsizing, layoff, retrenchment or other term that entails staff reduction.

In short, optimization entails making the Service as good as possible with as less as possible. 9

DEFINITIONSEffectiveness:

the ability to be successful in producing desired or intended results and aspirations for the Public Service. It means meeting needs of diverse groups

Efficiency:

the degree to which a task can be achieved with minimal time, effort and resources, and is an important factor in business success. (Achieving more with less).

Effective and efficient public services

delivery presupposes meeting citizens’ needs and aspirations through high performance and

productivity.

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Optimization in context of Public Service should

be the focus of any leadership interested in a

legacy of success.

Attempts at optimization are often hijacked,

compromised and derailed by the tipping point

phenomenon where small ideas actions,

behaviours, perceptions permeate through the

population to create a widely accepted truth.

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In Kenya for example, we have a generally

accepted truth called “Gava” marked by a picture of inefficiency, waste, isolation, insensitivity,

criticism, unethical behavior etc so that

whatever, Government does the default reaction

of the citizen is objection.

In general, a national believe that “nothing good

can come out of Gava!! But is this the truth of

the matter? 100%. NO!”12

ENVISIONED OPTIMIZED PUBLIC SERVICE (KENYA)

Lean, Efficient

Highly motivated and productive

Impartial in service delivery

Citizen centric(accountable/responsive)

Results focused

Value driven (professional, ethical)

Affordable and sustainable

Parity in treatment (appointment, training,

development

In a nutshell – A Fit for purpose Service13

ENABLER CONDITIONS FOR OPTIMIZATIONS

National Agenda

Clarity on what needs to be done (A national Vision that spells out key result areas and trajectory of achievements with clarity on targets

and means of achievements.

Prioritization

Among all the competing interests, what are the key priorities?

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ENABLER CONDITIONS FOR OPTIMIZATIONS Cont’d

Focus

Unwavering “sticking” to what have been defined as priorities. No drifting!!

Rightness (Matching skills to jobs)

The right men and women in the right jobs and well engaged.

Delivery Capability

Continuous improvement in terms of skills, knowledge attitudes and systems, process design and cost containment.

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ENABLER CONDITIONS FOR OPTIMIZATIONS Cont’d

Leadership

Transformative leaders leading from the front (agile, innovative, committed to results).

Innovation/visualization

An enabling business climate that quickly adjusts, adopts, manages unintended consequences and embraces new knowledge and technology.

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PREVAILING CONTEXTCitizenry that is:

Increasingly becoming aware of its rights Cynical and overly critical of Government (Public

Service) Growing demand and pressure on Public Service Increased scrutiny of public officers Demanding and discerning

An environment that is:

Extremely dynamic and disruptive

Technologically mobile – (instantaneous access to information)

Highly competitive and globalized

Highly mobile resources

Rise of the millennial (selfie) workforce17

PREVAILING CONTEXT CONT’D

An Economy that: Is contracting/dwindling resources Has fiscal pressure Demand for resources outstrips supply Expenditures outstrip revenues High youth unemployment Growing population and demand for services

Increasingly digital Decreasing real wages

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A public Service that:

Is ageing;

High brain drain;

Resource constrained;

Politically driven;

Complex and complicated

New constitutional pressures

High levels of individual interests

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Government that is expected to:

• High levels of capital flight

• Create jobs and wealth

• Provide enabling or growth spurring policy mix

• Balance interest of competing forces

• Collect taxes and provide basic services

• Undertake development projects

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Highly Fragmented

• Commissions

• Independent Offices

• State Corporations

• SAGAs

Unintended Consequences

- Autonomous recruitment remuneration

- Non sharability of competencies

- Non transferability of services

- Diverse allowances and benefits

- Inequality in Human Resource Management21

ATTEMPTS AT OPTIMIZATION

Within this context, the Public Service has undertaken historical and current steps at optimization:

I. Kenyanization policy (1964-1989)

The objective of the policy was to place Kenyans in key positions in the Public Service.

The Government’s policy aimed at employment creation, social justice and political equality, expanding the structure for delivery of public services to make them more accessible to the citizens.

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Kenyanization policy (1964-1989) cont’dFresh graduates were guaranteed employment

in the Public Service.

There was little or no consideration of the implications of this continued recruitment of every new graduate into Government service in terms of its impact on the Public Service wage-bill or on the overall efficiency and effectiveness of the Service.

It is thus, not surprising that staff growth expanded rapidly between 1964 and 1980, especially in the State Owned Enterprises.

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II. Civil Service Reform Programme (1993-2009)

The Civil Service Reform Programme (CSRP) was launched as one key reform strategies to improve efficiency and productivity in the Civil Service and to smaller extend in the State Corporations.

Phase I of the programme (1993-1998) focused on cost containment through staff reduction initiatives, including implementation of Voluntary Early Retirement Scheme (VERS).

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II. Civil Service Reform Programme (1993-2009)

While staff reduction initiatives were able to reduce the size of the Civil Service by about 64,155 persons by the end of 1999, with hope of freeing sufficient resources for development expenditure)

Downward push on wage bill.

Government reformulated CSRP as a Medium Term Strategy (1998-2001) whose objective was comprehensive Ministerial Rationalization and Staff Rightsizing exercise in all Ministries/ Departments 25


CSRP (1993-2009) Cont’dMinistries and Departments were directed to

prepare Ministerial/Departmental strategic plans aligned to National Goals and Objectives as outlined in the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper and the 9th National Development Plan.

Ministries/Departments were required to undertake activities that would result in elimination of duplications and overlaps of functions by articulating their core mandates, policy priorities and strategic objectives.

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CSRP (1993-2009) Cont’dOverlaps and duplications were resolved through

Ministerial Civil Service Reform Committees chaired by the respective Permanent Secretaries.

The National Steering Committee of CSRP was chaired by the Permanent Secretary to the Cabinet, who was responsible for setting the overall reform agenda and providing strategic leadership for the exercise.

Ministerial Civil Service Reform Committees were responsible for overseeing rationalization and optimization in respective ministries/departments27


CSRP (1993-2009) Cont’dFunctions identified as non-core and which

could neither be transferred to the relevant public service organization were dealt with through the most appropriate of five (5) strategies:

Abolition of the function together with the accompanying staff establishment,

Privatization, Commercialization, Contracting out, and Re-tooling government Ministries/Departments.

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CSRP (1993-2009) Cont’dWhere there was need to reduce staff, this was

done through:

Voluntary Early Retirement Scheme, Abolition of posts that remained had vacant for a long

time, Control of unauthorized recruitment through

centralization of issuance of new personal numbers to civil servants

Freeze on recruitment into the civil service except in critical areas,

Withdrawal of guaranteed employment to pre-trainees and graduates of tertiary educational institutions, and

Strict enforcement of the mandatory retirement age.29


III. The CARPS Programme (2010 - Present)The objective of the Capacity Assessment and

Rationalization of the Public Service (CARPS) Programme is to ensure that Government functions are properly structured and staffed to facilitate transformation of the public service for efficient and effective service delivery at the National and County Government levels.

The CARPS Programme currently covers the National and County Governments. State Corporations, Independent Offices, Commissions, and disciplined forces will be covered at a later date. 30


III. The CARPS Programme (2010 - Present)

Full implementation in three phases over a medium term framework:

Phase 1: Study and Design

Phase 2: Rationalization and Redeployment

Phase 3: Re-engineering and Capacity Building

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III. The CARPS Programme (2010 - Present)

Optimization under the Capacity Assessment and Rationalization of the Public Service (CARPS) Programme is being implemented through three steps:

Outline of key result areas and strategic objectives;

Institutional and organisational reviews in the ministries/departments and the County Governments; and,

Determination of optimal staffing levels.32

Table: Outline of key result areas and strategic objectives

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WAY FORWARD - KEY ISSUES, CHALLENGES AND LESSONS LEARNT

1. Performance Management System and Productivity

There is need for a robust system that will ensure that the activities and outputs serve to contribute to the goals of the service.

Individual and team goals must speak to the organizational goals and ultimately to national goals. These are then integrated in a cycle

Commitment tot productivity and results

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CONT’D2. Leadership buy-in. Otherwise it becomes

A box ticking process

Employee judging rather than coaching and development process

3. Independence

How independent, impartial, stable is the Public Service.

Optimization becomes unattainable in the face of interference whether political, trade union, social, cultural etc.

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CONT’D4. Use of technologies

Enable mass customization of services and make them uniform

This will help customize services and make them uniformly accessible to large groups of the population e.g. e-tax returns by KRA or online applications of jobs, etc.

Need to balance between automation and human touch to guard against the feelings of isolation.

5. Engagement collaboration and integration

The Public Service going forward should focus on joint planning and greater cross functional collaboration. This will remove silos cut on time and costs and make government more affordable.

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CONT’D6. Citizen engagement

Since the consumer of public service is the citizen, government should work on increased citizen engagement.

The Constitution of Kenya 2010 is categorical on citizen engagement.

7. Private sector engagement

There is no government even the best organized and intentioned that can provide all jobs needed in an economy. This responsibility often lies with the private sector. Private public partnership is the way of the future in order to maximize public value. 37


CONT’D8. Optimization and innovation

Optimization has a limit. Government must explore the unlimited options and these often are from innovation, putting in place shorter more efficient processes, more fit for purpose organizations, better policy frameworks (clarity, decisiveness, specificity)

9. Culture

Optimization can be achieved gradually through a culture of sustained gradual change year on year (popularly referred to as continuous improvement).

In built in the performance contracting is the concept of progressive goal/target setting.

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CONT’D10. Human Resource Management

Moving from wage based remuneration to softer issues such as morale, work environment, satisfaction, employee well being and other non-monetary incentives have a bearing on performance and optimization.

A happy employee is more likely to innovate.

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CONT’D11. Duplication and overlap of function due to legal provisions:

The National and County Governments have overlapping roles and mandates with regard to health, agriculture, trade and culture and heritage among other functions assigned to both levels of Governments in the Fourth Schedule of the Constitution.

12. Optimization to eliminate duplications and overlaps (encompassing institutional and organizational reviews) in this context can only be undertaken through Constitutional interpretation and amendment.

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CONT’D

Review of existing legal, policy and institutional framework based on the Constitution to entrench optimization as a strategy for effective and efficient public service.

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THANK-YOU

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