To receive an update on the Council’s Transformation process.
(Presentation to follow)
Minutes:
The Committee received a presentation on the subject of systems thinking and transformation (Appendix 1).
A couple of Councillors had attended transformation orientation sessions. These sessions provided participants with an opportunity to check current services as well as to listen to customer demands as they were reported to frontline services. The feedback received from these Councillors had been generally positive. These Members suggested that transformation should be regarded as an evidence-based, practical approach to improving services.
The potential impact of service transformation on staff morale was debated. On the one hand Members noted that the improvements that could be made to service delivery from a customer’s perspective could lead to an increase in customer satisfaction. Positive feedback received from customers in this context might have a beneficial impact on staff morale.
On the other hand concerns were expressed that the changes required through transformation could be unsettling for staff, as the process challenged existing assumptions and required employees to adapt working practices. In many departments transformation was being piloted by a small number of members of a team. Members suggested that there was a risk that employees who were not engaged in pilot transformation processes might feel particularly uncertain about the intended outcomes.
Officers had recognised the potential impact that service transformation might have on staff. From the start of the process, therefore, attempts had been made to engage with and to inform staff about systems thinking and transformation. This had included arranging for staff to participate in a series of orientation sessions as well as the delivery of a number of staff briefings on the subject.
The Committee welcomed the focus on the customer required by systems thinking and the potential to improve service performance whilst making financial savings in service delivery. However, Members noted that it would not be possible for Councillors to appreciate the full implications of the systems thinking process without observing service transformation in practice.
To address this concern it was suggested that members of the Committee and other elected Councillors should have an opportunity to participate in transformation orientation sessions and to meet with relevant Officers in order to learn more about transformation and systems thinking. Knowledge of transformation amongst Councillors was considered to be increasingly important as this would enable Members to make informed decisions about any proposed future changes to service delivery.
The Committee commented that whilst the majority of Council services were in the process of going through transformation, there were a number of key services that had been using the systems thinking approach to reviewing service delivery for a significant amount of time. Members agreed that these services should be the focus of further scrutiny by the Committee in the first instance.
RESOLVED that
1) Officers consult with members of the Committee regarding their availability to participate in Transformation Orientation Sessions;
2) a list of services that have been going through transformation for some time be circulated for Members’ consideration to enable Members to identify areas suitable for further scrutiny; and
3) the report be noted.