Minutes:
Councillor S Cawley, Executive Councillor for Organisation and Customer Services addressed the Council on an update of the Transformation Programme currently being undertaken by the Council. A copy of Councillor Cawley’s PowerPoint presentation is appended in the Minute Book.
Members’ attention was drawn to the background to organisational transformation and were acquainted with the media presentation that was presented to all staff at the launch event on 28th November 2016. Councillor Cawley explained that transformation would be delivered through development of the Corporate Plan, creating a leaner and more flexible workforce to deliver the Council’s Strategic Resource Plan and increase productivity to accelerate momentum and pace to identify new ways of working.
Councillor Cawley explained the principles of placing customers at the heart of the transformation strategy that would involve customer led services and centralising more services into customer services, thereby removing the need for ‘back office’ and experts and bringing them to the forefront of service delivery.
Transformation would be delivered through the LEAN thinking process, explained as a cyclical, ongoing approach that would be developed through business process mapping to eliminate waste and striving for perfection. Councillor Cawley highlighted the six transformation elements in the Council as people, assets, processes, technology, operating model and commercialisation and identified the factors that would be critical to the success of the project, including political commitment from all Members.
In response to a question from Councillor T Hayward on his concern with the increased reliance on technology and impact on the older generation, Councillor Cawley explained that the Council would continue to maintain a facility for customers to contact either face to face or over the telephone. Following on this subject, Councillor M F Shellens also expressed his concern in the reliance on technology as a deterrent for some residents, whereby it was explained that the Customer Service Centre would be developed further in their level of expertise to enable resolution at the point of contact, but specialists would continue to be available.
Councillor P D Reeve referred to a similar exercise being undertaken at Cambridgeshire County Council making use of graduates to look at identifying LEAN processes that could be replicated at the Council. In response, Councillor Cawley explained that a Transformation Team had been established, but welcomed the idea of utilising graduates. He further explained that staff and Members would be receiving regular communications updates on the project and reported that a communications specialist had been appointed to assist with the delivery of the programme.
Councillor Mrs R E Mathews expressed her concern as Chairman of the Employment Committee regarding the effect of the changes on staff and their morale, whereby Councillor Cawley explained that following the launch to all staff in November 2016, further events would be programmed to ensure all staff involvement in the development of the programme.
Arising from a question by Councillor T D Alban on how the Council responded to queries by residents that related to other Council services, the Managing Director explained that Council staff would continue to take ownership of the issue and contact the relevant authority concerned until resolution for the customer. Councillor Cawley explained that he anticipated that the Council would continue this approach going forward with the transformation programme.