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Connect and Change

Written by: Simon Bascombe
Published on: 8 Apr 2014
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Resilience is the flavour of the month when it comes to recruiting talented employees, and this is especially true of the public sector. Britain may be on the cusp of recovery, but the impact and ramifications of austerity and budget cuts is still being felt across local government. Resilient workers are forming the backbone of a modern local government; anticipating and preparing for change.

These employees demonstrate similar attributes including; enthusiasm for continuous learning, an ability to stay on top of market trends and technology, adaptive to change, and recognising that they are part of a bigger community. Resilient people are adept at forming connections and changing.

Sourcing people with these qualities is part of our focus at CIPFA-Penna and we do this across a number of sectors including local government, education and more recently, social enterprise. We work with our clients and partners to fashion resilient teams, employees and leaders; and it is these people who sculpt robust organisations based on a shared approach. Collaboration requires leaders and individuals to connect and change.

However, not everyone has a recruitment budget to tap into at a critical time for growth and development. Many organisations must work with existing teams and employees to build resilience, as well as foster an atmosphere of collaboration rather than silo working. Asking a simple question such as, “What do we do that really irritates you?” will result in an assortment of responses. What is important to glean is the information hidden inside the answers. This information will provide you with valuable insight into your team, how the team currently functions, and what needs to change to develop resilient characteristics.

Successful businesses, universities, social enterprises and local governments are built on the back of engaged and enthusiastic employees. Nurturing employees and forming strong teams is also driven through the adoption of a shared approach. Collaboration helps to improve employee satisfaction, minimise risk factors and maximise profit as well as improve products and services. The simple act of ‘working together’ also often leads to moments of innovation, and the social impact is beneficial to employees.

Critically, an increasing number of organisations have begun to understand and support the needs of their employees. Satisfied and robust employees are much more likely to provide a better outcome than those whose needs are not being met. Some of the key steps to creating a resilient team include;

  • Establishing what the culture is now and what it needs to be.
  • Drawing a compelling picture of the future and communicating this clearly.
  • Build momentum by developing a culture that supports success in a motivating environment through encouragement of continuous improvement, plus support and challenge.

Enabling individuals and teams to achieve through delegation, continuous support, reward and celebration.

At CIPFA-Penna we are often approached to source a new player to a team and to ensure that this new staff member is someone who will suit the culture of an organisation, and today more importantly foster resilience and collaboration.

When switching from the private sector to the public sector, for example, there are quite a few cultural changes to embrace. Candidates who are able to do this as well as being excellent communicators will help to raise employee morale particularly in tough times.