Department of Public Service and Administration: Human Performance

Accenture was commissioned to develop a competency-based Senior Management Service framework for the Department of Public Service and Administration. The framework underpins all human resource processes for recruitment and selection, performance management, training and other functions.

An investigation into challenges the department faced in attracting and retaining skilled managers—crucial to implementing the government's policy objectives around the country—revealed that there was a need to develop senior management skills.

The investigation also found that:

• Managers promoted out of their area of competence were not being properly prepared and trained for their new responsibilities
• Little career development or succession planning was in place to help ensure the smooth transition of capable and appropriately skilled officials
• Human Resource practices were not underpinned by a shared understanding of the critical competencies necessary to build leadership in public administration.

Accenture was commissioned to develop:

• A competency-based Senior Management Service framework to underpin all human resource processes for recruitment and selection, performance management, training and other functions

Labat Africa, a Black Economically Empowered consulting firm partnered with Accenture to gain valuable specialised experience.

A time-pressured, exhaustive and collaborative process of interviews, desktop studies, surveys, focus group sessions and analysis, gathered data from the department's senior management, subject matter experts and a wide range of stakeholders around the country.

This wealth of raw data on behaviours was used to develop the framework, giving SA's public service management its first clear-cut vision of performance expectations and career progression.

The project was completed in three months—starting December 2000 with delivery at the end of February 2001.

The final Senior Management Service Competency framework comprises 11 generic competencies that communicate expectations of senior managers. It also seeks to establish a shared understanding of critical success factors when measuring management performance.

It is the foundation of an integrated competency assessment system that will help ensure a consistent approach to human performance throughout national and provincial government. It facilitates transparency in the personnel selection process as well as an understanding of career progression requirements.

Following completion of the framework in 2001 focus groups drawn from national and provincial administrations embarked on framework validation workshops, conducted by Accenture. These fed into the development of a competence assessment battery and the re-writing of the recruitment and selection manuals in the Senior Management Service handbook.

This will ensure that the competency framework contributes to the improvement of the recruitment and selection processes of senior management on all levels of government.