Peter Sloman Chief Executive Oxford City Council

1
Peter SlomanChief ExecutiveOxford City Council
2
Oxford

• Population 151,000
• Progressive politics- conservative free zone
  (Labour, Liberal Democrats, Green Councillors)
• 20 plus minority ethnic communities
• Two Universities - 30,000 students
• Large Teaching Hospital
• Car production - BMW Mini Plant
• Large science/research economy
• High levels of economic and social inequality
• History of militant trade union activism from
  manufacturing past

3
UK Context

• Labour Government until 2010
• Growing Demands placed on public services
• Push for externalisation and shared services
  efficiency/cost
• reduction
• Inspection and challenge of public services
• Growth in funding and jobs
• Central targets
• Coalition Government
• 30 reduction in central funding in first 3 years
• A further 30 to come
• Attack on sector morale
• Chief Executives salaries
• Role of political leaders
• Trade Unions
• Removal of functions e.g. schools
• Push for externalisation and shared services
• Elimination of Inspection
• Localism

4
Oxford Context 2007

• Poor relationships
• Politicians / Managers
• Managers / Trade unions
• Financial crisis
• Services all in-house delivery
• Poor service outcomes
• National pay bargaining
• High sickness/poor attendance

5
Oxford City Council 2007-2013Approach to
Transformation

• Employee relationships key to coping with
  changing context for public services
• Taking the opposite approach from sector
• Cutting jobs/protecting
• jobs
• Cutting services/
• redesigning services
• Externalisation/
• in sourcing work
• Commoditisation/
• customer and community focus

6
Conditions for Change

• Unified and focussed political leadership
• New managerial leadership
• Change management agreement with Trade Unions
• Middle management/Skillsdevelopment
• Performance management
• Staff appraisal reviews
• Communications
• Sense of shared endeavour
• World Class City for Everyone
• Needs a World Class Council

7
Fundamental Service Review 2020

• Service by Service
• Starting with poor value for money
• Poor performance
• Strategically important
• 20 quality/performance improvement
• 20 cost reduction
• Involving workforce
• Based on a clear deal
• Good job security/rewards compared to market
• First class productivity and engagement
• City Works - waste example
• Leisure review

8
Sharing Rewards Partnership Payment 2010

• Response to 2010 coalition cuts
• Pay freeze
• Freeze contractual increments in pay grades
• 400 annual partnership payments - subject to
• Efficiency improvement
• Appraisal targets
• Attendance
• Result 25 cost reduction - 90 performance
  targets met
• Halved sickness - 14 days to 7 days
• Workforce reduction through natural turnover

9
A New Deal 2013

• Facing a new 30 cut in government funding making
  60 in all now
• Next phase insourcing work and trading for income
• Five year pay deal outside national agreement
• Job protection
• Below inflation rise for five years
• Continue partnership payment but also apply
  conditions to pay rises

10
Overall Impact

• Real pay cut
• Over period 2010-2013, 9 real terms pay cut
• Over period 2013-18 further 6 real terms pay cut
• 15 in total
• Job protected
• 20 improved productivity
• 10 income from profit from trading
• No cuts in services
• Workforce engaged in designing service
  improvement and with a stake in organisations
  success
• Cash available to invest in the City protecting
  900 jobs in construction and supply in private
  sector

11
Learning from the Journey

• Improvement political/managerial relationships
  and shared vision is key for Leadership of
  culture change
• Excellent workforce engagement and trust
  essential for transformation
• Based on shared values and objectives
• Protecting services
• Social justice impact of the Council
• Protecting jobs
• Not privatising services
• Active dialog and constant communication/engagemen
  t
• Confidence locally in Oxfords new
  entrepreneurial local state is based on
  partnership with its workforce
• People will make sacrifices if there is clear,
  honest leadership with shared interests at heart
• Producer interests can be aligned with community
  wellbeing