Item 7 Item # Council CounciRemunerationl 3 February Date19 2015 March 2013 Human Resources Report 2014 Purpose of paper Action Public/Private Corporate Strategy 2013-15 Decision Trail Recommendations To report on HR indicators in 2014 and priorities in 2015 For noting Public At its meeting on 3 February 2015 the Council agreed this paper should be put into the public domain. 6.0: Manage the GDC effectively and support its staff to achieve our objectives The Remuneration Committee has considered this report The Council is asked to note this report Authorship of paper and further information Appendices Kate Husselbee, Director of HR T: 020 7167 6225 E: khusselbee@gdc-uk.org none Page 1 of 9
Executive Summary 1. This paper provides an annual report of HR indicators for 2014. The report includes workforce data and information relating to pay and benefits, employee relations, recruitment and retention, and learning and development. The reporting period is 1 January to 31 December 2014. A summary of HR work streams for 2015 is also provided for information. The Remuneration Committee has noted this report. Workforce profile 2. The GDC employed 326 staff at 31 December 2014. Of these staff, 281 were permanent staff and 45 were fixed-term. This represents a 5.7% increase in our permanent headcount over the last year. 3. Length of service: the GDC s profile at 31 December 2014 was as follows: Service Less than 1 year 85 1-5 years 179 6-10 years 49 11-15 years 7 16-20 years 3 Over 20 years 3 Numbers The table above shows that a quarter of our staff had less than one year s service and three quarters of our staff had been with the GDC for less than five years. 4. Age: we have a relatively young workforce; 89% of our staff were under 50 years of age. The age profile for 2014 has changed very little compared with the previous year. GDC Age Group 2% 1% 1% 17% 8% 32% 39% Below 20 21-30 31-40 41-50 51-60 61-65 Over 65 5. Gender: a total of 63% of GDC staff were female. This is consistent with the previous year. Page 2 of 9
6. Ethnicity: there was a relatively high proportion of staff that preferred not to specify their ethnic origin. The data that we have is outlined below: Ethnic background Numbers 129 117 7 7 3 19 2 15 8 12 5 1 1 7. Disability: a total of nine staff members declared that they had a disability. 8. Sexual orientation: two thirds of the organisation had not provided data. We have therefore not reported in this area. Pay and benefits 9. Pay: the mean average pay at 31 December 2014 was 37,643 (2013: 38,563; 2012: 39,048). The pay spread was as expected for an organisation of the GDC s type, skillset, location and size. The table below illustrates that the spread of pay was broadly consistent with 2013, with a slightly lower percentage of staff over the 50k bracket compared to the previous year. Pay % 2014 % 2013 Less than 30k 28% 26% 30-50k 58% 56% Over 50k 14% 18% Page 3 of 9
10. A review of the GDC s pay structure began in March 2014 with a staff consultation process at the end of the year. The aims of the proposed new pay structure included the recruitment and retention of high quality staff; a robust and fair approach to pay internally; and a system that would reward individual performance. The consultation is now closed and the decisions taken by EMT and the Remuneration Committee are currently being communicated to staff. 11. Payroll was moved in-house providing a more effective service and a saving of approximately 13k. 12. Pensions: Pension auto-enrolment was successfully implemented in early 2014. This included the introduction of a self-service pension module which allowed employees to directly access pension details, request to increase pension contributions, and opt out of the scheme. 13. Changes to the pension scheme included closing the defined benefit section to new employees, and increasing employee choice and employer contributions to the defined contribution section. We also consulted with staff on increasing employee contributions to the defined benefit section. 14. The graph below indicates the numbers of staff who, at 31 December 2014, were members of the: a) defined benefit section b) defined contribution top up section (now closed to new joiners) c) defined contribution 2014 auto-enrolment scheme A total of 16 staff had chosen to opt out of the GDC s pension scheme. Pension membership 180 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 DB Scheme DC Scheme DC 2014 AE Scheme Members 163 66 126 15. The introduction of discounted gym membership, private health insurance, and a health cash plan allowed staff to obtain gym membership or insurance on reduced rates at no cost to the GDC. We also changed our childcare vouchers provider providing a 3k (50%) annual saving. Page 4 of 9
Employee Relations 16. The table below illustrates the employee relations trends for disciplinaries, grievances and performance. Area QTR 1 QTR 2 QTR 3 QTR 4 Disciplinaries (that went to hearing) 0 0 0 1 Grievances (raised but resolved informally) Grievances (raised and went to formal hearing) Informal performance measures (advice sought from HR) Formal performance measures (Stage 1 and onwards) Dismissed poor performance (including probation but not settlement agreements) 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 8 4 3 1 0 1 0 1 2 1 0 17. We did not receive any employment tribunal claims from staff in 2014. 18. Sickness: a total of 1530 days were lost to sickness over the reporting period. This represents 5.8 days per employee per year (2013; 4.9 days) and compares to 7.6 days for the economy as a whole. 1 19. There were 12 members of staff on long term sickness in 2014 as a whole. Long term sickness is classed as continuous sickness leave of more than 20 working days. 20. All sickness is closely managed through return to work interviews and our short-term and long-term sickness policy. Recruitment and retention 21. Recruitment campaigns: the delivery of over 160 recruitment campaigns was managed during a time of change for the recruitment function including new personnel and the introduction of an online recruitment system. The recruitment of two FTP backlog teams in January 2014 was achieved within anticipated timescales and with a cost saving of approximately 18k following negotiation with recruitment agencies. 22. Online recruitment and testing system: the launch and implementation of a new online recruitment system early in 2014 meant that we were able provide a more effective experience for managers and candidates. 23. Recruitment policy and processes: the introduction of a new recruitment policy, standard operating procedures, and service level agreements ensured that managers 1 Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development Page 5 of 9
and HR were both clear on what they needed to deliver as part of the recruitment process. 24. Preferred supplier list: we established a preferred supplier list for recruitment agencies to ensure that we were able to effectively manage the performance of the agencies, whilst obtaining value for money via agreed and reduced percentage fees). 25. Cost per hire: our average spend per hire over 2014 was 2,103. 26. Retention: %. Natural turnover for the GDC in 2014 was 9.2% (2013: 8.6%), compared to natural turnover for the UK as a whole of 11.9% 2 Total staff turnover 3 for 2014 was 17% compared to last year s figure of 18%. Learning and Development 27. Learning and Development (L&D) total spend for 2014 was 221,595, representing an average spend of 680 per employee. In reality, the expenditure was focussed on specific areas. 28. Leadership Development Programme (LDP): this represented the single biggest exercise within L&D in 2014. T-Three were appointed to design and deliver the programme for managers at all levels. Fundamental to the organisational change plan, the LDP will involve almost 80 managers across seven separate cohorts. The LDP was launched at two dedicated events in November, and was immediately followed by the launch of a 360 feedback exercise and Facet 5 personality profiling tool. The 360 exercise enabled managers to gather input on their behaviours and performance from managers, staff and peer colleagues. Alongside the data from the personality profiling, this information will be used at the start of 2015 to design individual and targeted objectives for each of the delegates attending the LDP. 29. As well as this first dedicated 1-2-1 session, each delegate will attend three 2-day workshops, have a 1.5hr coaching session between workshops, and attend three halfday Action Learning Sets. In total, this equates to just under 57 hrs of guided learning per manager. This learning is supported by an online resource called Momentor, which will provide delegates with a library of reference materials, as well providing a tool to track and evaluate their performance during the programme. 30. Delivery of workshops for the first cohorts begins in January, with each cohort due to last around 5 months. Delivery of all workshops will have concluded by the end of June 2015. Once all cohorts have finished, the programme will be evaluated as a whole and consideration will be given to the next round of cohorts. 31. Leadership behaviours: during the scoping of the LDP, it became apparent that the understanding of what leadership was, and what it looked like, was inconsistent across the organisation. Initial scoping interviews and focus groups showed that staff saw management as something largely transactional and operational. Consequently, concepts such as managers as role models, or managers setting (and inspiring staff to meet) a vision, were significantly under-represented. 32. Working with T-Three, strategic interviews and workshops were held to distil what staff wanted and needed from their manager in order for them, and the organisation as a 2 CIPD Resourcing and talent planning survey 2013, 462 respondents 3 Overall staff turnover includes resignations, retirement and also the end of fixed-term contracts and terminations Page 6 of 9
whole, to meet their goals. From these, we started to define what it was that managers would need to demonstrate to maximise the effectiveness of their teams and themselves, as well as their contributions to the wider goals of the organisation. 33. The resulting GDC Leadership behaviours highlight the key expectations around how managers will be seen to conduct themselves. As behaviours, they are focussed on the practical actions that staff will observe and, as such, are demonstrable and measurable. As a result, these are at the core of the LDP, both as the basis for 360 Feedback exercise, and as deliverables from the workshop sessions. 34. The behaviours are intended to be stretching and aspirational. A GDC where managers buy into and demonstrate the leadership behaviours will be one that is better equipped to handle current and future organisational challenges. A key part of the LDP is the focus on seeking feedback to monitor progress towards these behaviours. There will be regular opportunities for managers to see how consistently their staff, colleagues and line manager feel they are demonstrating the desired behaviours. 35. Data surrounding the demonstration of the GDC leadership behaviours will be a key metric when evaluating the success of the LDP. In addition, personal data about how readily and successfully managers demonstrate these behaviours can ultimately be used as appraisal evidence. 36. Coaching: there was an investment on personal coaching sessions with the decision to take this approach often driven by distinct and individual needs. In these cases, targeted sessions with external coaches introduced a degree of perspective and expertise that justified the investment. In some instances, we used coaches to help smooth the transition for staff members moving into more senior roles. Where there was no specific skills-based course, coaching proved an effective way to assist people in delivering their operational objectives. 37. In 2015, we will be emphasising the role of managers as coaches through specific content within the LDP. Similarly, on the LDP, managers will be required to define their own professional objectives, and the coaching they will receive as part of the LDP will help to meet these. 38. Furthermore, a considerable amount was spent on targeted coaching for senior managers, predominantly with a view to addressing some of the specific challenges faced by FTP. 39. Equality & Diversity workshops: as part of the ongoing delivery of the Equality and Diversity (E&D) action plan, E&D workshops were held for all GDC employees. Content was designed to be practical and applicable for staff at all levels, although the focus was on establishing a basic common level of understanding when it came to individual roles and responsibilities as they pertain to E&D. Taking a lead from the staff survey results and employee feedback, content included themes around unconscious bias and the use of inappropriate language in the workplace. Feedback reflected that the sessions were largely well-received, with the session serving as either a refresher or introduction, in equal measure. Furthermore, the feedback from the sessions provided areas for further discussion/investigation with the E&D Working Group. 40. In total, 20 half-day sessions were provided, with 288 staff members attending. This means that 88% of staff members attended one of the sessions. Page 7 of 9
41. The contract with the provider also includes a 2-year subscription to their elearning platform. The content can be used for a mid-year cycle of refresher training, or as part of an induction for new GDC staff. 42. Balanced Scorecard: in order to facilitate the Balanced Scorecard approach to performance reporting, training was provided for a group of key internal stakeholders. This was designed to improve understanding of the balanced scorecard model and explain how to analyse scorecards. 43. The best practice identified within the session has assisted with the application of the model at the GDC. The project to roll-out the model was subsequently completed on time, and arrangements are now embedded into standard reporting. 44. Train the Trainer: initially designed to help teams conduct CRM training for new starters, the remit expanded to look at more general training approaches, including desk training and running internal workshops. The growing organisation has made a single trainer untenable; a situation exacerbated by increasing customisation of processes and CRM within separate business areas. 45. The Train the Trainer sessions were conducted with a view to increasing consistency and effectiveness of the training delivered by staff, to staff. Attention was paid to the importance of setting and communicating objectives, with the focus being shifted from simply describing processes to considering what the output of the training needs to be. With the onus shifted to the respective subject matter experts, training is becoming more targeted, readily available and consistent. 46. FTP Caseworker development: following some work on FTP Caseworker engagement, a number of in-house courses have been run to look at themes or processes that directly affect the delivery of FTP casework. Whilst a number of process-based courses have been delivered within the FTP teams, workshops about handling challenging callers and delivering effective desk training addressed some of the primary concerns that Caseworkers experienced every day. The partnership with FTP has proven particular effective as the relevant subject matter experts are delivering the appropriate content to the relevant audiences. Priority work areas for HR in 2015 47. HR will focus on the following work streams in 2015: Organisational change plan: supporting the organisation in the implementation of the GDC s change plan Corporate strategy: supporting the development and implementation of the corporate strategy GDC Associates: assume and develop the management of the HR related aspects of the associates Leadership development: deliver the leadership development programme for all line managers; support the development of the EMT Development and performance: implement the new appraisal process; introduce on-line appraisals and 360 feedback; develop and implement a set of behaviours for all staff; develop a succession planning and talent management policy Page 8 of 9
Pay and pensions: implement the new pay structure and recognition scheme policy; further review and possible change to the pension scheme Induction: a comprehensive review of the GDC s approach to induction Employee relations: a review of all HR policies; internal delivery of policy workshops for managers Staff survey: deliver the staff survey Equality and diversity: lead the work of the Equality and Diversity Working Group HR systems: review of our requirements and effectiveness HR management information: effective reporting and inclusion of the Balanced Scorecard approach The HR team: the work started in 2013 on building the capability of the HR team will continue in 2014. Recommendation 48. The Council is asked to note this report. Page 9 of 9