CAIRNGORMS NATIONAL PARK AUTHORITY Paper 3 270603 CAIRNGORMS NATIONAL PARK AUTHORITY Title: STAFF RECRUITMENT Prepared by: JANE HOPE, INTERIM CHIEF EXECUTIVE Purpose To seek the Board’s agreement to a senior staffing structure, and to a process for recruitment. Recommendations That the proposed structure is agreed as a basis for recruitment of senior staff, and that the recruitment committee (as proposed in Paper 1) take forward the recruitment process as outlined. Executive Summary A senior staffing structure is proposed, comprising seven groups (2 operational, 5 policy) reporting to the chief executive. The policy groups are based on the 4 aims of the National Park, together with the statutory planning/development control function, and the need to take a strategic overview in preparing a National Park Plan. The seven groups are proposed for line management purposes. A culture of integrated and cross-boundary working will be essential, but this will flow from the organisation’s culture and working practices, not from any structure which inevitably has to draw boundaries somewhere for purely practical purposes. It is proposed that posts are filled by first matching internal candidates to posts, and then undertaking an external recruitment exercise in September. Recruitment will be carried out by the recruitment committee for senior management posts; recruitment below this level will be carried out by staff. MAINPC \\Cnpahq01\Company\CNPA Board\Board Papers\20030627\CNPA Board Paper 3 270603 JH.doc 23/06/03 1 CAIRNGORMS NATIONAL PARK AUTHORITY Paper 3 270603 STAFF RECRUITMENT Organisational Structure and Working Methods 1. A structure for the senior management team is proposed in Annex 1. This is a structure for line management purposes, and shows a senior management team of 7 comprising the heads of 2 operational groups (corporate services and communications) and 5 policy groups). Each head would be responsible for staff in that group, and the structure within that group. 2. There are many ways in which one could group staff together, but wherever the lines between groups are drawn, in an organisation such as this which is committed to “joined-up” working, the lines can seem artificial. However, it is important to recognise that the structure represented in the diagram is essentially for line management purposes. It does not preclude cross sectoral and joined-up working, which is a product of the philosophy of the organisation and is in turn reflected in working practices. As Annex 3 illustrates, the structure allows scope for setting up informal project teams to deal with particular issues, drawing staff from several groups. But even where teams have not been set up, creating a culture of constant liaison with staff across the organisation (as well as outside) will be an essential feature of the organisation and how it operates. Many practices can be used to reinforce that, but having a relatively large senior management team which meets frequently, provides the Chief Executive with the role of ensuring that co-ordination. 3. Annex 2 indicates the issues which are likely to be covered by each group. Inevitably, this cannot be definitive at this stage, and in practice, issues tend to overlap several groups. For example, tourism issues are not confined to “Business” and could justifiably have been put in “Visitor Services”, and whichever group tourism issues are allocated to, there will be strong linkages with “Natural Resources” and “Communications”. Deciding where an issue “fits” will often be determined by practical matters such as workload, but in a culture of joined-up team working, this should not be an issue. Protracted debate at this stage as to which groups should deal with which issues is unlikely to be productive. 4. The five policy groups have been formulated to broadly reflect the statutory aims of the National Park, but with modification: • Natural Resources: Conservation of sustainable use of natural resources (aim 1 and 2); • Business and Communities: social and economic development (aim 4) and including cultural heritage (aim 1); • Visitor Services and Recreation: enjoyment and understanding of the area (aim 3); • Strategic Policy & Programme Management: is intended to take lead responsibility for the National Park Plan, as well as for developing a strategic approach to our programme of research and projects. A major programme such as LEADER + could fit here, or could also fit under “Business & Communities”. • Planning and Development Control: A group of specialist planners, dealing with and advising on the Local Plan and development control cases. While planning could be argued to be simply a tool for achieving the aims of the Park, it is MAINPC \\Cnpahq01\Company\CNPA Board\Board Papers\20030627\CNPA Board Paper 3 270603 JH.doc 23/06/03 2 CAIRNGORMS NATIONAL PARK AUTHORITY Paper 3 270603 sufficiently important to justify its own group within the structure. However, this group must proactively liaise with all the other groups to ensure that decisions and policies on planning are fully integrated with all aspects of the CNPA’s work. Development Control and planning must not be seen in isolation. 5. Corporate services group is designed to deal with the running of the organisation – finance, human resources, payroll, general constitutional and legal. It is also responsible for ensuring that we have in place adequate internal control systems to account for our receipt and expenditure of public funds. Corporate services is there to serve the whole organisation and to help it deliver its corporate plan. 6. The communications group will deal with day to day press and PR matters, as well as making sure that a wide range of vehicles are used effectively to communicate with stakeholders and partners. It will also be expected to take responsibility for ensuring effective and efficient internal communication, which in a Park this size with more than one office, will be vital. Communications group will also be expected to constantly be looking and planning ahead, developing a strategic approach to our communications in the widest sense, and will therefore be expected to work very closely with all staff in the organisation. There may be particular projects and policies which will be allocated to Communications group; education liaison would seem one obvious area. Recruitment 7. This paper proposes that recruitment of staff into the senior management structure should be done by the recruitment committee (as proposed in paper 1) which will have delegated responsibility to approve job descriptions (albeit these can be circulated to all members for comment, if that would be helpful), advertise, interview and select post-holders. It is recommended that a recruitment consultant is engaged to assist with the external recruitment process. 8. It is proposed that the first part of the process of filling the heads of group posts should be to look at matching internal staff members with posts. The range of skills, experience and expertise within the current staffing complement suggests that there will be staff who transferred under TUPE and will be well capable of filling some of these posts. In the interests of fairness, and efficient use of resources, the opportunity to fill posts with existing staff should be the first stage of the process; those posts not filled internally should then be advertised externally, and at that point, a consultant engaged to assist and manage the process. 9. There is a balance to be struck between achieving some continuity and stability where possible, and filling vacant posts without undue delay. The Head of corporate services is already filled with a secondee, and there is no pressing need to recruit a permanent postholder at the moment; some stability and continuity in that post is recommended for the moment. The current head of Planning and Development Control is temporary and a permanent postholder must be found before the end of the year; there is no internal candidate for that post. The remaining 5 heads of group could be filled internally. It is proposed that an internal process be put in hand in the MAINPC \\Cnpahq01\Company\CNPA Board\Board Papers\20030627\CNPA Board Paper 3 270603 JH.doc 23/06/03 3 CAIRNGORMS NATIONAL PARK AUTHORITY Paper 3 270603 second half of August, with a view to external recruitment for those posts remaining vacant, and for the Head of Planning, in September. 10. In recruiting to all posts in the organisation, it will be important to frame job descriptions and identify individuals, who understand the nature of an enabling organisation, and the culture of joined-up working in working through and with a wide range of partners. MAINPC \\Cnpahq01\Company\CNPA Board\Board Papers\20030627\CNPA Board Paper 3 270603 JH.doc 23/06/03 4 CAIRNGORMS NATIONAL PARK AUTHORITY Paper 3 270603 CHIEF EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS GROUP CORPORATE SERVICES GROUP STRATEGIC POLICY AND PROGRAMME MANAGEMENT GROUP VISITOR SERVICES AND RECREATION GROUP BUSINESS & COMMUNITIES GROUP NATURAL RESOURCES GROUP PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT CONTROL GROUP MAINPC \\Cnpahq01\Company\CNPA Board\Board Papers\20030627\CNPA Board Paper 3 270603 JH.doc 23/06/03 5 CAIRNGORMS NATIONAL PARK AUTHORITY Paper 3 270603 CAIRNGORMS NATIONAL PARK AUTHORITY –LINE MANAGEMENT STRUCTURE CHIEF EXECUTIVE COMMUNI-CORPORATE PLANNING AND NATURAL BUSINESS & VISITOR SERVICES STRATEGIC POLICY CATIONS SERVICES DEVELOPMENT RESOURCES COMMUNITIES AND RECREATION AND PROGRAMME GROUP GROUP CONTROL GROUP GROUP GROUP GROUP MANAGEMENT GROUP Finance Local Plan Community Liaison Access Press Budget Structure Plan National Park Plan PR Accounts Agriculture Housing Outdoor recreation (Website ) Publications Payroll Development Control – called-in Forestry Business Ranger services State of the Park Report Communications strategy Personnel/HR of applications Moorland Tourism Information/ interpretation Research Programme IT Enforcement Grant schemes Events Legal Building Control Deer Cultural Heritage LEADER + Education – Board Support Tree Preservation schools and and admin Orders Rivers Project programme colleges liaison support for management Members Design quality Biodiversity Administrative Support Archaeology Listed Buildings Habitat designation MAINPC \\Cnpahq01\Company\CNPA Board\Board Papers\20030627\CNPA Board Paper 3 270603 JH.doc 23/06/03 6 CAIRNGORMS NATIONAL PARK AUTHORITY Paper 3 270603 LINE MANAGEMENT STRUCTURE COMBINES WITH CULTURE OF INTEGRAL APPROACH TO AIMS: TEAM WORKING CHIEF EXECUTIVE STRATEGIC POLICY AND PROGRAMME MANAGEMENT GROUP VISITOR SERVICES AND RECREATION GROUP BUSINESS & COMMUNITIES GROUP NATURAL RESOURCES GROUP PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT CONTROL GROUP COMMUNI- CATIONS GROUP CORPORATE SERVICES GROUP TEAM: NP Marketing TEAM: External Communications TEAM: Park for All -TEAM: Research Programme MAINPC \\Cnpahq01\Company\CNPA Board\Board Papers\20030627\CNPA Board Paper 3 270603 JH.doc 23/06/03 7