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Strategic H-ma Resources Branch

Government of British Columbia > Ministry of Community, Sport and CultUral Development > Minister's Office > DeDutW
Minister's Office > Manaoement Services Division > Strategic Human Resources Branch

Telephone:
Facsimile:

Not Available
250 387-1407

Emaih
UP, L:

Not Available
Not Available

PO Box 9840

Mailing Address:

STN PROV GOVT

Victoria BC

V8W9T2
CANADA

Name

Title

Viki Anderson

Director, Economy Sector

shelaina Postinqs

Director, Strateqic Human Resources

Jacquelyn Parker
Sandra Lonq
Karen War'd

Strateqic Human Resources Advisor

Manaqer, Strateqic HR
Manager

re[ephone
250 356-6916

250 356-9635
250 356-6914

EZ]
rq

250 356-6916

Martha Wood

Manaqer, Strateqic HR

250 387-2471

Brenda Nelson

Human Resource Planner

250 356-6916

Strateqic HR Adviser

250 953-4125

Administrative Assistant

250 356-9020

Manaqer, Strateqic HR

Caley Byrne

E2]

250 387-1478

Joanna White

Vacant

E-mail

250 387-1495

http://dir.gv.bc.ca/gtds.cgi?shw=Branch&rganizatinCde=CSCD&rganizatinaUnitC... 3/9/2015

Shelaina Postings
Director, Strategic Human Resources
Telephone:

250 387-1478

Alternate Phone: Not Available

Facsimile:

250 387-1407

Cellular:

Not Avalable

Mailing Address: PO Box 9840

STN PROV GOVT

Victoria BC

VSW9T2
CANADA

Organization Code:

CSCD

Organization Unit:

STRHR - Strategic Human t

Email:

Shelaina.Postinv.bcoc

Prepared by: She|aina Postings

AUDITOR GENERAL FOR

LOCAL GOVERNMENT
ACCESSIB]LI[Y . INDEPENDENCE- TRANSPARENCY "PERFORMANCE

Auditor General Local Government

20!5 Work Environment Review
Oveiew
The Auditor General Local Government (AGLG) was announced by the Premier on November 7, 2012 with the
purpose of conducting performance audits of local governments and providing objective information and advice.
The AGLG functions at arm's reach from government is to ensure the work is carried out in an objective manner.

The AGLG announced performance audits of eighteen Local Governments on three different audit topics in May
2013 with an estimated completion timeframe of April 2014,
Basia Ruta, Auditor Generat Local Government leads an office currently comprised often active employees,
located in Surrey BC. The AGLG business model also includes contracted service providers, specifically two
Technical Writers and one Communications Consultant. Chart ! provides a current organisation chart of the
Office.

Chart 1

AUD|TOR GENERAL FSR

LOCAL GOVERNMENT
' ACCESSIBILITY INDEPENDENCE-TRANSPARENCY PERFORMANCE

Recently, issues were brought forward regarding the AGLG, Some of these issues relate to the work
environment and individual conduct within the office, Over the course of January 9 to January 30, 2015 a Human
Resources Representative maintained a presence within the AGLG office with the primary purpose of ensuring a
respectful workplace for at employees,

In addition, the representative supported by:

o parLicipating in meetings to observe employee and team dynamics;
o providing an open door to employees; and
gathering input through a confidentia! and voluntary work environment survey.
The input and observations gathered, serve as the foundation for this review. Other reviews are being
conducted simultaneously that will further inform next steps,

Observations and feedback

From January 9 to January" 30, the HR Representative participated in over fifty meetings with employees in the

AGLG Office. Roughly half of these meetings were daily business meetings where the HR Representative
observed dynamFcs and interpersonal relationships. The other half was confidential meetings with employees to

discuss their employment experience in the AGLG Office.

The feedback gathered for this report is provided in unattributed form. Further, only challenges or opportunities
identified by more than two respondents were included in this report.
Based on the observations and feedback gathered, four themes have been identified with respect to the work
environment. The themes include:
ctarity of direction and priorities
resourcing, timelines and budget
o rotesand responsibilities
meetings, processand paper

Clarity of Direction and Priorities

Throughout the discussions, there appeared to be a common and shared understanding of the overall mandate
of the Office and its accountabilities. However, feedback regarding shifting priorities and unclear direction was a
common struggle amongst staff. Priorities lose focus or shift focus causing time lags and delays in the work.
The most common frustration with was wasted time and work. Almost all employees shared examples of

preparing work based on direction to find out that the direction had shifted and the work wasn't needed. In
addition, there was a common theme regarding a lack of scope definition or scope expansion causing inefficient
use of consultant and staff resources.

AUDmTOR GENERAL FOR

LOCAL GOVERN MENT
ACCESS1BIUTY INDEPENDENCE TRANSPARENCY-PERFORMANCE
Resourcing, Timelines and Budget
The majority of daily meetings observed, centred around timelines and the work at hand. it was evident, that
the Office was experiencing heightened stress resulting from time pressures. A lot of time and resources were

dedicated to building out timelines to provide an aggressive but reachable conclusion to some of the audit
topics. Employee feedback was that the time invested in discussing timelines and project managing the work,

limited the ability of the staff to get the work done. This was an evident frustration.
Other feedback acknowledged a need for more staff resources. Observations of the Office were that all
employees demonstrated a strong work ethic. Many staff worked through lunch, committed to long work days
and even came in on weekends to meet de[iverabtes. Workloads appeared to be heavy for the audit staff
indicating a staffing resource challenge. Over the past year, two employees have been on leave. This is 20% of
the staff compliment having an impact on resourcing and budget as well
Concerns were also raised regarding better use of contracted resources. Specific concerns were raised regarding

the Jack of oversight and direction provided to KPMG that resulted in poor quality of product to support the
audit work of the office and time lags, This caused further frustration for the audit staff,
Roles and Responsibilities
A theme that came up was lack of clarity regarding roles and responsibilities. This feedback aligned with
comments regarding shifting focus, Employees shared that it was often unclear who was responsible for various
pieces of work. There was also confusion when multiple individuals were assigned to tasks as to who was
leading or had accountability for the assignment. Employees were starting to use myperformance in the office to

help clarify role accountabilities. Though this didn't seem to ease the challenge of the daily operations.
It was also apparent that the majority of positions did not have role profiles and there was not a consistent and
established process to determine the knowledge, skills abilities, competence and accreditation required for
various positions. As a result, there is inconsistency in the office. For example, It was unclear what positions
required an accounting designation. It was difficult to ascertain if the right resources were in the right place.
Meetings, Process end Paper
A common theme and observation was with respect to meeting duration. Meeting times would run over
regularly. There seemed to be different expectations regarding this, Some individuals were more flexible with
this and recognised it was a norm in the office, Others felt that meeting schedules should be adhered to and
greater commitment and organisation was required to manage to the time commitments.
Another theme raised was with respect to process. Employees felt that processes changed frequently in the
Office and the expectations of these processes would shift as well. t was given the impression that process
changes were common, making it difficult for employees to see out work in a capacity that aligned with
expectations.

AUDITOR GENERAL FOR

LOCAL GOVERNMENT
ACCESSIBIUTY INDEPNDENCE- TRANSPARENCY, PERFORMANCE
Another theme was with respect to producing documents (paper) in the office. Employees described multiple
requests for the same document; a lack of reading documentation provided; and new requests for similar
documentation that wouid share comparable information in a different style or format. Employees had a
common concern that the current approach to sharing documentation was not effective or efficient.

Work Environment Survey Res#lts

Of the ten employees in the AGLG, nine were invited to participate in the work environment survey. One
employee returned to the office from a one year parental leave on January 26 and decided she did not have
enough current experience in the office to provide meaningful input. Employees were also given an opportunity
to provide input into the survey questions.
Assessing O'erall Engagement
There were nine respondents to the work environment survey. Chart two provides an overview of the overall
engagement in the Office based on responses. The majority of employees are somewhat engaged,

Chart 2

AGLG Overall Engagement Responses

5
4
3

Very Engaged

Somewhat
engaged

Neither engaged Somewhat Very disengaged

r disengaged disengaged

AUDITOR GENERAL FOR

LOCAL GOVERNMENT
ACCESSIBEffY INDEPENDENCE. TRANSPARENCY- PERFORMANCE
Survey Results: Assessing Job and Orgonisation Satisfaction
The next four questions addressed respondents' job satisfaction, organisation satisfaction, desire to remain with
the AGLG, and work satisfaction. Of note:

78% of respondents disagreed or strongly disagreed that they were satisfied with the organisation
67% of respondents disagreed or strong{y disagreed that they were satisfied with their job
56% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that they were satisfied with the work at the AGLG overall
45%of respondents were neutral on a preference to stay with the AGLG even if offered a similar role
elsewhere

Full responses are highlighted in Chart three.

Chart 3

would prefer to stay with the AGLG even

arn satisfied with my job

if offered a simitar job elsewhere

22%
33%

33%

67%

OveraB J am satisifed in my work as an

0%

! am satisfied with my organisation

AGLG employee

11%
11%

56%
78%
,, ,

Agree or Strongly Agree

Neither agree nor disagree

Disagree or Stongly Disagree

AUDITOR GENERAL FOR

LOCAL GOVERNMENT
ACCESSiBILffY.INDEPENDENCE TRANSPARENCY PERFORMANCE
Survey Resu#s: Assessing Engagemen Drivers
The third portion of the survey explored respondents experience with the thirteen engagement drivers
commonly used in the BC Public Service Work Environment Survey. Respondents were provided with a fulsome

definition of the engagement drivers that can be found in Appendix A.

The three strongest engagement areas are:
Teamwork
Workplace Tools
e Vision, Mission and Goals

(55% of responses were somewhat positive or very positive)

(55% of responses were somewhat positive or very positive)

(44% of responses were somewhat positive or very positive)

The four weakest engagement areas are:

Executive-Level Management

(78% of responses were somewhat negative or very negative)

e Empowerment

(78% of responses were somewhat negative or very negative)

, Respectful Environment
Stress and Workload

(55% of responses were somewhat negative or very negative)

(55% of responses were somewhat negative or very negative)

In addition, respondents were asked what engagement areas the AGLG should focus on over the next year. The
four engagement areas identified were consistent with the weakest engagement areas.

o Executive-Level Management
Empowerment
o Stressand Workload
_____o..Respectful Environment

Survey Results: Assessfng Employee Contributions to an Engaged Workplace

The fin!l section of the survey addressed respondent's contribution to supporting an engaged workplace. All
respondents indicated that they had done something to support engagement for themselves or their coworkers.
There was a wide range of descriptions to support this including:
Accessing coaching services through the PSA
Encouraging and supporting colleagues
Trying to resolve conflicts or differences of opinions in the office

o Supporting and pitching in where needed

AUDITOR QENERAL FOR

LOCAL QOVERNMENT
ACCESSIB]UTY INDEPENDENCE. TRANSPARENCY PERFORMANCE
Respondents were also asked what they could do to improve their own engagement. Again, there was a wide
range to support this including:

Not getting frustrated and staying positive

Expand knowedge and skills
e Proactively address issues in the work environment
Respondents were also asked what they could do to improve their colreagues' engagement. Again, there was a

wide range to support this including:

= Recognise, support and encourage each other
= Acknowledge the valued contribution each person brings
Continue to work togeLher as a team
Respondents were also asked what major achievement over the past year they were proud of that enhanced
engagement. As this is a pe'sonal question, ] have not included responses. It was reassuring to see 78% of

respondents identified something that they were proud of.

Conclusion
To support a functional, engaged and high performing work environment positive change is required. This
review should be considered in combination with other reviews and respective outcomes to develop meaningful
solutions. There are five areas of focus that will require conscious and purposeful action to support the success

of the AGLG Office. These include:

I, Employees experience a healthy and respectful atmosphere free from fear of reprisal, discrimination and
harassment.

2, Executive-Level Management provides clear direction and meaningful communication to support

understanding and a shared purpose.
3, Executive-Level Management and Supervisory-Level Management effectively and efficiently deploy
resources, budget and timelines to maximize productivity and achieve outcomes without causing undue
stress and workload to employees.
4. Executive-Level Management and Supervisory-Level Management provide employees with clarity of roles
and responsibilities and employees are empowered to see out their respective duties.
5. The team is empowered to collaborative]y establish consistant practises with respect to meetings, process
and documentation that everyone agrees to uphold.

AUDITOR GENERAL FOR

LOCAL QOVERHMENT
ACCESSIBIUTY . INDEPENDENCE TRANSPARENCY .. PERFORMANCE

Append# A
Empowerment

Stress and Workload

Job Suitability

Employees believe they have opportunities and freedom to provide input, make
decisions to do their job well and implement new ideas.
Employees perceive that their work-related stress and workloads are manageable.

Employees befteve that their work is both meaningful and good fit for their skills and
interests.

Vision, Mission and

Goals

Employees believe that their organisation's vision, mission and goals are well
communicated and that their organisation is taking steps to ensure its long-term
SUCCESS.

Teamwork

Employees experience positive working relationships, have support from their team,
and feel their team communicates effectively.

Workplace Tools

Employees believe that both their computer-based and non-computer based tools
they have access to help them excet in their jobs.

Recognition

Employees experience meaningful and performance-based recognition.

Professional
Development

provides good quality training, and offers adequate opportunities to develop their

Employees believe that their organJsation supports their learning and development,
skills,

Pay and Benefits

Employees believe that their pay is fair and competitive with similar jobs, and that
their benefits meet their needs well

Staffing Practices

Employees believe staffing processes in their work unit are fair and based on merit.

Respectful Environment

Employees experience a healthy and diverse atmosphere free from discrimination

and harassment.

ExecfJtive-Level
Management

Employees believe that their senior leaders communicate decisions in a timely

manner and that they provide dear direction for the future.

Supervisory-Level
Management

Employees believe that the person they report to leads with an understanding of
others" perspectives, keeps them informed, consults them on decisions that affect
them, and provides dear work expectations.