PRE-CONDITIONS FOR REGIONAL SHARED SERVICES

Creating an environment for regional collaboration

Don PhillipsNorth-West, South-West & Central Regional Asset Management Group STEP Coordinator

Associate CT Management

National Local Government Asset Management and Public Works Conference. May 2013

Victorian Asset Management Regions

And nowShared

Services

Levels of Service

The Shared Services Holy Grail

• Well known benefits can be achieved through collaborative approaches, such as:

Mid – Long Term Benefits

• Expenditure savings through– Increased use of equipment and other assets– Joint contracts

• Greater capability of achieving best practice through – Improved decision making– Improved access to technology

• Sharing of risk• Better use of limited council resources and skills

– By reducing duplication– Through skill and knowledge sharing– Sharing of employees

Immediate Benefits

• Documents can be produced quicker– Only a single plan need be produced

• Better documents can result by pooling skills, knowledge and technology

If so Great, Why No Action?

• We recognize sharing opportunities must exist, so why has there been so little success in implementing shared services?– Councils still do AM, so no sense of urgency and a

subsequent lack of support?– Concern often over governance issues– Jobs threat to local staff– Perceived loss of local control

Journey for Wimmera Councils

Attempt #1

• Past history with Shared Services• 2008 attempt at regional cooperation with

asset systems• Failed, dramatically• Why? For all the reasons stated above

Attempt #2

• During 2012 another opportunity developed• Started with the Regional Asset Service AMP

template• 14/17 councils from the North-West and South-West

Regions are utilising the regional template• The Wimmera group of Councils at officer level

elected to work together to complete their own first Recreation & Open Space AMP

Common AMPs

• Soon realized since starting from scratch, rather than create separate plans, it was easier to work on one plan with the same processes, methodologies, hierarchies with provision for local input

• Then realized could apply the same approach to other AMPs, so revisited

• Can lead to shared opportunities

ASSET MANAGEMENT PLAN

PART A GENERAL INFORMATION

WIMMERA COUNCILS TEMPLATE

Amendment Register

Issue Date Details By Draft June 2012 Initial draft ME 1.0

Wimmera Discoveries

• Can work but requires cooperation and a willingness to compromise – eg the Road hierarchy problem

• The Councils can demonstrate they are undertaking the same activity, in the same manner

• Opportunities for the sharing of services can then be identified

How to Proceed?

• Develop a step-by-step Shared Services process– Take one step at time– Don’t jump to the end and look for reasons not to

continue– Emphasis that this is not take-over but a

‘knowledge base’ to support local decision making– Be prepared to compromise

Proposed Process“IF YOU BUILD IT, HE WILL COME”

1. Identify the sharing opportunity2. Demonstrate ‘sameness’3. Identify the aligned Councils4. Review skills capacity and resources available5. Establish the alliances6. Identify the tools and resources to create the

shared service7. Document the benefits8. Form the alliance

1. Identify Sharing Opportunity

Sharing opportunities may include:• Condition assessments• Renewal forecasting• AM reporting• AMPs• LTFP

1 Identify sharing

opportunity

2 Demonstrate 'sameness'

3 Aligned Councils

4 Skills, capacity & resources review

5 Establish the alliances

6 Identify the tools and resources required

7 Document benefits

8 Form alliance

2. Demonstrate ‘Sameness’

Sameness may be demonstrated through common • Hierarchies• Processes • Methodologies• Systems

1 Identify sharing

opportunity

2 Demonstrate 'sameness'

3 Aligned Councils

4 Skills, capacity & resources review

5 Establish the alliances

6 Identify the tools and resources required

7 Document benefits

8 Form alliance

3. Align Councils

• Council choose to participate• Aligned Councils may initially be those that

demonstrate ‘sameness’• Although this does not preclude a council

expressing an interest and being prepared to make changes and align itself with other councils. This is not about exclusion.

1 Identify sharing

opportunity

2 Demonstrate 'sameness'

3 Aligned Councils

4 Skills, capacity & resources review

5 Establish the alliances

6 Identify the tools and resources required

7 Document benefits

8 Form alliance

4. Skills, Capacity & Resources Review

• Assesses each council’s current internal available skills and capacity to deliver the identified sharing opportunity

• Any shortfall may indicate a sharing opportunity between councils

• Any available skill may be an opportunity to share an employee

1 Identify sharing

opportunity

2 Demonstrate 'sameness'

3 Aligned Councils

4 Skills, capacity & resources review

5 Establish the alliances

6 Identify the tools and resources required

7 Document benefits

8 Form alliance

Do you have the necessary skills,

resources and capacity within your Council?

You may undertake the

activity internally

Yes No

Option 1 - Use Regional Collaboration

– Form a group to work together to complete project

Option 2 – Use External Consultants

Group works together to

complete project Consultant Support (if required)

Can you share your skills and

resources?

Yes

MAV/STEP Program Support

Support

Skills, Capacity & Resources Review

Internal Capacity & Skills Matrix

No skill/Capacity available Options: 1. Training required (&

move to upper quadrant)

2. Possible regional collaboration

Skill available/Capacity available Options: 1. No assistance

needed 2. Act support to

others

No skill/No capacity Options: 1. Possible regional

collaboration

Skill available/No capacity Options: 1. Possible regional

collaboration

Not Available Available Internal Skills

Avai

labl

e

Not A

vaila

ble

In

tern

al

Capa

city

5 Establish the Alliances

Alliances may be:• Formed to address the specific skills and capacity

deficiencies • Formed to address an under-performing activity• Vary in the number of the interested councils

1 Identify sharing opportu

nity

2 Demons

trate 'samene

ss'

3 Aligned Councils

4 Skills, capacity

& resourc

es review

5 Establish the

alliances

6 Identify

the tools and

resources

required

7 Docume

nt benefits

8 Form alliance

6. Identify the Tools & Resources

Skill location may be:• External provider (contract), or• Internal provider (shared employee) Tools, equipment required:• Joint specification• Equipment purchase/sharing• Software purchase/sharing

1 Identify sharing opportu

nity

2 Demons

trate 'samene

ss'

3 Aligned Councils

4 Skills, capacity

& resourc

es review

5 Establis

h the alliance

s

6 Ident

ify the

tools and

resources

required

7 Docume

nt benefits

8 Form alliance

7. Document Benefits

1 Identify sharing opportu

nity

2 Demons

trate 'samene

ss'

3 Aligned Councils

4 Skills, capacity

& resourc

es review

5 Establis

h the alliance

s

6 Identify

the tools and

resources

required

7 Document benef

its

8 Form alliance

Benefits may be realised through:• Cost savings• Improved service delivery

8. Form Alliance

In forming the alliance councils will consider:• Governance structures • OH&S etc

1 Identify sharing opportu

nity

2 Demons

trate 'samene

ss'

3 Aligned Councils

4 Skills, capacity

& resourc

es review

5 Establis

h the alliance

s

6 Identify

the tools and

resources

required

7 Docume

nt benefits

8 Form allian

ce

Current Progress

• Facilitated through the STEP program• Discussion on opportunities held at Victorian South-West,

North-West and Central AM regional group meetings• Condition rating easy and obvious first test of the process

– South-West selected bridge assets– North- East and Central selected building assets

• Forums conducted to research and discuss options and select a common approach

Regional Forums Outcomes

• Develop a common brief, condition rating manual

• Options of ‘shared employee’, joint contract, software raised immediately

• Next steps, continue with shared services process

• May lead to software development

Summary

• We all struggle with resourcing and effective service delivery

• We do so many things the same, the opportunities for regional collaboration must be there

• A simple, step-by-step process, working from the bottom up has been developed

END