professionalisation in local government an independent perspective on service orientation peter...

Professionalisation in Local GovernmentAn independent perspective on service orientation

Peter Allwright

DirectorHorizon Forensics 17 February 2014

Sometimes an official is just a productof the system.

It’s important to understand how the system creates the environment for officials to

succeed or fail.

Overcoming the system necessitates a new framework for local government that is based on

professionalism …

Overview

State of affairs1

Primary obstacle: conduct and misconduct2

Complicating challenges3

Roadmap to service orientation4

Managing misconduct5

Questions6

State of affairs (2011-2012)

1

0

2

34

5

6

7

8HorizonForensics

Health check of key indicators

Unauthorisedexpenditure

Fruitless andwasteful

expenditure

Non-compliancewith legislation

Irregularexpenditure

Health Check

94% R9,78bn

R9,82bn R568mn

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Management and Leadership Internal Independent Assurance & Oversight

External Independent Assurance & Oversight

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

19% 22%13%

44% 42%

41%

37% 31%41%

0% 5% 5%

Provides assurance Provides some assurance Provides limited/no assurance Not established

Effectiveness of key role players

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Stumbling blocks to improvement

Leadership Financial and performance management Governance0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

24% 19%29%

34%32%

36%

42%49%

35%

Good Concerning Intervention required

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Key root causes not addressed

Root causes Impacting performance

and introducingnew challenges

Key positionsKey positions vacant or key officialslacking appropriate competencies

ConsequencesLack of consequences for poorperformance and transgressions

InterventionSlow response by political leadershipin addressing the root causes ofpoor audit outcomes

73%

71%

76%

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Key areas requiring intervention

Financial health

Quality of Financial Statements

Supply chain management

Human resource management

Information technology controls

Quality of performance reports

Intervention Concerning

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Regression in audit outcomes

2009-2010 2010-2011 2011-20120%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

5% 5% 5%

45% 47% 43%

50% 48% 52%

Unqualified with no findings Unqualified with findingsQualified/adverse/disclaimed with findings

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Primary obstacle: conduct and misconduct

Actions constituting inappropriate behaviour and conduct

Conflict of interest Conducting business with the

municipality Unethical conduct Malicious damage to state property Unauthorised possession of state

property Driving an official vehicle whilst under

the influence of drugs /liquor Disobeying work-related orders Intimidation Incitement Sexual harassment

Revealing confidential information Racism Falsification of records/documents Flagrant disregard for safety standards Misuse of state property for private

purposes Not dressed in a clean, decent and

tidy manner Repeated unauthorised and / or

uncommunicated absenteeism Making false statements Abuse of sick leave Sleeping on duty

Actions constituting misconduct

Unauthorised, irregular or fruitless and wasteful expenditure Deliberate or negligent failure to carry out a duty Provide incorrect or misleading information Mismanagement Misappropriation Waste or theft

Common offences

FraudTheftCorruption

Economic extortion

BriberyKickbacks

Bid rigging

Conflicts of interest

Gross negligence

Missappropriation/Abuse

Financial mismanagement

Cronyism/Nepotism

Causes of misconduct

(Wol

fe, D

avid

T.,&

Her

man

son,

Dan

a R.

, 200

4, D

ecem

ber)

Rationalisation

Incentive

Opportunity

Capability

Obligations to act upon misconduct

Action that must be taken against an official who wilfully or negligently makes or permits unauthorized, irregular or fruitless and wasteful expenditure

Obligation to report financial misconduct in terms of the Municipal Finance Management Act, Municipal Systems Act and supporting Treasury Regulations

Serious reporting obligation stipulated in the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act which states that you need to report incidents of financial misconduct (theft, fraud, extortion, forgery or uttering of a forged document) involving amounts of R100,000 or more to the South African Police Service

Sanctioning officials committing misconduct

Sanctioning: Disciplinary proceedings Must take effective and appropriate disciplinary steps against an official who

contravenes or fails to comply with the provisions of the legislative framework and/or who undermines the financial management and internal control system

Sanctioning: Criminal proceedings An official is liable on conviction of an offence to imprisonment for a period not

exceeding five years or to an appropriate fine determined in terms of applicable legislation

It’s playground out there

Simple reality is that it’s easy to get away with it Misconduct is often not reported or acted upon Steps aren’t taken to deal with the problem There are almost no consequences Ramifications aren’t severe enough Situation has become rampant Officials continue with unlawful behaviour and illicit schemes

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You need to have your wits about you

Officials are generally content to remain at home on precautionary suspension Suspended for several months at exorbitant cost Employers often stumble and transgress their own procedures Complicating or terminating the sanctioning of officials Exacerbated by repeated postponements, delays and mystery illnesses Active lobbying of senior officials or politicians to intervene or resolve situation Intimidation and harassment of witnesses Abandonment of cases and sanctioning So

urce

: Rea

l sta

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f the

nati

on, A

llwrig

ht

We are failing to overcome the situation

Junior Ranking Officials

Guilty Final Written Warning

No Criminal Action/Not Indicated

100%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

44% 77% 25% 68%

No reliable statistics of the situation

Comparable analysis with other public institutions

Same issues are repeating themselves year to year

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Non-Recovery of Financial Loss

34%

Complicating challenges

Perception: officials are moderately corrupt!

Perceptions Surveyed from ordinary

citizens on theirinteraction withpublic officials

Corruption Perception Index (2013)Scored 42/100. Ranked 72/177.Moderately corrupt.

OECD Anti-Bribery Convention (2011)Scored “No Enforcement”.

Global Corruption Barometer (2013)62 % of people that think corruptionhas increased in the past 3 years.Scored 3.5 on the perception ofcorruption in 6 public institutions(5 = extremely corrupt)

Sour

ce: T

rans

pare

ncy

Inte

rnati

onal

, Org

anis

ation

for E

cono

mic

Co-

oper

ation

and

Dev

elop

men

t

Reality: factors hampering your developmental mandate

Ineffective leadership and management Political intervention and interference Scarce/diminishing/insufficient resources and capacity Irregular/inappropriate appointments High turnover and vacancy rates Competing priorities Ineffective performance management systems Dysfunctional management systems and processes Mismatched skills Ineffective oversight and control Disjointed strategies and plans

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Substantial progress has been made in overcoming some of the key obstacles hampering

your developmental mandate.

Overcoming the challenges necessitates the professionalisation of local government to

successfully operate in a complex environment …

The Professionalisation Framework is based upon ethics, conduct and behaviour.

Roadmap to service orientation

Service orientation

Context

Local government turnaround strategy was adopted by Cabinet in 2009 Recommended administrative transformation and professionalisation Extensive consultation and research culminated in a concept paper Widespread consultation with key stakeholders SALGA and COGTA collaborated to formulate a framework Developed a Professionalisation Framework for Local Government

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Guiding principles

To strengthen the local government system To promote a high level of professional competence, experience, behaviour and

ethics on the part of local government officials, both appointed and elected, especially those at the senior level

To promote uniformity, standardisation and harmony To align existing constitutional, legislative and regulatory mandates and

requirements, and in particular to the broader initiatives and provisions for local government capacity building contained in the Revised National Capacity Building Framework for Local Government (2012 to 2016)

To promote equity To contribute to improved individual and institutional performance

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Roadmap to service orientation

Constitutional Ideals

Batho Pele Principles

Service Charter Commitment

Professionalism

Values

Morals

Right and Wrong

Code of Conduct

Ethical Principalsand Values Characteristics

and Traits

Ethical and moral workplace

EthicsManagement

Leadership commitment

Governance structures

Ethical risk assessment

Ethics strategy

Code and policies

Monitor and report

Institutionalisation

Independent assessment & external reporting

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Conscious programmes Awareness programmes

Values

Managing misconduct

Foundational principles

Commitment of leadership to combat misconduct Strict enforcement of the legislative framework Strengthening risk management practices and procedures Appoint independent experts to investigate serious misconduct Improve the investigative capacity of local government Consistent management of disciplinary hearings and sanctions Institute disciplinary, criminal and civil proceedings against guilty officials Blacklist guilty officials within the public service Active recovery of unauthorised, irregular, fruitless or wasteful expenditure Improve monitoring and reporting mechanisms

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Managing and overcoming misconduct

Tone at the top

Senior management must send out a strong message that

misconduct will not be tolerated

Training

There should be regular and consistent training to maintain

standards/expectations

Highlight blowing the whistle

Review misconduct risks

Conduct regular reviews of misconduct risks to ensure that

the organisation keeps abreast of emerging trends/risks

Clear policies / procedures

Policies and procedures should be formulated and written in

clear and concise language with possible sanctions for violations

Blowing the whistle

Promote and encourage blowing the whistle because it’s the key

source of misconduct

Strong enforcement

Maintain strong enforcement of transgressions to maintain a

consistent intolerance of misconduct

Misconduct risk champion

Nominate a dedicated misconduct risk champion so that

there is a dedicated role and responsibility

Anti-misconduct controls

Implement robust anti-misconduct controls and test

regularly to maintain high standards

Investigate isolated events

Investigate isolated events because employees usually start

small and grow their acts of misconduct

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Thank you for your attention!

Any Questions?

Framework components

Constitutional ideals

Promoting and maintaining high standards of professional ethics Providing service impartially, fairly, equitably and without bias Utilising resources efficiently and effectively Responding to people's needs Citizens are encouraged to participate in policy-making Rendering an accountable, transparent, and development-oriented public

administration

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Con

stitu

tion

Batho Pele Principles

Consultation

Increasing Access

Providing Information

Setting Service Standards

Ensuring Courtesy

Openness and Transparency

Redress Value for Money

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tiativ

e

Commitment to the Service Charter

Improve service delivery programmes Improve service delivery improvement for the benefit of all citizens Clarify the rights and obligations of each of the parties Acknowledge and reward excellent performance Professionalise and encourage excellence in the public service Enhance performance Facilitate a process to define service standards in various sectors Strengthen processes and initiatives that prevent and combat corruption Facilitate social dialogue among the partners Treat citizens with dignity and expectations Meeting their demands equitably and fairly Ensure an effective, efficient and responsive public service

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epar

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ublic

Ser

vice

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inist

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Ethical principles and values

Selflessness

Impartiality and Fairness

Confidentiality

Stewardship

Objectivity

Accountability and Openness

Integrity

Honesty

Political Neutrality

Respect for Others Constitutional and Legal Duty Leadership

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Professionalism versus unprofessionalism

An expectation of a specific style of behaviour and conduct in the workplace

Not conforming to the standards of a profession; contrary to the accepted code of conduct of a profession

Professionalism Unprofessionalism

Values

The beliefs or ideals held and shared about what is good or bad and desirable or undesirable. Values have a major influence on a person’s behaviour and attitude and serve as a guideline for all situations.

Morals

Relating to, dealing with, or capable of making the distinction between right or wrong conduct. – Principles– Standards– Beliefs with respect to right or wrong behaviour

Right and Wrong

Right In accordance with fact, reason,

justice, law, and morality

Wrong Contrary to fact or reason, unlawful,

crooked, twisted, immoral, improper

Code of conduct

A set of conventional principles and expectations that are considered binding on any person who is a member of a collective group.

The code of conduct will be based on the Municipal Systems Act.

Personal characteristics and traits

Honest Skilled Courteous Reliable Considerate Dependable Cooperative Committed

professionalisation in local government an independent perspective on service orientation peter...

Documents

misconduct slide

south africa slide

duty slide

professionalism slide

horizonforensics slide

key root causes

key officials

misconduct unauthorised