I have just one theme for this week, which is the excellent work being done by the Insight team in terms of performance management, and how it will affect everybody across the organisation. Kate Waterhouse and her team have been working away to stitch together the Business Plan, the Medium Term Financial Strategy and the performance management framework. What we now have is a pretty comprehensive document which will be invaluable for making sure that we deliver on the objectives that we set ourselves for the rest of the year. In simple terms, we’ve taken the priorities framework, worked out which activities lie behind each outcome, and stated what we are looking for in terms of results in the next year. For each activity, there is a Cabinet lead, a responsible Senior Leadership Team member, and an accountable member of Wider Leadership Team or Operational Management Team for the delivery that we seek.
So far, so good, but this will only work if we have a robust system of performance management. The good news is that we have such a plan. The decision this week by the Cabinet to move to a continuous Business Plan and MTFS process will help us enormously, especially now that we have a four year settlement from central government, albeit a very challenging one. In essence, we will review progress, probably every quarter, and plan ahead out to the end of the four year period. Of course, there are county council elections in 2017, and many things can change, but the intention is that we will have a robust and objective system in place to plan and monitor our progress against our plan. I’m very happy with it, but it will only really work if all concerned give this the effort that it requires.
Have a good week.