Preparing for change at the UKPS
| Date | 01 September 2007 |
| Pages | 8-9 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/14754390780001007 |
| Published date | 01 September 2007 |
| Author | Bernard Herdan |
| Subject Matter | HR & organizational behaviour |
8Volume 6 Issue 6 September/October 2007
HR AT WORK
,
Short case studies that demonstrate best practice in HR
Preparing for change at the UKPS
T
he UK Passport Service (UKPS), now
known as the Identity and Passport
Service (IPS), embarked on an
effective leadership program in January
2005 in order to prepare its senior staff
for a period of major organizational
change. The program was developed in
conjunction with CPCR, a consultancy
specializing in collaborative leadership,
and the aim was to prepareleaders for a
widening of the organization’s
responsibilities. This change took place
in April 2006 with the establishment of
the IPS as an executive agency of the
Home Office. It involved the integration
of some Home Office departments and
taking on additional duties, such as the
provision of ID cards for British and
other nationals resident in the UK.
The new agency would also continue
to build on the strong foundations laid
by the UKPS to provide passport services
as part of the National Identity Scheme.
Specifically it would compliment
previous changes to the passportsystem
designed to provide a secure and
straightforward way to safeguard
personal identities from fraudulent use.
Change and restructuring
In recent years, in common with many
other public sector organizations, the
UKPS had focused on the strategic issues
that it faced. With huge organizational
change on the agenda, the UKPS needed
to consider the impact on the wider
business cultureand manage people’s
expectations as the transition took
effect. The restructure would involve a
complete transformation in working
practices and systems, and also create
groups of people who had previously
never worked together. A focus was
thereforeneeded on the leadership and
people management issues that would
affect the success of the UKPS change
program and ultimately the new Identity
and Passport Service. The success of the
transition would depend upon the
supportof staffat all levels, from
administrators to senior decision makers.
The UKPS recognized that it needed to
find a consultancy partner that would
help the board directors and senior
management teams enhance their
leadership skills, in order to create a more
consistent approach when dealing with
people issues in light of the imminent
restructure and the increasing complexity
and diversity of the organization.
It was decided that the organization
needed external input to ensure its
people received the support they
needed to manage the new and
changing environment. Following a
tendering process, the UKPS selected
CPCR as it had a track record of working
with other government departments
and bodies in the UK, such as the
Department of Trade and Industry, Food
Standards Agency,Ministry of Defence,
and National Assembly for Wales.
Establishing priorities and challenges
The two organizations worked closely
together prior to and in preparation for
the changes. This included a 360-degree
feedback process that required the board
and senior management across the
organization to carry out a self-
assessment against a set of leadership
competencies and the recently developed
“valued behaviors” of the organization. It
also involved feedback from line
managers, staff, peers and those outside
the organization with whom they had an
established working relationship.
Each individual then had a feedback
session with one of the CPCR team,
which helped them to focus on the
leadership challenges they would be
facing both personally and across the
organization. The results of the
360-degree review were used to
pinpoint development priorities and
create personal development plans.
Several of the participants established
coaching relationships to work on
leadership challenges and specific
development actions.
Aseries of workshops with the board
was used to identify leadership
challenges. During the workshops,
senior leaders discussed their own
working practices to identify where
change was required in order to cope
with the impending organizational
restructure. It became apparent that, as
agroup, these leaders were good at
strategic thinking but not so strong at
staffdevelopment and communicating
effectively across the organization.
Leadership changes
In light of the organizational changes
taking place, there had to be consistency
across the leadership team to deal and
communicate with staff more effectively.
Working initially with the board, CPCR
and the UKPS created a four-module
Bernard Herdan, previously CEO of the UK Passport Service and now executive director, service planning and
delivery at the restructured organization, discusses the preparation that made this major change happen with ease.
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