In a series of blogs Ady Tomsa, Director of People at Futura Learning Partnership, outlines his views on why a People Strategy is crucial to ensuring the pupils in schools achieve the outcomes they deserve, why the approach to recruitment needs a rethink and how we need to look outside the sector for inspiration.
In my last blog, I explored why those of us within Education need to look outside the sector for inspiration and ideas to steal when looking to create a people strategy, in this blog I'll explore the physical process and steps taken to create one.
Let's start with a caveat, this is my take and there are certainly other ways to do this process! But what it can hopefully do is provide a basic methodology and inspiration for anyone starting out in developing their strategy.
- Review organisations mission, vision, and overarching strategy.
Before embarking on creating a people strategy, you need to know where the organisation is going. It sounds obvious, but the over-arching strategy, plan and goals of the organisation will directly impact what is included in any people plan as specifically in Education, the success (or not) of a school and its outcomes, is almost entirely down to the people. There are several areas that all Trusts will want to include, wellbeing, development etc, but the specifics will change. As an example, if an organisation or Trust strategy is to grow, you will need a clear cultural focus on how you plan to create a collective Trust mindset and how you will support new schools entering the Trust (think operating model etc). If the strategy is to improve / turnaround performance, there will need to be specific plans in place for upskilling colleagues and in reward practices to attract high calibre of recruits.
Having this clear in your mind from the outset will shape future stages.
- Review data and internal capability.
Most MATs have a wealth of data at their disposal, it may not be easy to read or display, but it’s there! In terms of data, think outcomes, absence rates, turnover, employee engagement surveys, ratios, demographics, to name a few - the list is endless. This will start to highlight the issues facing the organisation, and the 'gaps' needing to be filled to meet the overarching mission.
In addition, its important to understand what you are working with. As someone new to the organisation, my first 3 months were spent assessing what we already had in place, what was missing, what capability (systems, processes, people) were in situ and at our disposal, as well as any financial restrictions. Being ambitious is great, but you need to be realistic with what is achievable and set short, medium, and long-term plans.
- Listen and Learn
Everyone has an opinion .... but in this case the more you garner the better. Yes, everyone will have an angle to what they tell you, but it is important to speak to all areas of the organisation and at every level to get the feel of what is important and what people think. It doesn't mean you incorporate everything, as that is almost impossible, but when it does come to implementation in the future, answering directly and referencing all feedback is powerful (think 'you said, we did' or 'you mentioned X, but we can't at this stage because of y').
At Futura, we held specific employee focus groups which had representatives from every school, every central department, and at every level to chat through everything from what they like, do not like, behaviours they value and don't, through to what would attract them to another setting. We came out with a huge wish list, which gave us plenty to aim for!
- SWOT and PESTLE
For any CIPD alumni, this will bring back chilling memories I am sure, but it is an incredibly useful process at this stage. With the information garnered, producing a SWOT will start to crystallise what needs to be done and risks coming your way. It is also important to look at external factors and see what is coming over the horizon. This can be both strategic and tactical. As an example, in my last blog I referenced societal changes in views toward employment and longevity which need to be factored into future people strategies. On a tactical level, changes to the employment rights bill made organisations more liable for the prevention of sexual harassment in the workplace, are practices up to scratch or is change needed? Additionally, indications suggest in the not-too-distant future organisations will be required to report on ethnicity pay gaps in a comparable way to the gender pay gap, again is the organisation ready and able for that change?
- Socialise
This is as much to check you are on the right track as to protect yourself, there is nothing worse than putting blood sweat and tears into something and then finding out its wide of the mark and its back to the drawing board. At this stage, it is important to ensure you have the key areas requiring improvement aligned with key stakeholders and gain an understanding of the priority. It is useful to test the appetite for change too, with the data being presented, how far are the board and leadership willing to go?
- Brainstorm ideas!
Use as many people as possible for this, both internally and externally. How do we solve the issues the data, feedback and analysis has presented? What do people want? What do other organisations do? How can we implement in our settings? Create an extensive list and then try to prioritise, both in terms of ease of implementation, but also those that would have the most impact.
- Gap analysis
This is the reality moment. Yes, we would love unlimited leave, pay everyone more, have free breakfast, lunch and dinner and be Google, but we know that isn't going to happen with Education funding. Education has several bespoke challenges that need to be looked at differently and the reality is there are restrictions in what can be done. However, over time and thinking differently, these gaps can be filled. The priority order in which you attack those will be dependent on the strategy and needs of the organisation.
- Create high level principles.
This is the wordy bit of any strategy. What are the non-negotiables? What are you going to be known for and prioritise? As an example, if you want to be known for developing people, what are you committing to? Will you give everyone more time for CPD? Pay for external qualifications etc. If you believe more flexibility will unlock the ability to attract more Talent and increase wellbeing and productivity in your people, and it has been identified as an issue, what processes will you implement to support greater flexibility in working patterns?
This is incredibly important, as having principles that you will stick to is crucial for providing clarity to your leaders. It's all good saying you are super flexible, but if the first flexible working request is blocked by a manager it will undermine all the work you have undertaken.
These need to be shared and socialised with all key stakeholders to ensure understanding and alignment.
- Generate the strategy and implementation plan.
I love a pretty document as much as the next person and I am currently in the process of finalising ours, but the real work starts with the implementation plan. It is crucial to be realistic and honest with what will be achieved and by when. This may take multiple years to achieve. However, there must be tangible milestones, metrics, and data to back up any initiatives and plans that holds the organisation to account. Focusing on people is not just a nice fluffy HR thing to do, there should be clear ROI/ ROE metrics that demonstrate the impact.
A people strategy should be alive document that is constantly reviewed, referenced, and spoken about - so get it out there. Everybody should be able to see it, be clear on the commitments, and know how they are a part of it.