Dear colleagues,

Attached is a description of the new CFI initiative – Future-HR - that has recently been launched. This is directly relevant to CFI. I expect each Senior Director to identify the actions needed to ensure that this initiative is implemented in their respective Departments.

See Below

FUTURE-HR INITIATIVE

Children and Families International (CFI) has introduced a new initiative, Future-HR, to ensure that it is aligned to the transformation agenda to create an adaptive, capable and people-centred HR community that actively works with its partners to accelerate results for the children and families we serve. We aim to ensure a fit-for-purpose structure and service delivery model to meet CFI’s ambitious organizational priorities, appropriately skilled HR professionals to provide strategic advice to its business partners, and a talent management strategy and framework to attract, develop and retain the right talent across CFI.

It is envisaged that this new initiative will:

*Enable managers and leaders to enhance staff motivation and engagement.

*Ensure that the right people are in the right place at the right time.

*Empower managers and leaders to effectively lead the performance of their staff.

*Provide clarity on what is expected from staff and ensure they are equipped to deliver on these expectations.

*Implement the systems and tools in place to foster a culture of continuous learning, professional and career development in CFI.

The strategic result areas are defined as follows:

Strategic Result Area 1: Have people centric and appropriately skilled HR professionals with the ability to leverage top-class resources to provide client-focused, strategic, and operational guidance so that all CFI offices deliver results for children and families. If successful,

*The recruitment and administration of staff and consultants is simpler, more efficient and ensures that a more diverse, inclusive, highly engaged and productive pool of candidates is hired.

*The capacity-building programme ensures all staff are given the opportunity to develop and perform at the strategic level.

*There is a robust and effective communication process which raises awareness and actively engages the workforce around CFI people priorities, culture and values.

Strategic Result Area 2: The HR business model is adequately redesigned and resourced to deliver on the Strategic Plan and Transformation Agenda. If successful,

*There are systems, approaches, models and resources to operationalize CFI’s HR business model in development and humanitarian contexts.

*CFI has a repository of guidance, tools and best practices for offices to use for ensuring optimized, rationalized and cost-effective structures and support.

*CFI has a clear skills inventory including where gaps lie and plans to identify future talent and skills that will be needed.

*Clear systems and tools in place for consequential accountability of individuals and teams, linking roles, responsibilities, and accountabilities with specific consequences like incentives, rewards or interventions.

*People analytics are available to answer people-related business questions and can be used for strategic decisions.

Strategic Result Area 3: HR effectively partners with stakeholders to build a culture where the work environment is psychologically safe, diverse and inclusive. If successful,

*New working modalities help attract and retain diverse talent.

*Managers are recruited, trained and held accountable for demonstrating competence in fostering an environment of psychological trust, diversity and inclusion.

*People analytics and insights on diversity and inclusion are available to make evidence-based decisions on all aspects of people management.

Strategic Result Area 4: HR partners across CFI to enable and empower high performing and innovative teams that can adapt to a fast-changing environment and maintain high organizational performance to deliver results for children and families. If successful,

*CFI employees are given the support needed to understand and demonstrate behaviours aligned with values of empathy, honesty, fairness, collaboration, responsibility and sustainability.

*The new integrated talent management system supports CFI staff through the entire employee life cycle.

*There are new modalities to manage performance, with reward and recognition programmes enabling and improving staff motivation and organizational performance.

 Dear Nala,

Considering the recent launch of the Future-HR strategy, I organised a retreat with various HR business partners and managers to discuss our challenges but also to explore suggestions on what we can do to occupy a seat at the strategic table. The retreat was a great success, and it was inspiring to hear the different thoughts and ideas from our colleagues as well as some varied perspectives. At your earliest convenience, I’d like to discuss a few of them with you but in the meantime, I have captured the main discussion points for your appreciation. 

HR deserves a seat at The Table. For so long, HR has been viewed in CFI as the administrative support of various functions in the organisation. With the new Future-HR strategy, we are being asked to occupy a seat at the strategic table but many of us in the HR space, are unsure of, perhaps even reluctant to take up space. However, with this new initiative upon us, we need to find a way to proudly occupy that seat. And in doing that we need to think of: What are the skills needed to deliver the HR strategy? How would you go about determining the skills and capabilities needed to deliver the strategies at headquarters and within a Country Office. How do you engage with Section Chiefs to ensure that the right capabilities are in place within teams and where they are not? How do we support the Section Chief to create growth plans for colleagues? How do we convince others of the added value we bring? How do we articulate an HR narrative that has concrete measurable outcomes and is not seen as being all rhetoric? And yet many HR managers also complain that they don’t have time to sit at the strategic table because they are dealing with a myriad of “day to day” issues.

Digital Transformation: If we are looking for real transformation and change in the HR space, and to play a strategic role in the organisation, we will need to get a lot better at using data to inform decisions. It’s not necessarily about manipulating the data because we have individuals who are skilled at doing that already but it’s more about using the data to make decisions, to promote diversity, and to influence stakeholders. Using data in a more strategic manner will help us to be more accountable in the way that we spend our money and defend the decisions we make, and ultimately, this will help to influence strategies and direction in the organisation.

Embracing Creativity: With Embracing Creativity: With this new initiative, we will have to approach challenges with a lot more creativity than we have been accustomed to. Too often, we have tended to shy away from thinking out of the box. But times are changing – we are being asked to work differently, to do more with less, and to navigate our own path in this new world. To this end, we must find a way of attracting people who are agile and also learn to connect with GenZ, who are more open minded and don’t just follow policy/protocols for the sake of it. They are asking a lot more questions and we need to be more open to where they’re coming from. So instead of dismissing this generation or reverting with “…that’s something we have tried before and it’s not going to work...”, perhaps this is an opportune time to figure out how we are going to feed the appetite of the new generation. How do we listen to them, build on social behaviour change, and ultimately influence senior leaders to make the necessary changes? 

Improve Communication and Engagement: If we want to embrace the title of “transformational HR leader”, we need to be focused on the objectives/ on the goals; to develop clear plans and to fight for the resources needed to support goals. It’s not just about using fancy buzz words anymore. We need to change the perception of HR - from a view that HR can’t get anything done to a view that HR has a goal, has a target, has credibility and the way that they communicate is with impact and we’re not having to rely on, maybe positional power that we have done in the past. We must be seen to be driving towards concrete and measurable outcomes. So, it also goes down to how we are able to share those ideas and build a stronger reputation. We have to do this sensitively as well because we are part of the transformation in order for CFI to successfully deliver the Future-HR strategy.

Creating ONE Culture. During discussions, there was a lot of talk about the different cultures that exist between various departments and country offices. In some situations, the culture is very much aligned to the CFI values of empathy, honesty, fairness, collaboration, responsibility, and sustainability. But in other situations, it is completely the opposite with people sometimes experiencing a “culture shock” when they move from one office to the next. They cite poor teamwork, ineffective performance management, fear of speaking up, no accountability, fear of reprimand, abuse of authority, and “results at all costs” even if integrity and mental health are compromised. Some colleagues feel staff have been pampered too much over the years and this has created a sense of entitlement which may be feeding all these poor values. So, the question is how do we create one culture that permeates across the whole organisation?

Dear Nala,

As requested, I have summarized some of the Human Resources challenges which exist across the organisation. Hopefully, this will help to guide you and the person who will take on this role. From my quick analysis, CFI faces four significant and urgent challenges relevant to Human Resources:

i) To bring staffing costs in line with the budget reality,

ii) To improve quality and speed of hire and reduce vacancy rates,

iii) To improve the performance management culture, and

iv) To continually update skills of staff at all levels.

The staff associations that represent our employees have been slow in recognizing the challenges that CFI has to address despite our informing them many times.  They are adopting a defensive stance in many areas where change is being contemplated. There is also considerable blaming of management for current perceived difficulties.

Work analysis at Headquarters has indicated that the number of staff employed in the administration sector, particularly in IT, needs revision. Additionally, other multinational NGOs have reported increased efficiency and more direct lines of communication through the implementation of decentralization policies, placing more administrative and programme staff in the field and fewer at headquarters. My observation, which merits further analysis, is that our systems are somewhat outdated and cumbersome.  Opportunities may exist to outsource some non-core activity with a view to secure that expertise by way of corporate donation. Artificial Intelligence (AI) may also need to be considered in our activities as we move forward. I expect fierce opposition from staff on such moves, and this could be a major blow to relations and morale, and ultimately performance could suffer.

Staff reports considerable overlaps and gaps in jobs, and many feel frustrated that they are unclear what their jobs entail, have too little to do or are swamped with routine paperwork. However, there is yet no policy or plan to review and update the jobs to reflect changes in duties as well as re-grade the jobs. No move has been made so far to create internal mobility policies, and supervisors are said to be avoiding answering career questions that staff ask. 

Additionally, insufficient numbers of qualified personnel and skills shortcomings continue to plague us in the field. The recruitment criteria for skilled professionals have proven inadequate to guarantee selection of those with the best profile. The candidates’ personal experience and their preparedness to face different tasks, depending on needs, must undergo stricter evaluation.  Further increasing our challenges, other NGOs are vying for similarly skilled candidates, who are in short supply, often offering better salary and benefits.  Additionally, the field has traditionally not always been attractive to young graduates who believe that headquarters assignments are more advantageous for their careers.

Regarding benefits and entitlements, I strongly believe that salary levels and benefits fixed during the recruitment process should be discussed in more flexible terms depending on the length of mission and the kinds of programmes to be worked on. Consequently, in some cases, it is likely we will need to consider much more seriously moving to a more pay-for-performance based approach, both for individual and group compensation.

Internally, looking at my team, I have received many complaints from staff, hiring managers about there being no support from the HR Team, including no responses, or delayed or unprofessional responses to request queries. These ongoing problems have led to lack of trust in the HR team including frustration and demotivation among clients. Whilst I must admit we have a part to play, I must also emphasize that when it comes to the recruiting/ hiring process, many Departments often delay completing their steps in the recruiting process and give low priority to recruiting when they receive applicant files for screening and short-listing. Their suggested adverts don’t exactly match the job /position. Job descriptions are generally done poorly and say little as to what they are looking for either being too broad or too specific not accurately portraying the duties, responsibilities, requirements and expectations. This causes problems and delays when screening applicants as needlessly more time is spent debating and clarifying the requirements. However, when this causes delays, we get blamed for it.

There are a few other issues that emerged from the Employee Survey conducted by Surveys for Action. I am forwarding you the report that was sent to me a couple of weeks ago.  

Dear Tefo,

Attached are the results of the recent employee survey across all CFI departments.   I think you will find the results interesting and useful. 

The report has been provided to you using the format we agreed upon. 

If you have questions about the data, please do not hesitate to contact me. 

Yours sincerely,

Jenn Bowl

Senior Consultant

Surveys for Action

See Attachment Below

Employee Survey for CFI

Executive Summary of Results

As part of supporting a dynamic workforce to meet current and future challenges, a CFI employee survey was undertaken and completed in February 2030.  An independent third party (the company “Surveys for Action”), developed the survey in consultation with CFI, distributed it to employees, and analyzed the results. The completion rate for employees was 85%.  The completed surveys constituted a representative sample of CFI employees.

A. Common Themes Across CFI Departments

*The vast majority of employees (85%) take great pride in working for CFI, and firmly believe in the organization’s vision, mission and values.

*A large majority of employees (73%) at headquarters are satisfied with their physical working conditions, considering their workplaces to be clean and safe. This percentage is slightly lower for country offices with 65% indicating satisfaction.

*Only a small majority of employees (53%) believe that they work cooperatively with others in CFI.

*Staff who work directly with clients on an ongoing basis report relatively high levels of workplace stress, with 52% feeling significantly stressed by work and 24% feeling moderately stressed. The main reason cited for stress by staff is the intense nature of the work: assisting people who are often in desperate situations and meeting the challenge of making a real difference in the clients’ lives.  As well, employees referred to two other sources of stress including: i) having to do more work to compensate for employees who are not “doing their fair share”; and ii) being required to perform other activities when replacing absent co-workers.

*Senior management are generally viewed in a positive light. Most employees (60%) report that their supervisors: show respect for them; listen to their concerns; and build a sense of teamwork.  Although not a majority, it is slightly concerning that almost a third of employees (31%) indicate that they do not always feel comfortable approaching managers with their concerns, making suggestions that go against the general mould, and some comment that they do not always feel part of the CFI ‘family’. Significantly, a notable percentage of employees (75%) think that their supervisors / managers frequently avoid making decisions about matters within their areas of responsibility, instead “delegating upward”.  As well, many employees report that some managers avoid dealing with staff who perform poorly. The write-in comments on several questionnaires note that, because the poor performers are not doing their fair share, others must do the work, or re-do it when it is done poorly. This is seen to create unnecessary work and add further stress and frustration.  Some survey respondents expressed the view that this shortcoming is simply something that CFI will need to live with because managers in this line of work are skilled at helping others and do not like providing difficult, yet honest, feedback.

*A majority of employees (62%) indicate not being involved in training needs analysis, as well as not being consulted on the various training and development opportunities available to them. Most employees (59%) also feel that the orientation they were provided was not sufficient to support their transition to the new organisation and role. In the open comments, some employees say they were still “lost” after a couple of months and struggled to adjust to their new environments.

*Staff also report being lowly motivated and overwhelmed by work without enough support from management.

*Although staff generally report that they appreciated some of the staff wellness and counselling programmes, others said they are not aware that they exist or that they do not feel their mental health is a priority of the organisation.

*In the open comments, some respondents express that there are some tensions between staff, which have led to hostility and stress within the team. Lack of timely intervention and mediation seems to have allowed the situation to deteriorate. Of course, having a tense atmosphere in the workplace has affected team productivity.

Dear Nala,

I am seeking your help in addressing sensitive, ongoing problems that I need to deal with.  I thought that describing the situations in writing would help me to clarify my own thoughts and feelings before I book a time to discuss the situation personally.

Since I moved to this new country office, I have noticed a few things that have made me very uncomfortable, and it has been difficult for me to perform my duties to the best of my ability. In general, there appears to be quite a hierarchical structure here with little room for people to share ideas and thoughts. But my biggest problem has been working with Limora, who is the Head of Office Administration. S/he seems to be very experienced in administration and everyone at all levels seems to respect her. But to be quite honest, I find that s/he is very bossy and intimidating and loves using power and authority. S/he has his/her own way of doing things and completely dismisses any input I have tried to make. Recently, there have been some incidents which have shown me that the current situation cannot continue but I am also not sure how to go about raising and addressing the issues with him/her or even with senior management who seem to rely on him/her quite a bit. It feels like voicing what I have seen will ruffle a lot of feathers and make me lose the trust I have been trying to establish. 

The first incident was around an emergency preparedness workshop that was being delivered. The programme was a much-abridged version to what we typically offer, and in my opinion, was not very effective at all. I tried to challenge Limora respectfully on this and explained why it would be important to stick to the usual format, but s/he said s/he knew what s/he was doing. S/he also did not allow discussion or questions following the workshop, and when I said this might be useful, s/he once again dismissed me in front of colleagues. I was not quite sure what to do and as such the situation remained as is, but I was very uncomfortable with what I had seen.

I have also noted that the way Limora conducts the recruitment and selection process is not aligned to the standards we have in place. In one situation I witnessed recently, it was made very obvious who the favourite candidate was, and several insinuations were made that no one else would be considered acceptable. I felt that this completely influenced the interview panel and compromised the whole process. Looking back, I know my silence was not acceptable, but at the same time, I was quite intimidated to stand up to Limora or even senior leaders who seemed extremely sure of what they needed in their office.

I look forward to your guidance on how I can assert myself better in these situations.

I have assessed the main financial issues likely to be faced by our organization over the next three to five years. As requested, I have produced tentative income and expenditure figures for this financial year (ending December 31^st) and for the next three years, based simply on current trends and future estimates provided by individual departments. While the figures are only rough estimates, they will give you and the Board a general sense of the financial direction of the organization.

Whilst I have allowed for all probable donor funding based on trends to date, you will see we are facing a shortfall.

I saw the memo from the CEO about the need to reduce staff costs by one third to match the reduction in income. I am not sure how the organization arrived at such a figure, but it seems it is something that must be done.

While from a financial and administrative point of view it is possible to cut staff by such big numbers, it is the disruption of operations and work morale that worries me a lot. It would be important, therefore, and indeed critical for our Human Resource colleagues to come up with a concrete plan of how this situation should be handled. We need guidance of how such a move can be handled with the least amount of disruption to our operations. Any strategy, I suppose, must be in line with the new Future-HR initiative – to have people centric and appropriately skilled HR professionals.  

This is not an arithmetic exercise. This is an exercise that involves people’s lives, and it must be handled with the utmost care. Yet the survival of CFI hinges on how we can reduce our costs to match the funds we are receiving and likely to receive from our traditional donors.

Attachment Below

Please Note: ‘By 3 Years’ means for each of the coming 3 years (Year 2, Year 3, Year 4).

Dear Nala,

As requested, I’ve put together a few challenges we are facing in my section. A main concern is that the Performance Management System in many departments as well as country offices is not being implemented as it should, and many employees don’t seem to have clear plans to make it work better. To make matters worse, some managers do not have performance plans, setting a bad example for their subordinates. Some managers readily admit that the performance plans are poorly done and often not adequate as a tool to measure performance because they aren’t linked to specific strategic objectives and outcomes in the first place. Performance is supposed to be monitored and reported at key intervals. But supervisors tend to give vague feedback or delay giving it or don’t spend the time needed. Staff members perceive a lot of bias and surprises in the performance appraisal decisions, for example, sometimes poor performers are rewarded even higher than perceived good performers.

Some data I received from Data Analytics recently highlights high levels of laxity with no consequences as well as executives not owning and driving strategic plans. There is also a pronounced silo-working and bad workforce culture that impedes sharing information and resources to achieve goals. The reality is that many supervisors are not familiar with work of subordinates and are reluctant to address poor performance. For example, it is very common for staff to frequently leave offices to go on private pursuits or have long chats with colleagues. Tea breaks are dragged, and Monday mornings and Friday afternoons are almost treated like work-free half days. Reports abound of serious abuse of leave taking with staff habitually going away without submitting leave forms or getting approval, as well as adding extra leave days to be away from work by casually informing their superiors.

Before the former Director, HR resigned we were dealing with a case where a team leader in one of the core sections was not performing in terms of meeting the set targets/deliverables, monitoring the team, and submitting accurate reports on time. The Head of his department believed that this was a performance-related issue (as opposed to misconduct) and agreed to place them on a Performance Improvement Plan. As per an instruction from the Director, HR, I was assigned to join in the performance meetings to take the necessary minutes and ensure that the meetings were carried out and that improvements were made. However, the Head of Department did not hold any meetings, and did not provide the necessary structured support to the team leader. Instead, they informed the Director, HR that meetings were taking place, in my absence as that I was never available! When we asked for the documentation to be submitted to us, only ad hoc emails following up on certain tasks were provided. By the time the Director, HR left, we still had not concluded on a way forward.

Lots needs to be done and I’m looking forward to working with the new Director of HR to deal with these performance management challenges.

Dear Nala,

I write to express my grave concern over the handling of the recruitment of a critical position in my department. After my Senior Strategy Officer was terminated from employment, I immediately informed the Director of HR who gave my case to Sally Bassem, whom I was told was a competent Deputy Director of Recruitment. However, I am very disappointed with how the whole process was handled. From the onset, I was adamant that the role had to be prioritised over other roles.

After I was told to submit the requirements for the position, the Deputy Director sent me a job profile which was outdated and did not include any of the key changes I had made.  I sent countless emails and made several phone calls to her all of which did not stir them to action. After several weeks, the job profile was agreed upon but then it took another month or so for the advertisement to be placed. In the meantime, I sought guidance on the policies and procedures that I could use to set up the acting position between three staff members I felt could share the work, and I was yet again ignored and left to my own devices.

Meanwhile, nothing seemed to be happening with my recruitment process. Numerous follow-ups via email and phone calls were made to the Deputy Director, and though promises were made, no action was taken on when the interview would finally take place. When the interview did take place, albeit FOUR months after I had agreed with the shortlist, it was not conducted in a professional manner to say the least. No guidance was provided on my role in the interview and when I saw the interview questions the morning of the interview, they were not in line with any of the suggested changes and input I had insisted upon.  

All in all, the whole process took seven months, excluding the notice period that the candidate had to serve. This was a far cry from the standard 3-month recruitment timeline I was aware of and the timeline that should have been met for such a critical role.

In discussions with other colleagues, it seems what I went through is not unique and reflects the office as opposed to the individual. Many colleagues have blamed HR for the painfully slow hiring process and what they call ‘poor hires’ in their teams who turn out to be unproductive or poor performers. They confirm that filling vacant posts seems to take forever, from the time of the advert to the new hire starting the job. From the grapevine, it is also clear that HR doesn’t respond to job applicants or does so very late after the hiring process has ended. In fact, HR staff are often rude to applicants who follow up to know what is happening.

When applicants (internal) request for feedback on how they did in the interview, they are given some general responses which don’t help them learn and prepare better for future interviews. If HR staff are fully engaged in the interview, what is so difficult for them to explain the areas in specific terms of the candidate’s performance. Why offer general statements like – “you were okay in that question, but you could have said more”!

Something needs to be done to improve the recruitment process and to work more collaboratively with key departments. The current situation is just not acceptable.

Thank you for sharing the new Future-HR initiative with us. I am glad you are organizing a retreat for us to discuss it in more depth. I just wanted to share some initial thoughts. It is indeed a very forward-looking initiative and one I feel has the potential to increase our profile and the work we do quite substantially. I do have some concerns though about how we will work to ensure this is rolled out effectively and all factors are considered. My hesitation probably stems from an organizational realignment exercise I was involved in a few years ago. The country office was responding to a decline in funding which led to the abolishment of all field offices and more than 70 posts. Positions were merged to multi-programme positions serving various programmatic areas and several interns and volunteers were introduced.

While the process was praised as effective, highly consultative and most staff got a new posting, the extent of change introduced to the office could have been more moderate. Looking back, the approach was too bold, and we could have considered the human impact of the decisions we made. While the key decisions were made by senior management, the risk factors could have been thought through better and as HR we could have pushed back more on advising against merging roles, abolishing and recreating field posts and thinking through a better staffing mix. The significant amount of change paralyzed the office for some time.

All this to say, we need to be mindful of how we proceed from here with this new initiative and ensure that we are all on the same page. Too often we have missed opportunities for transparent and timely communication to maintain trust and manage expectations. Leveraging the diverse skills, strengths and expertise within the HR team will also be crucial in identifying the best strategies to implement Future-HR. Collaboration to foster a sense of unity and shared responsibilities within the team will be key. Otherwise, I’m afraid we will make very misinformed decisions and not get the buy-in we need.

I very much look forward to supporting this important initiative.

Dear Nala,

As you are aware, we have in recent years significantly improved our data collection systems to optimize HR data quality and provide reports that have substantially contributed to strategic decision making on HR processes and strategies. It has been pleasing to note that our hard work and dedication to this has resulted in some noteworthy improvement in processes in some country offices. Nonetheless, over the past two years this department has seen a significant decrease in the funds available for us to fully conduct our activities and, based on our projections, this trend is likely to continue.  Whilst it is important for funds to be channelled to specific operational activities that remain burning issues, without sustained data analysis, I fear for our ability to remain focused and deliver effective service in the long run.

Without sound data analysis, a lot of mismanagement, waste and inefficiency are likely to occur. For example, projects to digitize and transform Human Resources Information / Records System (HRIS) have been poorly managed. There are no clear strategies and plans to actively get and use more technology expertise on HR support systems. HR processes are too long with weak or no visible controls and time wasted in advertising jobs, filtering and screening, recruiting and selecting. Many adverts attract unqualified or poor candidates.

We have also been made aware that some Head Office Departments as well as Country Offices have begun to fulfil their research needs by using external providers.  Even though they may perceive these providers to be more responsive and cost effective, I would generally question the thoroughness of the services offered and whether these data analysis have a holistic and strategic understanding of CFI.  That said, our research also shows that some Country Offices that use external research providers are delivering highly effective programmes and therefore learning opportunities may exist for us therein as an organization.

You may also be aware of tensions between Data Analytics and other head office functions as well as the field which further affects our morale and effectiveness to coordinate with key partners to help in their HR information management.

In summary, diminishing resources and dwindling utilization of data reports by other departments will impact our data analysis capability. Given our unit’s key contributions to the strength and efficiency of CFI programmes and our function as the backbone of CFI’s intellectual capital, it is essential that our position be enhanced within CFI by increasing funding and increasing support for Data Analytics within headquarters and Country Offices.

Decisions will only be enhanced and improved at CFI when based on concrete data that is current and accurate.

Cheers, Raj

Dear Nala,

Now that the dust has settled, I write to express my intense disappointment with the slow response that we experienced following the major explosion in our city which impacted 40 staff. Our expectations were that the relocation/ evacuation of staff would be done expeditiously, that associated compensation payments would be swift, and that plans would be in place to ensure staff wellbeing/ trauma management and relevant counselling services.

Instead, the response from your department was painfully slow to say the least with your staff seeming to be completely lost on what was required of them in such a situation. The ineffective response from your office was made even more evident by the quick and efficient response from other agencies, leaving us wondering if you even had any standards, procedures or protocols in place to ensure the safe evacuation of staff during an emergency. To make matters worse, there was hardly any communication from your end, and in most instances, we were the ones who had to contact your office to find out what was going on.

What surprised me the most though was the lack of inter-agency collaboration that existed. Surely, a situation such as this would have warranted the utmost engagement and collaboration with other agencies, governments and organisations on the ground.

As a result, I am now left with staff who feel completely neglected by the organisation they serve, with some having had to take extended medical leave, and those who have returned, have expressed still being traumatized by the whole event and requesting transfers. All this could have been avoided had this matter been handled professionally.

Going forward we need to ensure we have emergency procedures in place that priorities staff well-being. In the short-term we must help staff recover from the trauma experienced.

Dear Nala,

We find ourselves in a period of great transition and transformation and I’m excited by all the changes that lie ahead especially pertaining to the Future-HR initiative which has placed great emphasis on implementing robust systems and tools to foster a culture of continuous learning, professional and career development in CFI. Although exciting, given where we are coming from, this is also quite a tall order. As you know, training and development have not always been linked to the actual needs and priorities at both headquarters and country offices. We have also not always had clear processes and plans to develop and retain leaders and managers to ensure that the culture of CFI supports performance and makes CFI viable in the long term. Also, there has not been much follow-up after training to ensure employees make the most of it and apply what they learned/ acquired from such activities.

We have recognized the urgent need for improved training and development and have designed new training courses including induction courses for both experienced staff and new members. I do feel though there is still room to improve our role in supporting orientation of staff to new jobs in CFI. It goes without saying that establishing a warm clear welcome to a job supports a solid start and foundation to any staff member’s work.

With current funding challenges though, it is unlikely that we will be able to start our new professional development programmes, which were scheduled for next month, until much later. A common complaint has been that many departments lack a sufficient mix of skills that match the demands of the work. I also fear that not enough has been done to educate staff on the new vision and initiatives.  Also, updating skills of staff remains a key priority to enhance internal capacity and develop a common work culture.

We have also had a few complaints that we have not adequately worked with business owners to design and deliver learning solutions for staff to enhance their knowledge and build skills in new areas. Certainly, much more can also be done for us to create efficient and cost-effective learning products which strengthen staff capacity to contribute effectively to business goals. Adding to this, more can be done to provide day-to-day performance and talent management guidance to line management (e.g., coaching, counselling, career development, career conversations, and disciplinary actions).

Looking at staff wellbeing, I think we have not been very proactive. We tend to only act when there is a serious issue instead of finding opportunities to proactively set up systems and structures to support staff mental and physical well-being. We could more closely work with staff counsellors and use data to establish programmes that support staff wellbeing before it becomes an emergency. We need a more comprehensive plan for staff wellbeing.

According to a LinkedIn survey, 92% of professionals agree that soft skills are more important than ever. Prioritizing these skills benefits both employees and employers. Research also shows that professionals with key soft skills get promoted 8% faster than those with only theoretical and technical skills. This is an area we need to prioritise because of the numerous complaints from staff about poor staff treatment by supervisors at times. As you will recall from the staff survey, more than 30% of staff don’t feel well treated and don’t think they are part of the family!

I have also been working on the feedback gained from Tefo and the other directors to better link our L&D initiatives with our existing strategies to break down the silos that exist even between directors. It has not been easy with the stress we have all experienced including the lack of buy-in from our CEO. Those of us at management levels also need support from a wellbeing and growth perspective…

Dear Nala,

I would like to start by emphasising that my team is dedicated to interacting and engaging with key stakeholders, regional and international actors and development partners. As requested, below is a summary of some of the issues we are currently facing.

We have been criticised for moving at a snail’s pace in expanding and strengthening cooperation and liaison with key stakeholders and partners. In the last report to the Board, we had no clear answers when asked to report on recent and planned contacts/activities with development players and international actors. Contacts and work with private sector and civil society were sporadic and not well focused to say the least. Yet close working and coordination with private sector, civil society and other partners and donors brings enormous benefits. CFI can draw on the experience, knowledge, funds, expert resources, and support they provide. Given the priority to enhance internal capacity and tough economic times we find ourselves in, CFI must diversify its sources of support to sustain itself and work with a wider variety of actors. Sole reliance on member states and a few donors as a source of funding is short-sighted and counter-productive, as it will not get CFI anywhere.

In the HR space, more can be done to establish contacts with representatives with heads of HR units in other organizations for the purpose of obtaining information on HR policy approaches. As far as I can tell, we have isolated ourselves somewhat and seem to struggle to strengthen relationships with inter-agency bodies who could help us improve further and see things from other angles or perspectives.

I look forward to discussing some of the initiatives I have in mind with you and the Director, Human Resources (OIC) when they arrive.

Dear Tefo,

We, the members of the CFI Staff Association, are writing to formally express our concerns regarding the ongoing lack of collaboration and communication between the HR department and our association. Despite multiple attempts to engage and work together on various employee-related matters, we have encountered significant challenges that hinder our ability to effectively represent and support our members. Over the past year, we have observed the following issues:

1. Lack of Response to Communication: Numerous emails and meeting requests sent to the HR department have gone unanswered. This lack of responsiveness has created a barrier to addressing urgent employee concerns in a timely manner.
2. Exclusion from Decision-Making Processes: The staff association has been consistently excluded from important discussions and decisions that directly impact our members. This exclusion undermines our role and prevents us from providing valuable input on policies and initiatives.
3. Inadequate Support for Employee Grievances: Several employees have reported that their grievances are not being adequately addressed by the HR department. This has led to a growing sense of frustration and distrust among the staff.

We are committed to working collaboratively with the HR department to resolve these issues and improve the overall work environment for all employees. We look forward to your prompt response and to establishing a more effective partnership moving forward.

Sincerely,

Fatima

APPENDIX: Extract of Job Description

Director, Human Resources

Management of Section:

*Promote management excellence in the office by ensuring accountability in all areas of HR and by demonstrating a high level of skills in the management of staff resources including staff selection based on merit and the needs of the organization, staff aspiration and counselling, systematic and equitable performance management, and staff development and learning activities.

*Effectively manage the human and financial resources (budget planning, management and monitoring) of the office and ensure both are optimally utilized.

*Monitor compliance with all systems and procedures and ensure management integrity and accountability with high quality standards in all activities in HR; ensure the implementation of agreed audit recommendations; advise on corrective measures to be taken and establish relevant internal controls.

Strategic Human Resources:

*Use a solid knowledge of information technology to analyze and promote acceptance of new methods of work and effective communication skills to persuade and influence managers, supervisors and staff to adopt change.

*Manage change through consultations with CFI senior management, HR management and colleagues and outreach to client management, supervisors and staff to establish and maintain collaborative, open and regular communications pertaining to current and planned changes.

*Liaise with the senior management of HQ Divisions, regional and country offices to develop corporate HR strategy formulation and global implementation.

*Responsible for strategic human resources forecasting for his/her clients including identifying future human resource requirements in terms of numbers, types and levels of staff, and identifying emerging trends in profile requirements.

*Leads the design of optimal organizational, staffing structures and levels, and, in consultation with senior management develops standards and staffing

Networking and Partnerships:

*Internally, provide expert advice to senior management on a range of HRM questions and have the authority to negotiate solutions on sensitive or complex HR problems with client managers and staff representatives.

*Establish contacts with representatives with heads of HR units in other organizations of the common system for the purpose of obtaining information on HR policy approaches.

*Build and strengthen relationships with inter-agency bodies on matters of importance for CFI and present CFI’s policy position on HR issues.

Business Partnering:

*Create a culture within their team where HR professionals work with clients to help fulfil their goals through advising on how to attract, retain and motivate staff of the highest calibre.

*Provide strategic advice to clients, in particular senior management, on HR processes and policies, ensuring the highest level of client-orientation.

*Establish a culture of proactively advising clients on the resolution of human resources issues ensuring equitable and transparent solutions that protects both the staff and organizations interests in accordance with policies, regulations and procedures.

*Promote the organizational goals and targets for gender equity and cultural diversity.

Leadership and Design of assigned Human Resources Services:

*Manage professionals in their execution of HR functions (recruitment, job classification, career development, performance management, data analytics, learning & development etc.) to help create efficient client services that help either attract, retain and/or motivate staff of the highest calibre.

*Create a culture, where HR professionals analyze and synthesize issues and problems, and interpret established, formal guidelines to address and recommend solutions or further actions required.

*Collaborate effectively with other section heads to provide coherent HR solutions for clients.

Learning and Capacity Development:

*In collaboration with business owners, lead the design and delivery of learning solutions for staff to enhance their knowledge and build skills in new areas.

*Map competencies for all staff in assigned client portfolio, developing a comprehensive framework in support of the development of the talent pipeline.

*Create efficient and cost-effective learning products which strengthen staff capacity to contribute effectively to business goals.

*Participate as a resource person in capacity building initiatives to enhance the competencies of clients/stakeholders.

*Provide orientation briefings to new staff.

*Provide day-to-day performance and talent management guidance to line management.

HR Data Analytics:

*Spearhead the development of data collection systems to optimize data quality.

*Interpret and analyze HR data to help inform strategic decision making on HR processes and strategies.

*Coordinate with country offices and partners to provide assistance in their HR information management.

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