MPS approach to talent management and succession planning

Report: 4
Date: 18 April 2011
By: Director of Human Resources on behalf of the Commissioner

Summary

The purpose of this paper is to provide an update on talent management and succession planning activity within the MPS. It also includes an update on some of the issues raised within the Race and Faith Inquiry report, specifically Recommendation 3 (a) and (b) [the evaluation and alignment of the Leadership Academy]; Recommendation 7 (c) [accountability of specialist units] and all parts of Recommendation 8 [internal processes to improve progression and development].

A. Recommendations

That members note the progress highlighted within the report.

B. Supporting information

Introduction

1. The last report produced for the MPA on talent management and succession planning was in January 2010 and provided detailed updates across four workstreams (the high potential programmes, the Promoting Difference Programme, broader talent management interventions and succession planning). This report will not repeat information previously provided, but will focus on progress and performance over the last twelve months.

Background

2. Since January 2010 there have been significant developments and achievements across our talent processes. Highlights include:

• Embedding of ACPO / Director level champions for talent management for each Business Group across the MPS to discuss succession planning and talent management issues relevant to that business area. This has fostered the support, involvement and accountability of existing senior leaders in talent processes.
• Launch of a pilot diversity internship scheme for talented BME graduates to encourage high calibre individuals from diverse backgrounds to consider a career in the MPS whilst addressing the government’s drive to increase the employability of young adults. In the first year of the scheme, four interns were offered 3-month placements in various directorates [including DoR, HR, TP and DPA] to gain a more thorough understanding of the MPS and to support the positioning of the organisation as an employer of choice.
• Development of an online Talent Questionnaire to improve how the MPS identifies talent and encourage a more diverse group of high calibre applicants to apply for the high potential programmes. The questionnaire will be rolled out from March 2011 as part of a larger piece of work that the MPS is undertaking to improve how we identify potential across the organisation.
• Development of the Emerging Leaders Programme, the MPS high potential scheme for officers [at inspector and chief inspector rank] and police staff [at Band D, C and equivalent level], so that it successfully fills the gap left by the NPIA’s decision to limit access onto the national High Potential Development Scheme [HPDS] to applicants at the rank of constable or sergeant.
• Success of the Equip to Achieve Programme in providing a structured development pathway for BME talent to access the high potential programmes [to date, 12 of its programme members [71% success rate] have secured places on either the Emerging Leaders Programme or HPDS]. This has enabled the MPS to achieve 30% BME representation on the Emerging Leaders Programme, with two programme members already achieving promotion to chief inspector and superintendent, and a further six BME chief inspectors on the cusp of superintendent, and four inspectors on the cusp of chief inspector.
• Fulfilment of a number of strategic and high profile projects and attachments by members of the high potential programmes [including attachments to Winsor Review, Neyroud Review of Policing Leadership, Home Office National Vetting and Barring Scheme, HMIC and MPS TP Development Programmme]. These projects have not only underpinned service objectives and added real value to different areas of the organisation, but evaluation also shows that such opportunities broaden members’ networks and contribute considerably to their skills development.
• Introduction of a properly structured preparation and development programme for MPS candidates applying for SPNAC. The programme resulted in four high quality MPS candidates being selected for the Strategic Command Course, thereby ensuring a pool of candidates for future ACPO vacancies.
• Introduction of a menu of development opportunities designed to support individuals who are looking for lateral career development instead of vertical progression. These initiatives include a range of skills accreditation programmes, such as apprenticeships and National Vocational Qualifications [NVQs]; access to structured coaching and mentoring schemes; employee volunteering opportunities, to enhance and develop the skills of staff in new contexts. Of particular note, was the successful launch in Autumn 2010 of a scheme which trained 14 MPS staff to mentor young adults from the Volunteer Police Cadets, with positive results in terms of youth engagement.
• Attainment of the GLA Group Apprenticeship target for the MPS of 150 apprenticeship places in 2009/10. Despite the current economic and fiscal climate, the MPS was able to slightly exceed the apprenticeship target, delivering 155 apprenticeships by up-skilling existing staff through apprenticeships in Business Admin, Team Leading and Customer Service. The MPS is on track to have delivered over 300 apprenticeship places by the close of this financial year and to fulfil the MPS target of 450 apprenticeships by 2012.

Identifying, developing and progressing talent

Talent Identification

3. Historically, evidence has suggested that the MPS lacks a clear process to identify talent effectively and consistently across Business Groups, with the result that the full talent pool within the organisation is not being tapped into. To address these concerns, the MPS Talent Management Team has been working in collaboration with Business Group Talent Champions to review how potential can be better identified across Business Groups.

4. To support this work, an online Talent Questionnaire has been designed in collaboration with an external consultant to look for indicators of leadership potential. Respondents are shown a paragraph of information about an item of general interest [there are several different scenarios that respondents could be presented with] and are asked to complete three different questions which prompt respondents to explore different facets of the situation. Respondents have a maximum of 15 minutes to complete all three questions. Respondents are not expected to provide a complete response to the questions; the focus is on examining their attention to different parts of the problem, and the way in which they tackled it.

5. After respondents have submitted their questionnaire, an experienced external practitioner assesses the answers, looking for indicators of leadership potential. A report is produced which tells the respondent how they did, and gives pointers to help them to develop their potential more fully. The report also recommends appropriate MPS development opportunities for the respondent; such development could include lateral development, signposting to the Promoting Difference Programme, coaching and mentoring or the high potential programmes, contingent on the content of the respondent’s feedback.

6. The Talent Questionnaire will be used to pro-actively identify individuals with clear leadership potential and encourage these individuals to apply for the Equip to Achieve Programme, HPDS or Emerging Leaders Programme. Not only should this encourage more high calibre applicants for the programmes, it should also encourage a more diverse group of applicants to come forward, who either may not have considered the high potential programmes previously or may have lacked the confidence to apply for the programmes of their own volition.

7. The questionnaire will be rolled out from March 2011 and will be available to all staff and officers through PeoplePages. Any individual can access the questionnaire, without any requirement to obtain an endorsement from a line manager. The Talent Management Team is working in conjunction with both the Staff Support Associations and the Promoting Difference Team to promote and cascade the questionnaire to under-represented groups to ensure it reaches as wide an audience as possible.

8. In addition to the Talent Questionnaire, ‘A guide to spotting potential’, will be circulated across the MPS. The guide simplifies the talent identification process by asking key questions to support managers in making more objective assessments of team members’ potential and to encourage the right candidates to apply for the high potential programmes. It also aims to help managers recognise their responsibility for identifying talent across the organisation. The guide will be made available as a tool for all line managers, with the Talent Management Team working with Business Group Talent Champions to promote and explain its purpose.

Diversity Internship Scheme

9. In June 2010, the MPS introduced a new positive action diversity internship scheme for BME graduates from London-based Universities. The aim of the scheme was to attract talented individuals from diverse backgrounds into the organisation, in the process raising their awareness of the MPS as an employer of choice and increasing the employability skills of the participants.

10. The launch of the scheme coincided with both the Government drive to help new and recent graduates gain real work experience in the current difficult job market and the GLA commitment to support and increase employment schemes in London.

11. Individuals selected to undertake an internship were offered 3-month paid placements in various directorates [including DoR, HR, TP and DPA] to gain a real insight into MPS work. The interns were each allocated a meaningful project to complete during their placement, rather than simply being assigned routine work that did not make use of their skills. Examples of projects completed included the delivery of a mentoring scheme for the Volunteer Police Cadets and the development of a report guide to assist Procurement professionals in reviewing financial accounts.

12. During their placement, the interns were mentored by existing high potential staff [indeed, these mentoring partnerships have continued on after the internship placements concluded] and were offered the opportunity to network with members of the MPS talent pool at leadership development events.

13. A full evaluation of the internship scheme was undertaken in late 2010, with the aim of reviewing the effectiveness of the process. The evaluation showed that the interns reported that they had developed a number of transferable skills during their placements and gained unique workplace experience. Line managers also reported a return for the organisation with key project work being completed to a high standard and within a quick turnaround time. One of the interns has since been recruited into the MPS as a Special Constable.

14. The next diversity internship scheme will be advertised in May 2011, with the MPS offering placement opportunities for up to 6 BME graduates.

Emerging Leaders Programme [ELP]

15. The Emerging Leaders Programme was launched in September 2009 to identify and develop those individuals capable of attaining senior levels in the MPS; specifically, police officers at the rank of inspector and chief inspector and police staff at Band D, C and equivalent level.

16. The programme currently has 44 members, with 15 of these individuals having been selected in the most recent assessment process [concluded in January 2010]. The diversity breakdown of the current membership shows that 27% of members [12] are female and 30% [13 members] are BME. When compared with the representation of BME officers on the national HPDS [6% nationally], it is apparent how successful the Emerging Leaders Programme has been in attracting and supporting BME talent [in large part, this is due to the presence of the Equip to Achieve Programme, which provides a structured pathway to support BME officers in accessing the programme].

17. Emerging Leaders Programme members benefit from structured development, designed to equip individuals with the professional, executive and business skills and knowledge that they will need to effectively lead and manage at senior levels in the MPS. Members of the first cohort are completing a modular development programme, with 2 of them successfully enrolled onto a Criminal Justice Doctorate and 18 onto a bespoke Masters in Public Administration with Portsmouth University. The Masters in Public Administration has been designed specifically for the MPS, providing members with the opportunity to study at an advanced level the management and administration of policing. It includes strategic planning, development, operational and financial management, all from a policing context.

18. In addition to this, a selection of scheme members successfully completed a number of external consultancy projects, which involved them working in small teams in external organisations on a strategic issue that had been identified by the host organisation. The objective of the projects was twofold:

• To broaden the external network and experience of members in a different organisational culture, and
• To develop their consulting and business skills by quickly assessing the business challenge and making recommendations to key stakeholders in the external organisation.

The two groups that participated were praised for the level of insight they evidenced and for providing practical recommendations that the host organisations could implement.

Senior Talent Processes

19. Over the past twelve months, there have been some significant changes to the NPIA’s National Senior Careers Advisory Service [NSCAS]. The wider scheme with superintendents and police staff equivalents being able to apply, go through a selection process and access development advice from a professional development adviser employed by the NPIA has now ceased. This scheme used to allow clients to access development activity identified under an approved personal development plan with the cost being shared between the NPIA and the client's force. This matched-funding arrangement has also ceased.

20. In future the NPIA development advisers will have two main roles:

• Supporting middle-ranking members of under-represented groups; and
• Supporting officers attending the Leading Powerful Partnerships programme run by the NPIA

21. The MPS supported six candidates to Senior PNAC in 2010 of whom four were selected to go forward to the Strategic Command Course. For the first time the MPS sourced a bespoke development programme for Senior PNAC candidates [delivered by an external consultant]. The programme included tailored individual coaching, exercise specific training and high level inputs to raise candidates’ strategic awareness.

22. Going forward, it is hoped that the new MPS superintendent to chief superintendent promotion process with all candidates being interviewed by an Assistant Commissioner and a DAC will allow early identification of those with potential to proceed to Senior PNAC. Work is currently taking place to develop a structured development process for such officers.

Identifying, developing and progressing talent through Promoting Difference

23. The Promoting Difference Programme has continued to offer a range of programmes and initiatives to increase the number of police officers and police staff from under-represented groups achieving promotion or selection to a specialist role.

24. The Promoting Difference network of police officers from under-represented groups seeking promotion continues to grow; there are currently 342 officers on the Promoting Difference Programme [at all ranks up to and including superintendent].

25. Evaluation data indicates that two of the most successful Promoting Difference interventions for supporting the promotion and lateral progression of officers from under-represented groups are:

• Positive Action Leadership Programme [PALP] - an NPIA programme aimed at police staff up to Band D level and police officers up to inspector rank from any under-represented group. Over the last twelve months, 22 PALP sessions have been held, with over 230 individuals attending. A survey has recently been completed of 2010 PALP participants, of the 131 respondents, 87% of those who applied for promotion or selection to a specialist role were successful [including 31 out of 32 BME females].
• Promotion Study Groups - support programmes for police officers seeking promotion. These study groups are open to all under-represented groups, including LGBT and disabled colleagues. Of the 104 individuals who have taken part in a promotion study group over the last twelve months, just over half [56%] have achieved promotion to the next rank, with marked success in inspector to chief inspector, chief inspector to superintendent and superintendent to chief superintendent promotion processes.

26. Promoting Difference has also recently launched a mentoring scheme in partnership with the Gay Police Association [to date, there are 25 mentoring relationships in place]. In addition, the team are supporting the Disability Staff Association in the delivery of the Managing Disability Event at the end of March. In terms of faith, workshops have been delivered in partnership with the Association of Muslim Police and, more recently, a career management session was delivered within a Hindu Association event.

Developing wider talent across the organisation through lateral development

27. Over the last twelve months, the MPS has strived to provide a more comprehensive approach to assist in the career development and advancement of all police staff and officers.

28. Current opportunities to encourage and support lateral development include:

• Work Based Skills Accreditation Programmes. A range of NVQs and bespoke development frameworks are accessible to staff and officers to both develop and accredit professional skills and experience. NVQs in Business Administration, Team Leading, Management and Intelligence Analysis have been promoted, with qualified assessors observing and assessing individuals carrying out practical assignments in the workplace. Bespoke development frameworks are currently being scoped for application within the Human Resource Advisory Centre [HRAC], Met Intelligence Bureau [MIB] and Central Communications Command [CCC].
• Apprenticeships. In support of the Mayor’s Skills and Employment Strategy for London 2008-2013, the MPS has continued to demonstrate a full commitment to delivering against its annual GLA target of 150 apprenticeship places. To ensure the active promotion of apprenticeships, the MPS has introduced an internal skills and employment framework to co-ordinate efforts across the Service through our Human Resources and Procurement teams. In 2009/10, the MPS was pleased to report that its apprenticeship target was slightly exceeded, delivering 155 apprenticeships. In respect of the 2010/11 target, the MPS has [to date] offered 130 apprenticeship places with a plan in place to ensure the remaining 20 apprenticeships are fulfilled by the end of March 2011. A detailed project plan has been agreed to ensure the MPS delivers 150 apprenticeship placements for the period 2011/12 and thereby achieves the overall target of 450 apprenticeships by the close of 2011/12.
• Coaching and Mentoring. The MPS has continued to grow the corporate coaching and mentoring schemes, with 87 accredited coaches [including 41 female and 14 BME coaches] and 75 mentors [including 40 female and 25 BME mentors] now available to work with individuals to help them achieve their specific development and career goals.
• Employee Volunteering Opportunities. The MPS has a long tradition of volunteering, with well-established programmes such as the Volunteer Police Cadets, employer-supported policing and Met Volunteer Programme. Over the last twelve months, the MPS has been working in conjunction with the GLA to raise awareness of the learning and personal development benefits for staff and officers in engaging in volunteering activities. Staff and officers interested in volunteering are being encouraged to make contact with the Talent Management Team to identify types of volunteering that could help them to acquire useful skills for their day jobs. Options being piloted include sourcing positions as school governors, to enhance skills across areas such as finance, marketing, human resources and child welfare; advertising non-executive appointments and charity trustee roles to support senior personnel in gaining insights and knowledge through involvement in the strategic and organisational development of another organisation; work with the Safer London Foundation to train individuals to mentor low risk ex-offenders as part of the Aspire Project to support them into sustainable training or employment. The MPS also successfully piloted a scheme in Autumn 2010 in which 14 staff were trained as mentors and paired with young adults from the Volunteer Police Cadets. The aim was to help the staff develop their mentoring skills, whilst offering valuable career support to the cadets, as well as supporting the MPS’s youth and community engagement strategies.
• Police Staff Specials Programme. The MPS continues to encourage police staff to be trained as Special Constables, both as an opportunity to contribute directly to operational policing and also as an invaluable opportunity to develop a broad range of transferable skills. Police Staff Specials are paid special leave for training (up to twenty days as a one-off) and for one day per fortnight for duties (plus time for selection days during the recruitment process). Members of staff may also volunteer to carry out additional hours with the Metropolitan Special Constabulary in their own time.
• Local Talent Management Programmes. A number of TP Boroughs and other commands have introduced local talent management initiatives to support and underpin the corporate talent management programmes. These initiatives both support the pro-active identification of talent and also seek to meet the professional development needs of a broader range of police staff and officers. Approaches currently being fostered through these programmes include mentoring, provision of local career development advice, stretching work assignments and projects, work shadowing and rotations.
• NPIA Programmes, including the Foundation for Senior Leadership [aimed at chief inspectors and equivalent police staff]; Senior Leadership Programme [superintendent and equivalent police staff]; Leading Powerful Partnerships [chief superintendent and equivalent police staff].

Deploying talent effectively through succession planning

29. Following the MPA Scrutiny of Talent Management and Succession Planning processes in the MPS in late 2007, the Talent Management Team had developed a process to succession plan key posts and identify career development needs for senior police officers and staff. This process included formal minuted meetings to be held quarterly for each Business Group and replaced previous informal arrangements that had involved Management Board members, Workforce Planning and Talent Management.

30. A new corporate framework is currently being developed to ensure that all future workforce planning / deployment discussions and decisions are routed through a new structured model. This model provides for a strategic Workforce Forum, led by Assistant Commissioners, and a cross MPS tactical group attended by DAC / Commander level, in addition to individual Business Group Workforce Planning Forums. The aim is to both formalise the ‘top down’ scanning process to inform decisions about all aspects of workforce deployment and facilitate cross Business Group moves at a senior level.

31. As such, talent management and succession planning will form an integral part of the new framework, with Talent Champions fully briefed on relevant issues from their respective Business Groups.

Race and Faith Inquiry report

32. The remainder of this paper provides an update on work currently in train to support some of the recommendations from the Race and Faith Inquiry Report.

33. Recommendation 3 - Diversity must more clearly be part of the leadership philosophy of the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS). This means:

a) evaluating the extent to which the Leadership Academy training improves the way difference is managed;

b) aligning the Leadership Academy more closely with the Diversity and Citizen Focus and Directorate (DCFD).

As part of the MPS Developing Training Programme, the way that we develop our leaders will change in April 2011. The delivery of leadership courses will transfer to Regional Learning Centres and the Leadership Academy will be responsible for supporting police officers and staff along a corporate Leadership Professional Development Pathway (PDP). This will ensure that demonstrable leadership capability is enhanced and ultimately, improve performance in the workplace. One of the key elements of the new Leadership PDP will be the flexibility to provide bespoke interventions (e.g. coaching, mentoring, development centres) for under-represented groups in response to external drivers and organisational priorities. The work around developing the Leadership PDP will begin in April 2011 and the Leadership Academy will work closely with all relevant internal stakeholders, such as DCFD and HR Organisational Development (Promoting Difference strand), to ensure that it meets the needs of all the diversity strands.

34. Recommendation 7 - Within the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), the transparency and fairness of internal promotion processes needs to improve. This means:

c) making lateral development opportunities more widely available by ensuring specialist units are held accountable for increasing opportunities for minority staff.

The Promoting Difference Team has drafted a toolkit for specialist units wishing to recruit a more representative workforce. The toolkit includes examples of good work already taking place and will be circulated to key stakeholders for consultation by February 2011. The Trident mentoring and attachments scheme is now well established; the team routinely deliver an input on the Crime Academy programme for trainee Detective Constables and advertise across the Service every 3 months. There are currently 31 mentors mentoring 79 mentees. The Promoting Difference team will be supporting a formal evaluation of the scheme from April 2011; the learning will then be shared across other specialist OCUs. Feedback so far from participants has said that the scheme demystifies Trident, allows them to develop a good skills base before they arrive and builds confidence for the application process.

35. Recommendation 8 - Internal processes to improve progression and development of black and minority ethnic (BME) officers and members of police staff need to be strengthened. This means:

a) ensuring that all supervisors in the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) recognize that they have responsibility for people development.

This philosophy is being reinforced through all key HR processes. Input on people development is included as part of the delivery of all leadership courses. The Work-Based Assessment promotion process has been updated to ensure assessors focus on people development, particularly in relation to BME officers. The new MPS Performance Framework (replacement for ICF) takes explicit account of the development of people. The new Performance Development Review, to be introduced from April 2011, will take account of this recommendation and ensure leaders are focused on their responsibility to develop all of their people.

b) designing and implementing a well developed and adequately resourced development programme for police staff.

Both the Emerging Leaders Programme and the Intensive Development Programme [IDP] offer structured development to members of police staff. The IDP has been revised to target administrative staff at Band E, F and G level. The aim of the revised IDP is to identify high potential police staff at this level and equip them with the skills and experience they need to be successful at managerial grades. The programme will offer support in progressing these individuals up to the level where they can access the Emerging Leaders Programme, ensuring a continuous stream of police staff talent.

The Promoting Difference Programme is also open to police staff, with the Positive Action Leadership Programme, in particular, evidencing a significant impact upon progression of police staff with one in 5 of all participants achieving progression [lateral and vertical] within one year of attending.

c) integrating phase 2 of Equip to Achieve into the overall Human Resources Strategy and effectively communicating its aims and benefits.

The Equip to Achieve Programme is now entering its third phase and is well embedded within both talent management and broader HR strategy. The programme has achieved notable success in facilitating BME talent to successfully access the high potential programmes. To date, 12 of its programme members [71% success rate] have secured places on either the Emerging Leaders Programme or HPDS, where they can then access the high potential promotion pathway up to superintendent. Equip to Achieve members follow a structured development pathway that provides both bespoke preparation for the high potential programmes and management / leadership input designed to support individuals’ longer-term career development [with all members completing the Institute of Leadership and Management accredited Certificate in Leadership].

d) implementing a formal, structured, mentoring scheme explicitly designed to benefit mentees.

Details of the corporate coaching and mentoring schemes are provided above. In addition to these opportunities, the MPS relationship with London First continues, with 200 police and business leaders working in partnership together under the Leadership Exchange Programme. The Promoting Difference mentoring scheme is open to all of those who attend Promoting Difference programmes [currently 25 mentoring relationships exist].

C. Other organisational and community implications

Equality and Diversity Impact

1. This is covered within the main body of the report.

Consideration of MET Forward

2. The MPS talent management and succession planning framework represents a key element of the Met People strand of Met Forward.

Financial Implications

3. The costs associated with the delivery of the activities detailed above are covered within existing approved budgets held in HR and across the Service and will not generate any additional funding requirements for the current planning round.

Legal Implications

4. The Directorate of Legal Services has advised on a number of the programmes referred to in this paper that seek to increase the representation of under-represented groups. There is a legislative framework, which permits positive action in the appropriate circumstances. Thus the MPA can allow under-represented groups access to training and to give members of such groups the opportunity to compete for work in which they have been under-represented or absent.

Environmental Implications

5. There are no environmental implications arising from this report.

Risk Implications

6. Risk management has been built into the existing HR Risk Register.

D. Background papers

None

E. Contact details

Report author: Tamsyn Heritage, Assistant Director of Talent Management, MPS

For more information contact:

MPA general: 020 7202 0202
Media enquiries: 020 7202 0217/18

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