Fiona Piltz, Strategic Partner – People and Culture.
At a time when we live and work with constant disruption, chaos, distractions, increasing pressure and demands, we are also seeking to achieve as much as we can with the resources that we have, and create efficiencies to deliver more.
In response to these competing demands and pressures, Human Resources at Wagga Wagga City Council has evolved and transformed to focus on Strategic HR & Business Partnering, which has set us up well for the next phase of the New South Wales Government’s ‘Fit for the Future’ system for Local Government.
Some of the key changes in recent years include introducing the role of ‘Strategic Partner’ to teams within the organisation, building better relationships with management and the leadership team, and educating employees across the organisation about the role of and importance of HR processes.
The role of the Strategic Partner is multi-dimensional operating as a relationship manager, change agent, coach and advisor, as well as providing support and acting as a conduit between the People and Culture (P&C) team and each Directorate.
Traction has also been gained through P&C now having a seat at the table with the Leadership team, and being seen as a “business partner” and a conduit between Council’s Directorates.
The ‘seat at the table’ is more important now than ever with ‘Fit for the Future’ upon us. During this process and time HR needs to ensure that the shift towards more transformational rather than transactional continues, and that HR professionals are considered more than a service offering advice and guidance in the arena of Awards and Industrial relations. Those of us who have progressed along the pathway of ‘Business Partnering’ will know that without HR strategically aligning with the plans for the future, substantial gaps will be exposed and the repair work is exponential.
As we progress through the next stages of ‘Fit for the Future’ and the changes that this brings, regardless of whether we are merged with another Council or not, we need to meet the expectation of becoming ‘Future Fit’.
Our role as a team is to focus on planning for the future of Council through our Workforce Plan, working with management to develop creative and flexible approaches to develop a workforce that is mobile, flexible and skilled to deliver on the objectives and expectations of our community, as well as developing and implementing strategies to manage skills shortages, the ageing workforce and move towards a workforce that is diverse and reflective of our community.
Through consultation and partnering with key stakeholders we are ensuring that the workforce of today meets the workforce required to deliver on our objectives to the community in the future. More than that, it has pushed management and HR to have conversations around their workforce, which in the past has been predominantly about: attract, recruit, retain and exit. The shift to the strategic partner model has allowed us to proactively focus on changing the way we do business, and our partnership with our leadership team and the organisation continues to evolve.
