John Bruton
Question:104 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Minister for Finance the action taken by his Department on each recommendation of the PA consultancy report on the implementation of the strategic management initiative. [15023/04]
View answerThursday, 20 May 2004
Questions (104)
Written answers
The report, Evaluation of the Strategic Management Initiative, which was presented to the Department of the Taoiseach by PA Consulting was a review of progress made on a process which had been under way for a number of years. It concluded that further progress was needed under all components of the initiative and that accelerated progress was required in three areas, namely, human resource management, financial management and information systems management. Accordingly, the consultants made wide-ranging recommendations relating to these and the other components of SMI/DBG.
These recommendations are being advanced through the secretaries general implementation group and the thematic sub-groups which report to it. Sustaining Progress has given a strong impetus to this process by incorporating many of the PA recommendations into the sectoral modernisation agenda for the Civil Service, which is set out in section 22 of the agreement.
As the Deputy is aware, payment to the staff in my Department of most of the benchmarking increases and all of the general round increases provided for in Sustaining Progress is dependent on satisfactory progress being achieved by the Department on this agenda, as well as co-operation with flexibility and ongoing change and stable industrial relations. This progress must be achieved in the elements of the agenda for which it is responsible, which affect the whole Civil Service, as well as in its own specific internal commitments. My Department's first progress report, which detailed the progress achieved in 2003, is available on the Department's website. Its second progress report will also be published as soon as the second phase of the verification process is complete.