Position:Manager Strategy and Performance

Children’s Worker:No

Location:National Office

Business Unit:Strategy and Governance

Group:Insights and Investment

Reporting to:General Manager, Strategy & Governance

Issue Date:June 2017

Delegated Authority:Human Resources

Staff Responsibility:Yes

Our Role

The Ministry of Social Development (MSD) is the lead agency for the social sector. We help the Government to set priorities across the sector, co-ordinate the actions of other social sector agencies and track changes in the social wellbeing of New Zealanders.

The Ministry provides policy advice, and delivers social services and assistance to children and young people, working age people, older people, and families, whānau and communities. We work directly with New Zealanders of all ages to improve their social wellbeing.

We serve over a million people, working out of more than 250 centres around the country. It is likely that every New Zealander will come into contact with the Ministry at some point in their life.

Our work, together with our social sector partners, is essential to achieving a sustainable and prosperous future, where all New Zealanders are able to take responsibility for themselves, be successful in their lives and participate in their communities.

Our Purpose

We help New Zealanders to help themselves to be safe, strong and independent.

Ko ta mātou he whakamana tangata kia tū haumaru, kia tū kaha, kia tū motuhake.

Our Principles

MSD people: All own what we all do | Take responsibility for what we do | Understand our role in the big picture, who can help us and who we can help | Navigate through ambiguity and the opportunity it brings to create better ways of doing things | Act with integrity, courage and transparency | Celebrate our achievements and those of our clients

PositionDescriptionApprovedBy:

______
Deputy Chief Executive,Insights and Investment
Date: ……/……/……
Group:
The Insights and Investment group combines the Ministry’s insights and analytics, strategy, Chief Policy Advisor and actuarial functions. The main role of this group is to help decide and manage our social investment portfolio to deliver the best value for New Zealand. We need to focus on the right things, delivered in the right way. We need to be confident that we are generating results and using learning to make adjustments in what we do.
The Insights and Investment group supports better decisions by driving strong insights and analytics. More specifically it:
  • curates the Ministry’s data, so that MSD and others in the system have relevant, accurate, accessible data
  • produces high value insights and tools to support a range of strategic and operational decisions and focus areas, so that decision-making on strategy, investment, policy, service design and operations is informed by relevant and robust evidence and analysis
  • advises on what mix of interventions is likely to work best for whom and where the priorities lie, so that investments across the system are aligned, targeted and designed in a way that will make the biggest difference
  • leads and advises on the Ministry’s strategies, priorities, investment portfolio and overall performance, so that the Ministry’s work is aligned with its strategy and integrated well across groups
  • analyses and models liability across the Ministry’s services and clients, so that services for clients are effectively targeted to minimise vulnerability and liability.
Business Unit:
Strategy and Governance provides important services to the Chief Executive, the Leadership Team and the Ministers in relation to organisational strategic planning and decision making, governance and budget processes. This includes accountability and planning processes that relate to the Ministry as an organisation, and performance advice and monitoring undertaken on behalf of the Minister. We also provide leadership, facilitate and manage the Ministry’s integrated business planning processes.
Keyfunctionsof the Strategy and Governance group include to:
  • Support the Leadership Team to develop an organisational strategy and play a leadership role in the implementation of the strategy
  • Understand organisational priorities, and support the decision making process to allocate resources aligned with these priorities Provide leadership and manage the development of the Ministry’s main accountability documents and processes
  • Provide leadership, develop and coordinate the Ministry’s performance reporting processes
  • Provide advice on performance measures and outcomes, and monitor and measure organisational performance and impact
  • Provide leadership and manage the Ministry’s Governance framework and build Ministrygovernance capability
  • Carry out monitoring of crown entities and provide advice on appointments that are the responsibility of the Ministry
Our key clients are our Ministers, the Ministry’s Leadership Team, the Ministry’s Governance Committees and the Deputy Chief Executive of Insights and Investment.
Purpose of the Position:
The purpose of the Manager Strategy and Performanceis to lead the Strategy and Performance team and support the Ministry to develop and deliver it’s organisational strategy and ensure the Ministry’s planning, reporting and accountability processes are well integrated and in line with best practice.
The Manager Strategy and Performance will have high engagement with external and internal stakeholders across the Ministry and will provide technical leadership and advice to ensure business groups have an up-to-date understanding of their obligations for delivering to strategy, planning, reporting and accountability processes.
The position also provides intellectual input and leadership for Strategy and Governance and contributes as part of the team to the functioning of the whole group. Establishing and managing important relationships within the Ministry and with key external agencies, including Ministers and their offices are an important part of the job. The Manager Strategy and Performance participates with top level managers within the Ministry and maintains oversight for delivery of work relating to the team.
This position participates as a member of Strategy and Governance management team and contributes to the overall functioning and performance of the group.

Working Relationships

Internal

  • The Ministry’s Leadership Team
  • Chief Executive
  • Deputy Chief Executives
  • Director, Office of the Chief Executive
  • Insights and InvestmentDeputy Chief Executive, General Managers and staff
  • General Managers and other Ministry staff

External

  • Ministers’ Offices
  • Central agencies
  • External agency managers and staff

Key Accountabilities:

Key Result Area / Accountabilities
Leadership /
  • Provides leadership to the Strategy and Performance team
  • Clarifies roles and responsibilities for delivery of the work programme and ensures in conjunction with the GM Strategy and Governancethe effective and efficient allocation and use of resources to achieve the Ministry’s priorities
  • Promotes and enforces the value provided by the Strategy and Governancegroup
  • Provides strategic leadership and actively participates in the Strategy and Governancemanagement team to share knowledge, and develop and maintain a Ministry-wide overview of activities
  • Supports the GM Strategy and Governance to plan programmes and manage effective Leadership Team strategic retreats/planning days
  • Leads, coordinates and facilitates a whole of Ministry approach to planning, monitoring and the delivery of accountability documents and processes
  • Supports the GM Strategy and Governance to lead and strengthen the Ministry’s focus on organisational strategy and increase efforts to reduce organisational silos through the promotion of effective integration, coordination and integrated planning
  • Leads the provision of best practice advice and support, and build the capability of business groups in relation to strategic planning, reporting, monitoring and performance measures and outcomes
  • Sets a clear direction for the Strategy and Performance team and lead all staff in a manner which creates a culture and environment which is customer focussed, proactive and consistent with the values of the Ministry, inspiring staff to deliver high level performance
  • Provides Ministry-wide leadership, encourage collaboration and supports strategic and future focused initiatives and projects

Stakeholder Engagement /
  • Prepares and provide timely and practical advice to the Chief Executive and Leadership Team as required
  • Develops and maintains a close working relationship with the Leadership Team, Senior Management Teams and Minister’s Offices to understand business requirements, priorities and programmes of work across the Ministry
  • Leads the development and implementation of engagement strategies to promote and enhance the capabilities of managers across the Ministry, ensuring business groups have an up-to-date understanding of their obligations for delivering to strategy, planning and accountability processes and best practice methodology is effectively embedded within the business
  • Establishes, builds and maintains effective working relationships with key external stakeholders
  • Ensures effective planning sessions of projects for key processes and debriefs occur so that roles, responsibilities and accountability is clear, and organisational learning occurs
  • Leads the establishment of close working relationship with other corporate groups and ensure the management of joint processes and accountability is strengthened

Relationship Management /
  • Manages strong working relationships with relevant teams across the Ministry to enable the provision of strategy, planning and reporting related advice
  • Manages strong working relationships with stakeholders to ensure strategy, planning and accountability processes are followed
  • Contributes to building the strong reputation of the Strategy and Governance group across the Ministry

Strategyand Planning /
  • Manages the implementation of Ministry processes relevant to strategy and business planning, including environmental scanning
  • Ensures Ministry planning and reporting processes are well aligned with the budget cycle, internal management processes and meet external reporting expectations
  • Leads development of relationships and collaboration work with strategic advisors across the Ministry providing technical leadership and specialist advice/peer review, which supports business groups to effectively develop strategy
  • Manages and oversees the development of the Ministry’s main accountability documents and processes (including the Four Year Plan,Strategic Intentions (SI),Estimates of Appropriations, and any periodic reports to the Leadership Team, Ministers, Select Committee or other agencies)
  • Manages the integrated business planning process

Performance Reporting /
  • Promotes effective integration, coordination and planning across the Ministry to enable effective organisational performance
  • Leads the implementation of improvements toStrategy and Governancesystems and business processes, which meets the needs of both internal and external stakeholders
  • Manages the process for developing and implementing the Ministry’s performance monitoring framework to better support accountability requirements (including Quarterly and Annual Reports, and any periodic reports to the Leadership Team, Ministers, Select Committee and other agencies) and enable organisational performance and impact to be monitored and measured
  • Leads the implementation of best practice non-financial performance measurement and reporting that promotes effective decision-making, evidence-based reporting and organisational learning
  • Manages the provision of information to Parliamentary Select Committees for the Estimates and Financial Review
Ensures that the team:
  • Produces performance reports for the LT aligned with the Strategic Intentions, Business group performance expectations and external reporting expectations
  • Collates, analyses, interprets and advises on non-financial performance data to assist in the effective management of the organisation
  • Produces non-financial performance measures and evaluation work that meets both internal and external reporting requirements, particularly in relation to the Public Finance Act, the State Sector Act and Audit NZ
  • Manages the process for preparing and monitoring CE and DCE performance agreements, and feeding into their annual performance reviews

Staff Management /
  • Develops a plan to build the capability of staff to meet current and future goals, and to deliver on the immediate and on-going requirements of the Unit’s work programme.
  • Maintains adherence to constraints of budget, time and other resources.
  • Oversees personal development of direct reports, setting performance objectives and regularly appraising performance
  • Implements performance management and assessment for staff within the required timeframes.

Work Programme /
  • Ensures that the role of the unit is clear in respect of its contribution to the overall work programme of the group
  • Completes all duties and responsibilities in accordance with their Performance and Development Agreement and as outlined in the Group Work Programme

Team Work /
  • Participation as a full member of the Strategy and Governancemanagement team and contributes to the overall functioning of the group
  • Guides and coaches staff within Strategy and Governance

Technical/Professional Knowledge and Experience
  • Relevant tertiary qualification or equivalent operational experience
  • Proven management experience (particularly in the public sector environment)
  • Experience in leading organisational strategic and business planning processes
  • Experience in and knowledge of Government accountability processes
  • Strong background in policy, budget and performance reporting processes
  • Proven experience in Public Sector performance measurement (outcomes, impacts and output performance measures)
  • Able to understand top level management strategic issues
  • Proven ability to manage key relationships at a senior level both internally and externally
  • Proven analytical and writing skills
  • Strong project management skills
Attributes/Success Factors
  • Able to demonstrate strong analytical, conceptual and strategic thinking skills, including social service business and policy analysis
  • Highly effective communication skills – able to communicate concisely and clearly in all medium, able to adapt style to meet the needs of the audience
  • Strong partnership builder, able to establish, build and maintain effective working relationships at all levels of an organisation
  • Exercises sound judgement and political sensitivity (high degree of political nous)
  • Strong leadership skills – able to lead, encourage and motivate others, in both a formal and informal context
  • Self-starter with initiative – is energetic, determined and highly motivated, committed to excellence
  • Able to keep on top of developments within the field and implement changes
  • Able to work under pressure - organises and schedules own work to meet competing demands/deadlines without compromising quality
  • Proven credibility, integrity and professionalism – demonstrates these characteristics at all times
  • Flexible, adaptable and pragmatic
Other Requirements
  • Willing to travel to fulfil job requirements

Manager Strategy and Performance / 1