raise the bar of questions set at promotion examinations in order to align assessments to the level and depth of insight that public managers should demonstrate in the knowledge age, it has become obvious that the level of professional intelligence; the knowledge that civil servants have and demonstrate in terms of those basic bureaucratic skills such as the mastery of public service rules, financial regulations, administrative procedures, formal communication skills in being able to write clear, concise briefs and official correspondence, including minute-taking or writing submissions, memorandum
as well as demonstrable capacity which officers in the service should ordinarily possess as basic foundational skills and acumen are declining at a worrisome rate.
This to him validates the generally decried low organisational intelligent quotient (IQ) and capability readiness of the MDAs and the civil service as the engine room of government to drive the backend of national development growth dynamics and structural transformation, within the framework of the Renewed Hope Agenda of the FGN.
He said that the years of embargo on recruitment had obviously compounded this problem, making regular employment as an instrument for system rejuvenation to lose its value in government workforce composition. “This has in turn complicated the service’s historically weak system of workforce planning entailing manpower forecasting, talent management, succession planning and all those internal management controls in organisation and methods (O&M) dysfunctions at the roots of the over-bloated-ness of some cadres, while others cadres suffer skills gaps and manpower deficits. This unfortunate reality explains why many times we do not declare sufficient vacancies during promotion exercises making officers suffer highly demotivating stagnation and promotion blocks
We are hoping that the ongoing human resource audit being undertaken by the OHCSF will offer solution frameworks for resolving some of these deep structural weaknesses.
“We are also hoping to in no distant future, to deepen the bases for staff assessment and performance evaluation during promotion exercises by deploying the full weight of performance management system in the federal civil service, and thereby totally recalibrating the discredited annual performance evaluation reporting (APER) instrument.”, he said.
In this regard, he said that it would help if the service would benchmark the military command and staff colleges’ training-based assessment system, so that the huge expenses put into training investments in officers would begin to be taken more seriously and count in officers’ career progression.
While congratulating the newly appointed directors once again, he urged them to choose to be change agents as he himself did 31 years ago in the service through a sense of deferred gratification and patriotic fervour.
This Day
