Thursday, August 26, 2010

Investing in Employee Development in Order to Stay Competitive and Meet Organisational Needs in the GOC

The federal government's Policy on Learning, Training and Development (2006) specifies that all employees must have learning plans aligned with departmental business priorities. The learning plans are intended to enable employees to acquire and maintain the knowledge, skills and competencies needed for their level and functions, and prepare them to do the next job. Accordingly, all public service employees are to be developed.

You've heard it many times: public service leaders are accountable for leading and managing people to achieve results aligned with strategic directions. This is a tall order at any time in a dynamic political environment marked by evolving priorities, shifting resources, changing employee expectations, and ongoing public scrutiny. However, people remain at the heart of it all – people who take on the challenges of leadership, and the people they lead.

Leaders need to strategically manage the flow of talent through their organizations so that the right people are in the right place at the right time. In the hurly burly of daily activity, however, leaders often focus less on developing people after they are on board.

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