5-month succession planning effort rolled out for senior public officers

After years of public concern about inadequate succession planning efforts in the BVI, a five-month initiative has been rolled out to equip senior public officials with skills needed to better qualify them for top government jobs when they become available.

The initiative is dubbed the Leadership Development Forum and Programme. The first batch of senior officials completed training under the programme this month.

“The participants in this cohort are recently-appointed leaders, deputies, and managers in strategic roles who will be potential successors for other key leadership roles in the service,” said Deputy Governor David Archer, Jr who has oversight of the public service.

Meanwhile, Director of the Human Resources Michelle Donovan-Stevens said the programme specifically creates diverse ways for persons to lead, manage, and interact with workers.

This, she said, will ultimately help to transform the public service.

“The Leadership Forum and Development Programme is about building the capabilities of leaders to be purposeful, model the values and ethos of the service and inspire others to excellence. It is important that participating officers receive ongoing support in their roles and be provided professional room and trust to put their learning into practice,” Donovan-Stevens said.

‘Show your staff you care’, senior officers told

Acting Permanent Secretary in Office of the Deputy Governor Sharleen DaBreo-Lettsome has encouraged the first set of participants to maintain a healthy relationship with their staff. She further stressed the importance of unity within the workplace.

“Show your staff that you care, and in return, they will show you the respect and support that you need to be successful. Alone, we can do so little, together we can do so much. Success is the result of people pulling together,” she stated.

The Leadership Forum and Development Programme was designed using input from a 2018 engagement survey that focused on understanding the factors that contribute to employee motivation, well-being and organisational success within the public service.

The leadership programme, in the meantime, is an initiative from the Department of Human Resources in collaboration with Governance Partnership International (GPI).

Throughout the programme, members of GPI will be conducting what has been described as “train the trainer” sessions.

The programme began on Monday, September 23 and will continue in November 2019 and January 2020.