Nan Tewari sent this as the comment on the piece below but I think it deserves a posting ot its own. Cllr Butt is currently at the Labour Party Conference and has made no comment on the Emplyment Tribunal Judgment against the Council and Cara Davani.
Well before this matter was lodged with the Employment Tribunal, I took the opportunity of speaking to Cllr Butt in some detail about the deleterious effect Cara Davani was having on both HR staff and across departments generally.
I explained that I had worked for a number of organisations that had needed to make improvements in staff performance and service delivery and that in every case I had managed to do this both rapidly as well as in a civilised way that did not destabilise individuals or organisations. In all instances I had delivered the service improvements required.
And yes, I did do this work as a daily paid interim working for each organisation for a few months and always with the result of leaving the organisation in better shape than I had found it on arrival.
In saying all of this to Cllr Butt, I pointed out that Davani was causing an enormous amount of damage in trying to achieve her objectives and that this was entirely unnecessary, not to say gratuitously done, as though she bore a grudge against the staff she was working with.
With reference to the piece above, I have looked through the policies in existence at the time that Davani arrived. Whilst they could have benefitted from a tidy-up and a lick of grammatical polish, they were perfectly adequate. What was wrong was that managers were untrained in how to apply the policies - a failing in many organisations, not just Brent. The policies in force pre-Davani did have the merit of affording staff a measure of protection in their contractual (employment) relationship with their employer (the council) whilst I fear that the Davani policies lack this.
As a resident in the borough, I have enormous difficulty in recognising the "modern flexible, service-first culture" lauded above. Staff are tired and resigned in the face of the deteriorating services they have to front and who can blame them? The public is treated just as badly by the council as Davani treats council staff. Notwithstanding cuts in expenditure - aka 'savings' - it is entirely possible for staff to offer a decent service if they, the staff, are well treated to begin with.
Staff do not go to work to fail - they want to go home satisfied in the knowledge that they have done an outstanding job. Good management acts as an enabler for this to occur naturally. Poor management just ensures staff 'serve their time', or clock watch.
This said, there is a notable number of staff who do succeed in rising above the oppressive conditions and I salute their dedication and professionalism.
Well before this matter was lodged with the Employment Tribunal, I took the opportunity of speaking to Cllr Butt in some detail about the deleterious effect Cara Davani was having on both HR staff and across departments generally.
I explained that I had worked for a number of organisations that had needed to make improvements in staff performance and service delivery and that in every case I had managed to do this both rapidly as well as in a civilised way that did not destabilise individuals or organisations. In all instances I had delivered the service improvements required.
And yes, I did do this work as a daily paid interim working for each organisation for a few months and always with the result of leaving the organisation in better shape than I had found it on arrival.
In saying all of this to Cllr Butt, I pointed out that Davani was causing an enormous amount of damage in trying to achieve her objectives and that this was entirely unnecessary, not to say gratuitously done, as though she bore a grudge against the staff she was working with.
With reference to the piece above, I have looked through the policies in existence at the time that Davani arrived. Whilst they could have benefitted from a tidy-up and a lick of grammatical polish, they were perfectly adequate. What was wrong was that managers were untrained in how to apply the policies - a failing in many organisations, not just Brent. The policies in force pre-Davani did have the merit of affording staff a measure of protection in their contractual (employment) relationship with their employer (the council) whilst I fear that the Davani policies lack this.
As a resident in the borough, I have enormous difficulty in recognising the "modern flexible, service-first culture" lauded above. Staff are tired and resigned in the face of the deteriorating services they have to front and who can blame them? The public is treated just as badly by the council as Davani treats council staff. Notwithstanding cuts in expenditure - aka 'savings' - it is entirely possible for staff to offer a decent service if they, the staff, are well treated to begin with.
Staff do not go to work to fail - they want to go home satisfied in the knowledge that they have done an outstanding job. Good management acts as an enabler for this to occur naturally. Poor management just ensures staff 'serve their time', or clock watch.
This said, there is a notable number of staff who do succeed in rising above the oppressive conditions and I salute their dedication and professionalism.
