By Dr. Lois Parkes T he current COVID-19 pandemic along with other major occurrences in the international geo-political space has brought much needed emphasis and dialogue about leadership. This dialogue has centred on various topics – leadership resilience, leadership pivot, and leading in crises to name a few. Whatever the focus of the discussion, one central underlying theme has been that the quality of leadership matters if at all regions, nations, and organisations are going to successfully navigate today’s complex environment and context. In furtherance of this discussion on the quality of leadership, this article, originally posted as a blog on our website, seeks to examine leadership from a performance management perspective. Inherent in the notion of leadership is the concept of followership, whether they be staff, work colleagues, stakeholders, customers, clients or citizens. This further suggests that leadership can be conceptualised as a number of outputs that a leader provides for a range of constituents. However, what exactly are these leadership outputs? Data from a comprehensive leadership learning needs assessment conducted across CARICAD member states in 2018 revealed the following as the critical leadership competencies and their descriptors for Caribbean public service leaders: Continues on next page Continued from Page 3 The required sequence of actions is needed not only at the apex of the public service but also at Cabinet level and the level of the Service Commissions. It is time to change to an SHRM paradigm. Regulation and control must now go hand in hand with service delivery and results, resilience and sustainability. SHRM practices and implementation for Results – delivery of services for a citizen-oriented public service – is not a subsidiary activity for Public Sector Transformation – it is a critical success factor. SHRM must be more purposefully included in a consistent Strategic Management process. We will need greater urgency to convert written policies into day-to-day supervisory practice. We need to close the gap between our HR specialists and our line supervisors and senior public sector managers. CARICAD will continue to advocate for and support all such changes in our region. We have the competencies to do so and we have developed many of the tools required and we have the strategic partnerships that can deliver world-class support for our member states. 7
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