Commissioner of Police final report, 1998

Commissioner of Police final report, 1998

Commissioner of Police Final Report, November 1998

Commissioner's overview

The Review of Management and Administration Structures is about streamlining management and administration in the Police and transferring more of our effort and resources into front line policing. It is designed to facilitate our operational strategies of firm and targeted enforcement, more crime prevention and working collectively with others to reduce crime, fear of crime and the road toll. The Review's strategic focus is one which we have been developing over the last five years and which is now achieving some success.

In August 1998, I took responsibility for further development of the Review process following the submission of the Martin Report to Government. After two months of consultation and further design work, we made our final recommendations to Government. The securing of Government decisions on the Review means that the challenge of achieving the Review's aims is now ours. It is a big challenge but one I am keen to meet because it provides the opportunity to achieve some real gains for Police.

I acknowledge that the Review has staff reduction and fiscal saving targets. These are necessary in order to provide focus and parameters for design and will be the source of additional funds for reinvestment in Police. However, streamlining support and management and enhancing operational capability go hand in hand. In implementing this Review, it is intended that both be achieved. Initial savings targets from outsourcing have been revised and a conservative approach to potential savings has been taken. Whilst I am confident that these savings can be achieved, I recognise that further design work is required to determine their full extent. This is being undertaken.

During the course of the Review, extensive consultation and work has been done but there is more to do. The first steps to be taken will be the implementation of the proposed management structure and the carrying out of more detailed work on Service Centres and district support structures. Following this, much of the responsibility for later phases will lie in the hands of district and other senior managers. Their challenge will be to harness and direct the energy within Police in a manner that best impacts on local community crime problems throughout New Zealand.

I look forward to leading this process and ensuring that the operational gains we are currently making turn into greater success in the future. This will, however, require the commitment and effort of us all.

Peter Doone
Commissioner


Executive summary

  1. The external Review of Police Administration and Management Structures was signalled in the Coalition Agreement (December 1996), and was directed by the then Treasurer, and Ministers of Police and Finance, in March 1998. The final report of the independent Reviewer, Mr Doug Martin, was presented to the Commissioner in August 1998, who then assumed overall responsibility for furthering the Review process.

  2. Since the announcement of the Review, Police have implemented a fast-track process that has incorporated providing assistance to the Reviewer, consulting with inter-agency partners and police staff and unions, and intensive planning for the eventual implementation of Government decisions. Under the direction of the Deputy Commissioner and 'Project Georgia' (the project set up to manage the change process), implementation of the approved recommendations is scheduled to commence on 1 November 1998.

  3. The objectives of the Review were to ensure New Zealand Police is more efficient in the delivery of quality policing services, and more accountable for the delivery of those services, in support of Government's public safety objectives. Thus, the focus is on efficiency and accountability, not the effectiveness of services, although it is expected that greater efficiency and accountability will lead to greater effectiveness in terms of public safety outcomes achieved.

  4. The Reviewer identified overall savings of $45-50 million per annum as potentially achievable. After further analysis of the savings available from restructuring and outsourcing, Government has agreed, on the recommendation of the Minister of Police, that savings of about $35.5 million per annum are achievable once outsourcing and restructuring are complete.

  5. The majority of these estimated savings are expected from the restructuring proposals, namely the 380 or so positions saved. Other significant savings are expected from the Review of Police Training and from reducing expenditure on supplies. The rest of the savings are expected to be achieved through the outsourcing of current non-core activities.

  6. It has been agreed that the following changes to present structures be implemented immediately: Police National Headquarters to be restructured into a smaller Office of the Commissioner; the four Regions to be disestablished; the sixteen Districts to be reduced to twelve; and support services to be delivered via a Service Centre model. It is from these processes that 'hard' savings, in terms of the positions saved, can be made.

  7. At this stage, further work is needed to clarify the extent of savings to be realised through outsourcing. Government has agreed to the prioritisation of a number of activities for immediate business cases and it is expected that these will provide sufficient information for Police to report back to Ministers on the likely extent and timing of outsourcing savings and costs by 30 November 1998.

  8. Government has agreed that an additional 120 sworn frontline staff will be recruited from 1999/2000 as a result of the savings from the Review. These officers will enhance Police front line capability, particularly in relation to the key strategic areas of youth at risk, repeat victimisation and organised crime.

  9. From the overall estimated savings of $35.5 million per annum, Police must meet the costs of the Review and restructuring costs, the balance of the wage round costs, and the cost of the additional 120 police staff. The remaining savings will be used to meet Police's commitment to pay for INCIS.

  10. To reflect the contribution that nonsworn members make to front line policing, and to reduce the current reliance on sworn numbers as a measure of front line capability, Government has asked Police, in consultation with other officials, to report back on alternative measures of Police capacity, efficiency and effectiveness by 31 January 1999.

  11. Police will also provide to Government two further reports. The first, a final report on the Police Training Review is due to go to Government on 18 November 1998. The second, a report on governance issues affecting Police, including the roles and responsibilities of the Commissioner and Minister of Police, is due to be submitted to Government by the end of November 1998.

  12. A cascade approach will be adopted in relation to the restructuring arising from this Review, with Executive and Senior Manager positions being finalised first. Once appointed, the Executive and Senior Managers will be responsible, within overall approval of the Commissioner, for finalising staffing and structures within their areas of responsibility. With assistance from the Project Georgia working group, this process is expected to be completed by 31 March 1999.

  13. Implementation of the Review recommendations is expected to improve the effectiveness of Police's operational strategies and further improve the results Police are currently achieving in lowering recorded crime, improving case resolution and lowering the road toll. The specific means through which this improvement will be achieved include additional front line capability and tighter accountability mechanisms.


Table of contents

COMMISSIONER'S OVERVIEW
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
INTRODUCTION
GOVERNMENT DECISIONS
DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION
    IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGY
    Review Focus
    Review Changes
    Project Georgia
    Design Linkages to SRAs and KRAs
    Strategic Framework
    Project Mission
    Project Goals
    DESIGN APPROACH
    Reviewer's Approach to Design
    Police's Approach
    Logic
    Change Levers
    Project Life Cycle Approach
    IMPLEMENTATION APPROACH
    Critical success factors
    Risks and Risk Management
    Proposed Implementation Time Frame
    Transition of Responsibility
    Additional Components of Successful Implementation
    Change management
    Principles for change management activities
    Communications management
    Sector partnerships
SAVINGS/COSTS
    ESTIMATED SAVINGS
    Costs to be Met
    Reinvestment of Savings
    Process to Capture Savings
RESTRUCTURING
    THE OFFICE OF THE COMMISSIONER
    Background
    Shape of Office of the Commissioner
    Roles and Responsibilities in the Office of the Commissioner
    Role of the Commissioner
    Roles of the Deputy Commissioners
    Support to Commissioner
    Resource Management
    Operations Group
    Prosecutions, Legal Services and Internal Affairs
    Additional Operational Positions
    The Police Executive
    REGIONS
    DISTRICTS
    District Managers
    District Management Transition Teams
    Proposed District Management Template
    Application
    Development
    Summary of District Management Teams
    Assumptions
    District Management Teams
    AREAS
    SERVICE CENTRES
    Availability of Staff for Operational Needs
OUTSOURCING
    Background
    Desired short and long term outcomes
    Barriers to outsourcing
    Methodology
    Timing
    Management
    Resourcing policy
    Staff implications
    Variable costs
    Recent developments
    Purchasing Strategy
HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT APPROACH
    APPROACH TO RESTRUCTURING
    Overview
    Cascade Approach
    Job Documentation
    Job Evaluation
    Job Comparison
    Reconfirmation
    Reassignment
    The Selection Process
    Redundancy
    Employee Support
    Timeframe
    Roles and Responsibilities
GOVERNANCE
    Ministerial direction
    Accountability
TRAINING REVIEW
    Background
    Current developments
OTHER ISSUES
    Staff Allocation
    Front line policing - sworn/nonsworn mix
APPENDIX I - GOALS
APPENDIX II - MILESTONES
APPENDIX III - COMPSTAT