Stakeholder Engagement: A Proposed Approach

Transcription

1 SFC/16/06 Agenda item 7 29 January 2016 Stakeholder Engagement: A Proposed Approach The purpose of this paper is to propose an approach to improving SFC s stakeholder engagement. It sets out the underlying purposes and principles for engagement, outlines a plan of action for developing partnerships, and suggests ways to maximise SFC resources including the effective participation of Council Board and SMT members. Recommendations The Council is invited to discuss and agree the: Purposes and principles of SFC stakeholder engagement as outlined in this paper Proposed plan of action Proposal that Council Board members participate by serving as ambassadors in the further development of partnerships. Financial implications There are minor financial implications associated with the recommendations of this paper related to travel and subsistence costs.

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3 Stakeholder Engagement: A Proposed Approach Purpose 1. This paper proposes an approach to improving SFC s stakeholder engagement. It sets out the underlying purposes and principles for engagement, outlines a plan of action for developing partnerships, and suggests ways to maximise SFC resources including the effective participation of Council Board and SMT members. Background 2. The SFC s Strategic Plan for highlights the importance of partnership working and collaboration for the successful delivery of our strategic vision. 3. While the SFC currently engages with a wide range of stakeholders, there are opportunities to strengthen such engagements and to be more proactive and interactive. Engagements have not been as targeted or focused as they could be and we have not had a mechanism for sharing information internally which would allow for a more coordinated and strategic approach. 4. Also, in the light of recent budgetary pressures SFC must strengthen its collaborations and partnerships to ensure that it is able to deliver its corporate plan. This need for improved collaboration was reinforced by the Cabinet Secretary s letter of guidance to SFC in September Our auditors have stressed the need for SFC to develop a strategy for engaging with stakeholders. Further, Evaluation of Board Governance which was circulated to Council Board members earlier this year contained the recommendation that: The Board develops a stakeholder strategy which identifies the purpose of its stakeholder engagement, who it wishes to engage with, how it will measure its success and what mechanisms it will use for doing so With the relatively recent publication of SFC s new Strategic Plan it is important to develop processes, both internal and external, for effective engagement and to consider how the Executive, especially the Senior Management Team, and our Council Board members can play the fullest possible role in supporting the delivery of the Plan s ambitions through their interactions with key stakeholders. 1

4 Purposes of, and principles for, engaging 7. Why does the SFC aim to develop require meaningful stakeholder engagement? To improve awareness and understanding of the role and responsibilities of SFC To identify ways to enhance partnership working and collaboration with stakeholders To understand better the needs of our stakeholders To find efficient and cost effective ways to deliver our strategic priorities To influence policy and practice at local, regional and national levels To be an agent of change in Scotland To improve our performance by encouraging feedback and constructive challenge 8. The Executive proposes that in our engagements with stakeholders, we will: Identify issues and establish clear purposes for engagement Foster open communication and dialogue Be inclusive and welcome participation and evidenced feedback Take into account the impacts and benefits of decisions on stakeholders Commit ourselves to improving the quality of our interactions Adapt and change in response to stakeholders feedback as feasible and appropriate Keep stakeholders informed of what has been achieved as a result of partnership-working Proposed Plan of Action 9. The following plan is proposed to be undertaken during the first half of 2016 with an update on stakeholder engagement to be provided at the September Council meeting. 10. Identify what / who: Drawing on our Strategic Plan, we will determine the issues for engagement and identify what is needed for SFC to deliver on the Plan. From this, we will select which stakeholders we think are best placed to help us achieve our aims. The Executive has begun work on this exercise (see annex). 11. Identify the needs of our stakeholders: We will hold a number of consultation exercises with our stakeholders in the first quarter of From this we will seek: a) to understand their needs / priorities; b) to determine where there are the greatest connections; and c) to discover what their experience of SFC has been thus far and what changes they would like to see in the relationship going 2

5 forward. 12. Map priorities: The Executive will put together a plan for engaging each of our key stakeholders, mapping their priorities against ours and suggesting ways for developing the relationship. 13. Assign responsibilities: Individuals within the Executive mainly from the SMT but not exclusively from this group will be matched with specific stakeholders. It is not expected that only one member of the Executive will interact with any particular stakeholder but that one individual will be the go to person for information on that partner. 14. Identify Board ambassadors: Council Board members will be asked to serve as ambassadors for SFC and, like the Executive, will be matched with partners as appropriate to the individual s expertise. The Executive will provide support for Board members, offering briefings and suggesting opportunities for engagement. 15. Establish a feedback loop: In order for us to have more effective relationships externally we need to improve the ways in which we communicate internally. We need to build into our existing communications ways for key messages from (and to) stakeholders to be cascaded to staff, for example through Directorate meetings and via SMT. Moreover, we will need to develop a regular form of communication specifically capturing our engagements. The intranet may be a vehicle for this. 16. Develop mechanisms to communicate SFC priorities / successes: We will establish a variety of methods for sharing information on projects and programmes likely to be of interest to partners, with particular emphasis on achievements that have come about through partnerships and collaborations. A magazine / newsletter style format may be suitable for this as well as social media. 17. Evaluate our engagements: We will establish a method of evaluating our engagements jointly with our stakeholders, inviting feedback from our partners. Resources 18. There are resource implications in the implementation of this strategy and we must plan carefully to prioritise people s time. Our engagement efforts will need to be targeted at those stakeholders which have a high degree of influence on SFC corporate priorities. SFC may need to put less energy into cultivating relationships that are deemed to be of lower value for the 3

6 organisation. We will undertake this prioritisation as we progress this work. Risk assessment 19. If the SFC does not actively work towards improving its approach to stakeholder engagement, there is a risk that it will not be able to deliver its strategic priorities. The recommendations in this paper serve to mitigate this risk. 20. There is a risk that stakeholders will receive inconsistent messages through interactions with Council members and the Executive. The proposed plan suggests that individual members of the Executive will provide briefings for Council members. Good communication between the Executive and Council Board members should mitigate this risk. Equality and diversity assessment 21. An Equality Impact Assessment was completed in the preparation of this paper. No impacts are expected from the introduction of this stakeholder engagement initiative. Financial implications 22. There are minor financial implications associated with the recommendations of this paper related to travel and subsistence costs. Recommendations 23. The Council is invited to discuss and agree the: Purposes and principles of SFC stakeholder engagement as outlined in this paper Proposed plan of action Proposal that Council Board members participate by serving as ambassadors in the development of partnerships. Publication 24. This paper will be published on the SFC website. Further information 25. Contact: Dee Bird, tel: ; dbird@sfc.ac.uk 4

7 Annex Stakeholder Engagement 1. Increasingly, a defining feature of the Scottish Funding Council s external relations is the number and diversity of the organisations with whom we interact. 2. As a first approach to prioritising these engagements, the Executive applied the following definition combined with a sense-check - a stakeholder is any person, group or organisation that can place a claim on our organisation s attention, resources or output (R. Edward Freeman Strategic Management: A Stakeholder Approach). 3. This gave us the following list of key stakeholders: Business, Innovation and Skills Colleges Scotland COSLA Education Scotland Highlands and Islands Enterprise NUS Scotland QAA Scotland Scottish Enterprise Scottish Futures Trust Scottish Government Scottish Government Health Department Scottish Ministers Scottish Trade Unions Congress Skills Development Scotland SQA Universities Scotland 4. It did not however, give us a sharp picture of why, across the organisation, we engage with them. The Executive will develop an approach for identifying and prioritising stakeholder engagement that: Is outcome focused Is aligned with SFC Strategic Plan objectives Provides a mechanism for connecting the current operational knowledge of SFC s Executive with the management of the SFC s strategic direction. 5

8 5. In order to begin this process, it is proposed that the following exercise is carried out internally with each team policy, outcome and project teams. An initial attempt is shown below in the Table below. 6. Policy Teams would be asked to: Identify the relevant Outcome(s) and Theme(s) from the Strategic Plan towards which their work contributes Consider which stakeholders are most relevant and why Explain what outcome these stakeholders would contribute towards Describe what background / knowledge / experience a representative for the SFC would need in order to develop this engagement and deliver the outcome. 6

9 Table: Stakeholder Engagement - Identifying Priorities using SFC Strategic Plan EXAMPLE Outcome (SFC Strategic Plan) Theme Programme for Change -partnership and/or strategic actions for SFC Who/What stakeholder Why Who at SFC World-leading research Innovation in the economy Research competitiveness National strategy and practice - Invest in university research base; - Work with HEIs and stakeholders to leverage increased levels of research investment. - Take a leading role in national strategy for innovation; -Make Scotland CAN DO a catalyst for transforming the innovation system. Relevant SFC Committee; Research Councils UK; Scot Gov; UK Gov BIS Relevant SFC Committee; SG Innovation Team; Industry agencies; Enterprise partners; SDI; Innovate UK SFC Strat Plan sitting in wider context of Comp Spending Review; Green Paper; UK Gov review of REF; Research UK new research council; CEO of 7 Research Councils meeting at SFC next year. Innovation centres; Need enterprise agency products and work of HEIs to complement each other; Need partnership with Enterprise agencies on innovations; Link with SFC RKEC Industry background; Able to balance knowledge of industry and of academia to get the relationship between the two working better. 7