The president designate of the Public Sector People Managers’ Association believes that anticipated cuts in public spending could create an opportunity to develop a new “feeder route” for young people into local authority jobs.

Speaking exclusively to Recruiter, Dean Shoesmith, joint executive head of HR services for the London boroughs of Sutton and Merton, said that the looming financial crisis should be viewed “an opportunity as well as a threat” during which public sector services and how they are delivered will likely need reshaping.
Not only will service delivery need retooling, he said. But “within remodelling our workforce”, he added. “We should absolutely seize the opportunity to create new career paths, particularly a feeder route for younger people to come into our workforce”.

Finding solutions to skills shortages within the public sector as part of “the global race for skills” will be a key theme of Shoesmith’s year-long presidency. Internal development of its workforce, at all levels, is crucial to high performance in this particular race, he said. Management and leadership abilities are in short supply, but so are the most basic skills.

Many traditional blue collar and manual labour sections within local authorities such as waste management, street sweeping services and home care have almost become “ghettoised” in terms of missing out on workforce skills and personal development, Shoesmith said. “Some of the individuals working in those services often have no formal qualifications or no skills at all or they struggle with even basic numeracy and literacy.”

A genuine business case exists to invest in training and development for those workers, as well as for more senior employees, he said. “Where we have invested in them…we’ll see a direct correlation between skills investment and improved customer service.

“The PPMA needs to take a lead in providing development, and we [HR professionals] need to develop and improve ourselves as well. I’m hoping there’s some action I can take for developing our own skills in the HR community,” he said.

Shoesmith will succeed Gillian Hibberd, Buckinghamshire County Council’s corporate director for people and policy, as PPMA president on 22 March at the body’s annual conference.