It cannot be disputed that the Anguilla Public Service is not reputed for its high performance standards. This should be of concern for all of us as it also cannot be disputed that the Anguilla Public Service is expected to play a pivotal role in Anguilla’s sustainable development. The Anguillian has sought, through its editorials, to play its role in highlighting the pivotal role of the public service and calling for improved standards of performance. Some of these are recounted below.
The recently announced reappointment of Mr. Perin Bradley to the post of Deputy Governor for another term affords him a further opportunity to address various failings in the Anguilla Public Service. His unanimous choice for reappointment suggests that all members of the Recruitment Panel consider him to be well equipped to fulfill this mandate. It is anticipated that improving standards would have been at the forefront of the Recruitment Panel’s consideration, particularly when one notes the composition of the panel. Mrs. Vida Lloyd-Richardson, Chair of the Public Service Commission, is well placed to have full awareness of the shortcomings of the Anguilla Public Service. Mr. David Lynch, Commissioner of Police, though only recently appointed, must by now be fully cognisant of the general concern of the public with the performance of members of the Royal Anguilla Police Force. It is also well known that customer service, in particular a lack of responsiveness, is a complaint Ms. Sharmaine Francois, Chief Executive Officer of the National Commercial Bank of Anguilla must be all too familiar with.
In my editorial of 19th January, 2018, captioned “Good Men and Women Required” I noted that:
“Public officers have the great responsibility of assisting elected officials in creating an environment that will facilitate the successful development of private enterprise, which is essential to national and economic development.”
I further noted that: “Leadership requires proactive thinking, sound analysis and diligent execution.” I asked the question – “Does the Anguilla Public Service possess good men and women with these attributes?” One assumes that the Recruitment Panel for the post of Deputy Governor has determined that Mr. Bradley is one such person and is equipped to play a key role in improving public service standards.
My editorial captioned “Standards Created but not Honoured” of 30th November, 2018, recognised and chronicled some of the standards established by the Anguilla Public Service but not honoured by public officers. Sadly, my observations of 30th November, 2018, which are set out below, remain relevant today.
“The Anguilla Public Service is that institution that persons regularly criticise. Sadly, very often the criticism is justified. The Public Service often comes up short when one considers what is expected of it and what it delivers. What is very disheartening is that the leaders of the Anguilla Public Service appear to understand what is expected of the Public Service but are at a loss, it seems, to ensure the desired level of service.
My recent exploration of the Government website, under the Public Administration directory, revealed the existence of a document titled “Customer Service – Key Internal Standards”. The contents of this document make it clear that what is acceptable customer service is known within the Public Service. The document provides that, “The Anguilla Public Service is committed to providing professional excellence.” It then sets out certain standards that should be met in the provision of that professional excellence. Some of these standards are listed below.
– Return telephone calls within 24 hours.
– Where an email response is required public officers will aim to reply within 2 days but always within 3 working days.
– Where a formal written response is required public officers will aim to send a reply within 5 working days, but always within 10 working days.
– A holding reply must be sent within the above periods if, due to complexity or compelling reasons, these timescales cannot be met.
– Agree on cover arrangements that are clear to maintain a continuous level of service during staff absences:
Phone
In tray (letters)
Email
Appointments
While common courtesy would dictate timely responses to queries, the Anguilla Public Service is not placing reliance solely on common courtesy and therefore time has been taken to document standards. Why is it that despite the documentation of the above standards they appear so rarely to be honoured in the Public Service? I understand that calls go unreturned. Emails and formal correspondence remain unanswered for more than a month. Public officers go on leave and do not think to use their out of office assistant to alert their customers of their absence and to direct them elsewhere for assistance. There is a feeling that there is a general sense of uncaring about whether the needs of the public are met in a timely manner or at all.
While not every public officer is uncaring whether the designated standards are met, sadly many public officers throughout the hierarchy of the public service appear uncaring about these established standards. A concerted effort must be made to ensure that not only are appropriate standards established but that such standards are honoured. Is it that the document titled “Customer Service – Key Internal Standards” is not sufficiently publicised and is therefore relatively unknown to public officers? Steps need to be taken quickly to ensure that established standards are honoured. The Anguilla Public is not deserving of the shoddy treatment delivered by some public officers. Standards, when created, are to be honoured.”
A pivotal role of the Deputy Governor is to promote and ensure improved performance of the Anguilla Public Service. In my editorial of 14th September, 2018, captioned “Addressing Performance Issues in the Anguilla Public Service”, I observed that – “While the failure of line managers to utilise the means available to them to address delinquency cannot be discounted, the failure of individual public officers to personally hold themselves to high standards must also be acknowledged. I believe that this is, in fact, the biggest ill plaguing the Anguilla Public Service. In many instances, line managers and the persons reporting to them are content with mediocrity and hence, in many instances, the resulting output from the Public Service is mediocre.”
I asked the question – “How can this apparently festering situation be addressed?” I answered it by observing that – “It requires persons in the highest echelons of the Public Service to regularly demonstrate their willingness to be unpopular. Such unpopularity will result from their willingness to demand accountability from their subordinates, their colleagues of equal rank, their line managers and elected officials. This course is a difficult one, but is one which must be taken if persons responsible for the management of the Public Service are serious about ensuring that taxpayers receive value for money from public officers.”
Mr. Bradley has been afforded a further term to address the poor performance standards in the Anguilla Public Service. Will the performance appraisal system, which appears to have fallen into a state of disuse in recent years, be reinstated? Every available instrument should be used to ensure that Anguilla’s Public Service, which is essential to securing Anguilla’s sustainable development, functions at an optimum level. Opportunities must not be squandered.
