20 September 2004 - “Trail-blazer” or “safe pair of hands”? Staff spill the beans on successful managers
Being a “trail-blazer” manager can help local council Housing Benefit teams jump up the national performance table.
Research published by today by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), shows staff in the Housing Benefit service look for different qualities in their managers according to their place in performance leagues.
“Trail-blazer” qualities dominated the definition of a good manager in Local Authorities who were successfully turning around previously disappointing performance. Staff valued vision, courage and emphasis on staff training and team work. “Trail-blazers” champion high performance and confront under performance.
But in Local Authorities performing well, staff rated the “safe pair of hands” manager, who creates stability despite changes in the sector by setting goals year on year backed up by the right resources, staffing and training in place to deliver them.
Despite finding against the “one-size-fits-all” management-myth, the study shows humour and “leading by example” are common characteristics of successful managers. Staff said they could relate better to the personal values of their manager than to high level corporate values.
Housing Benefit Minister Chris Pond said:
“It’s good to see so many successful managers and hard-working motivated staff.
“It seems what staff are after is less David Brent and more someone who can steer them through organisational change and help them achieve their potential.
“I hope this research will be useful in encouraging Housing Benefit teams to improve their performance. The public will be winners if they get a faster, more efficient and less fraud-prone Housing Benefit service.”
Notes for editors
- Full results of the DWP research report no 218 can be found at http://www.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd5/rports2003-2004/rrep218.asp
- Findings taken from research on the ‘Management Styles and Characteristics of Housing Benefit (HB) Managers’ conducted for the DWP by IRIS Consulting.
- The main objectives of the research were to hallmark practices and skills of HB managers from seven Local Authorities (LA) that were either high performing or improved “turnaround” LAs.
- The research was undertaken as part of the 2003/4 DWP research programme and looked into the issue of the “variability of service standards” among Local Authorities.
- There was consensus amongst professional bodies such as the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) and the Institute of Revenues, Ratings and Valuation (IRRV) and the Local Government Association (LGA) that this issue needed to be examined.
- In 2002 Malcolm Wicks backed the IRRV/CIH/LGA research proposal on the management skills and culture of HB managers and their authorities.
- The research was conducted during the period of September 2003 – February 2004. It was a qualitative study which combined the following approaches:
- an initial literature review
- development of a conceptual framework on leadership and management characteristic
- case studies in seven LAs
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