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Annual Report 2004–05 You are currently viewing: Annual
report Corporate governance
The Speaker of the House of Representatives is responsible to the Parliament for the department. The Clerk of the House of Representatives, who is responsible for managing the department, reports to the Speaker. Key elements of the department’s corporate governance framework are outlined below. Legislative structuresThe department’s operations are governed by the Parliamentary Service Act 1999 and the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997, and are subject to provisions of the Workplace Relations Act 1996 and other legislation. Those Acts set out the responsibilities of the Clerk for the management of the department. Ethical standardsThe Parliamentary Service Values and Code of Conduct, set out in the Parliamentary Service Act 1999, provide a framework for the department’s ethical conduct. The department actively promotes sound ethical behaviour. During the year, we republished and distributed to all staff a pamphlet outlining the values and the code of conduct, and published further educational articles in the staff newsletter, In House. Senior managementSenior management of the department consists of the Executive and managers at the Executive Band 2 level. The Executive comprises the Clerk, the Deputy Clerk, and three Senior Executive Service (SES) Band 1 staff, each of whom has management responsibility for one or two of the five output groups. The Executive met periodically to discuss and decide on a wide range of departmental management issues. In July 2004, October 2004 and March 2005, the broader senior management group met to review achievements and confirm future strategic directions. These meetings incorporated comprehensive written reports on implementation of the departmental business plan for 2004–05 and progressive performance against the external and internal performance indicators outlined in the Portfolio Budget Statements. Senior Management Coordination GroupThe Senior Management Coordination Group (SMCG) comprises the heads of corporate services of the three parliamentary departments; the Serjeant-at-Arms represents the department. The position of Chair rotates yearly between the three members. The role of SMCG is to coordinate corporate and related matters between the parliamentary departments. Formal terms of reference for the SMCG have recently been drafted and agreed to by SMCG, and await the approval of the heads of the parliamentary departments. They are:
During the year SMCG met six times. Among the issues considered by SMCG were: the accommodation at Parliament House; the tender for a travel contract for the parliamentary departments; workplace relations; guidelines for management of the Parliament House website; and common approaches to procurement in some areas (as discussed in the annual report last year).
Management committeesAudit CommitteeThe department’s Audit Committee comprises the Clerk Assistant (Committees), the Clerk Assistant (Table), the Serjeant-at-Arms and the Chief Financial Officer and an independent member. The committee, chaired by the Clerk Assistant (Table), met four times during the year. The functions and responsibilities of the Audit Committee include:
The department’s contracted internal auditor is KPMG. All audits and reviews finalised by KPMG were reviewed by the Audit Committee, including the audits and reviews of:
While a number of recommendations were made in these audits, no serious issues were identified. The audit committee monitors implementation of all recommendations. One of the recommendations of the governance review was that an independent member be appointed to the Audit Committee. The Clerk agreed to the recommendation, the Audit Charter was amended, and the new independent member, David Toll, Director, BETR Project from CSIRO, attended the meetings of the committee in 2005. Consultative CommitteeThe department’s Consultative Committee, which is chaired by the Deputy Clerk, continued to be an important mechanism for communicating and consulting with staff on workplace issues. The committee’s other members are:
The committee met six times during 2004–05. Discussions covered a broad range of matters, such as monitoring the implementation of the certified agreement, recruitment, departmental staff surveys, and other employment policies and practices. Particularly noteworthy were discussions about the treatment of staff recreation leave credits after problems in the department’s human resources management information system led to a leave audit. The committee was also briefed on and discussed plans the department had been considering to change work area structures and processes. These included the finalisation of changes to the delivery of mail to work areas, a review of the department’s internal printing facilities, and the current parliamentary security initiatives.
Planning and evaluationThe department’s managers continued to emphasise planning, reporting and accountability. The main elements of our planning and reporting framework are set out in Figure 11. Figure 11 Departmental planning and evaluation framework, 2004–05
More than 90 staff attended the department’s annual planning day on 18 May 2005. We used the day to examine and review, through workshops, three important aspects of departmental operations. The topics, which are priorities in the corporate plan for 2004–07, were:
The planning day was very successful, and generated many ideas about how the department might deal with these matters. All three issues will be taken forward as part of the business plan for 2005–06. Ways of improving corporate decision-making and advice to members will also be examined by the Knowledge Management Steering Committee (discussed in more detail under ‘Management of people’). The Clerk’s ‘Setting the Direction’ address, in June 2005, also formed part of the department’s evaluation and planning framework. The address, in which the Clerk shared and discussed with staff his view of the department’s general direction and challenges, complemented the objectives and priorities set out in the corporate plan. Corporate planWe continued to implement the corporate plan for 2004–07 throughout the year, substantially achieving the plan’s priorities for:
Specific achievements, detailed elsewhere in this report, included the issuing of a revised Serjeant-at-Arms’ Office service charter, improvements to internet services and information on members’ portals, and completion of work for the commencement of the Forty-first Parliament. Business planThe department launched its business plan for 2004–05 in July 2004. The plan is effectively a subset of the corporate plan that concentrates on the achievement of defined corporate objectives and priorities for the year. Senior departmental managers continued to report very high levels of achievement against the business plan through the quarterly report meetings and other reporting opportunities, such as the weekly senior management meeting.
Members’ surveyThe department requires regular and continual feedback from members to gauge the effectiveness of our services and to know whether we are meeting our objectives. We conducted a further members’ survey in June 2005, in a format very similar to the 2004 survey. One superfluous question about the services provided to parliamentary committees was deleted. Another, about security, was deleted because the responsibility for this function has been transferred to the Department of Parliamentary Services. As in previous surveys, we used a random sample of 30 members, 19 of whom responded (17 participated last year). All participants were asked whether they were satisfied with the services and support they had received from the department. Once again, members were overwhelmingly satisfied with our work: 98 per cent expressed high levels of satisfaction (97 per cent last year). See Appendix 11 for details of the survey findings. Accountability mechanismsThe department’s main external accountability mechanisms are the Portfolio Budget Statements and the annual report, which is prepared pursuant to section 65 of the Parliamentary Service Act 1999. The annual report for 2003–04 assessed our performance against the targets outlined in the Portfolio Budget Statements and presented the financial statements of the department. Copies of both documents were provided to all members. Risk management and fraud controlThe department is committed to risk management as a corporate and individual responsibility. During 2004–05, we continued to integrate risk management strategies into our operational systems and processes. In 2004–05 an update of the business risk assessment, fraud risk assessment and fraud control plans occurred. The assessments concluded that the department has a low risk profile. Most work areas also completed business continuity plans. The department also participated in the Comcover benchmarking survey, the results of which confirmed the department’s low risk profile. Service chartersThe department’s service charters for members and the community continued to provide the basis for the standards of service that members and the public can expect from the department. The service charter for members is included in the handbook provided to members at the start of each parliament. Specific reference was made to the charter in the new members’ seminar and in the seminar for the staff of members. KPMG is to undertake an audit of the charters in 2005–06. You are currently viewing: Annual
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