"Civil Service Personal Management in Georgia: Current Improvements and Modern Challenges"

1. "Civil Service Personal Management in Georgia: Current Improvements and Modern Challenges"  Astana, Republic of Kazakhstan, 21-23 May, 2014 TamtaTsotskhalashvili Head of the Civil Service Reform and Development Departament e-mail: ttsotskhalashvili@csb.gov.ge

2. In this presentation: • What is the Civil Service Bureau of Georgia? • Georgian Civil Service in Numbers • Reform in the civil service since 2003 • HRM system in Georgia • Online recruitment and selection system • Capacity Building of civil servants • Electronic HRM System in Georgia • Challenges faced by Georgian CS • Lessons learned

3. What is the Civil Service Bureau of Georgia? Civil Service Bureau is an independent government agency promoting good governance and anticorruption projects in Georgian civil service IMPROVE CURRENT LEGISLATION IMPROVE HR MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS PROFESSIONAL TRAINING PROGRAMS PROMOTE E-GOVERNANCE

4. Georgian Civil Service in Numbers • 387 agencies • 86,031 public servants Public agencies include: Administration of the President of Georgia, Parliament, Ministries, Self-government institutions, Courts, other agencies and LEPL (except cultural, religious and educational LEPL)

5. Gender equality in the civil service

6. Average age of employees in public agencies is38 Women - 39 Men - 37

7. Georgia before 2003 • Georgia was considered as one of the most corrupt countries in the Soviet Union • Nepotism was also a driven force in the public sector • Economy was shrinking due to lack of corruption and FDI

8. After 2003 Georgia started to reform its CS • Various legislative amendments were passed to enhance the existing CS legislation and to bring greater transparency and efficiency • Salaries were significantly increased in the CS to prevent corruption • E-governance projects were developed to rise efficiency of public service delivery (public and civil registries, asset declarations, e-licenses, e-taxation, other e-services)

9. Logistical advancements played also vital role (new public buildings, modern equipment etc.)

10. Civil Servants underwent major trainings in good governance and “service plus”

11. Modern challenges faced by the Georgian CS • CS still needs to be depoliticized • There is lack of common HR practices • There is no system of continuous capacity building of civil servants • Citizens are less engaged in the government decision-making process • Civil service legislation is still outdated

12. Georgia has committed to reform its CS before main international organizations

13. Introduction of modern HR processes • Hiring only through competitions and relevant modern procedures • Development of job descriptions for every civil servant • Introduction of annual assessment and appraisal system and performance based promotion and salary growth (bonuses) • Mandatory trainings in Ethics and Management for all civil servants

14. Capacity Building of civil servants • Conduct wide training need analyses (TNA) • Train the trainer program in ethics and conflict of issues • Establish centralized training center for High Officials • Implement e-learning systems • Knowledge transfer campaigns

15. Training Facilities in Georgia

16. Online recruitment and selection system www.HR.gov.ge

17. Legislative Reform Regarding the Recruitment in Civil Service • Announcement of a competition for a vacant position became mandatory according to the law in 2010 • Posting information on job openings in the civil service on the web-site www.hr.gov.ge became mandatory in 2011 • Application for the vacancy in civil service shall be submitted only via www.hr.gov.ge in 2011 • Terms of competition were decreased • The possibility to appoint a person temporary (without competition) has been limited • Job descriptions have become mandatory for competition announcement

18. Statistical Data Analysis • Number of the registered users – 140 000 • Number of the registered public entities - 400 • Number of the published vacancies - 7040 • Number of subscribers - 13000 • Number of the unique visitors per day- 3 364

19. eHRMS – Human Resources Management System eHRMS is a country-wide database for human resources employed in the public sector. The system aims to ensure electronic management of human resources in accordance with relevant policy and standards. The system includes the following functions: • Management of the structure and staff units; • Statistical data generation; • Comprehensive, regularly updated electronic information about the staff; • Employee attendance record; • Personnel salary register; • Employee business-trip register; • Powerful search and reporting mechanism; • Generation of automatic notifications; • Employee data recording; • Classifier management.

20. Advantages of the e-HRM system: • Flexibility and simplicity of use; • Significant saving of time and resources on HR activities; • Reducing administrative costs and increasing effectiveness of working process; • Reduction of errors and inaccuracies; • Optimization of decision-making process for proper and timely management. The system is designed in collaboration with the leading experts in the HR field, considering the world’s best practices, established local practice and legislation.

21. Civil Service Reform Process 2013-2014 PHASE 1. PHASE 2. PHASE 3. ASSESSMENT OF CURRENT SITUATION DEBATE ON POLICY OPTIONS RECOMMENDATIONS AND TIME LINE White Paper Summary of issues for further consideration and relevant policy options to explore Draft Concept Principles and contents of proposed civil service reform related to legal framework, procedures, etc. Final Concept Finalised detailed Concept and prioritised action plan

22. 10 categories for approaching a civil service reform Definition of civil service legislation Scope of civil service Central Structure for Management, Co-ordination and Control of civil service  System of ranks and classification System of remuneration and costing of employment System of entry into the civil service  Human resources management System of obligations and of rights for civil servants System of training, upgrading of qualifications Gender equality

23. Lessons learned • The reform shall be oriented on the citizen • Making CS reform is not easy as each country has its own cultural historical and political background • CS reform is cross-sectoral and it triggers interests of all branches of the government • Donor support and guidance is crucial as they bring insight from the established democracies • Shifting public services into online space and bringing in IT solutions is possibly the best option to achieve immediate and tangible results • There should be corruption preventing mechanisms in place and constant fight against corruption is crucial

24. Thank you! QUESTIONS? ttsotskhalashvili@csb.gov.ge tamta.tsotskhalashvili@gmail.com www.csb.gov.ge www.hr.gov.ge www.declaration.gov.ge