Home page > Learning and development > Building corporate capability - The APS in transition > Appendix seven
Building corporate capability - The APS in transition
|
Contents - Background to the People management benchmarking study - Methodology - Business context interview - Workplace culture - Human resource questionnaire - Line manager survey - HR metrics survey - Focus groups - Definition of the HR function - Key Focus Areas |
Appendix seven: HR metrics survey
Purpose
The purpose of this tool was to facilitate the collection of quantitative data regarding the resources allocated to the HR function as well as some agency demographic information.
Methodology
Quantitative HR data was collected from each agency for the year 1997/98. To ensure data integrity from this activity, those responsible for data capture were supported by information and training, in the form of workshops, detailed documentation, and access to phone and e-mail help lines. Subsequently, this data was verified with each agency by the project team and HRM Consulting, and finally authorised by a senior executive from that agency. Data was collected for the following areas:
- workforce profile;
- unscheduled absence;
- labour turnover;
- recruitment;
- training and development;
- occupational health and safety; and
- HR staffing and costs.
Data from ACEPS and the consultancy consortium's external benchmarks provided a source of comparative information. Even so, the significance of the APS metrics, alone and against the external benchmarks, can really only be assessed when qualitative data from other elements of the Study is taken into account.
Results
A detailed analysis of the metrics from the Study indicates a number of trends. These trends are discussed in this section.
Workforce profile
APS staff have long tenure in an agency. In the average APS agency, a third of staff have ten or more years' service, and 22% have five to ten years service with the agency. At the median, 92.6% of APS staff are permanent and 5.3% are part-time employees. The greatest percentage of part-time staff are employed in the APS level 1-4 group. This part-time result is low compared with wider industry. In the Australian labour force, 25% of workers are employed on a part-time basis21. These facts confirm the generally held view that for most APS staff, their careers are spent within the APS, in full-time employment.
Median remuneration per employee within the APS ($54,900) is relatively high compared to the All Industry22 median of $51,176.
Higher duties allowance
At the median, 15.2% of the APS workforce were being paid higher duties allowance as at 30 June 1998. This represents a significant reduction on the median (37.1%) reported for the ACEPS study.
Return from parental leave
The rate of return from parental leave is high, with 7 parents returning to work for every resignation whilst on parental leave, while the All Industry rate is 2.5 returns for each comparable resignation. This outcome suggests that APS agencies have been successful in implementing strategies to retain the skills of employees on parental leave.
Unscheduled absence
The APS, median absence result is 9.8 days per employee, per year, compared with the All Industry median of 7.5 days. Sick leave, workers' compensation claims, and miscellaneous leave are all captured in this result.
Labour turnover
Total separation rates within APS agencies are relatively high, at 26%, compared to the All Industry median of 17.5%. Whilst this result seems high, the turnover figures are driven by two particular separation types, one of which may have measured an unusual peak in separations. The separation types in question are organisation-initiated separations and contract expiry for APS levels 1-4.
Recruitment
Compared with Other Public, GBEs and the Private Sector, APS agencies have more internal than external recruitment. In the average APS agency two-thirds of recruits are internal, and 22% of recruits are 'external appointments', i.e. from outside the APS, whilst 12% come from another APS agency. These results provide a degree of confirmation that the APS is indeed a stable and career oriented workforce.
On average there are 1.8 promotions for each transfer in the APS. This is very similar to the All Industry median of 1.7, and much lower than Other Public at 3.2 promotions for each transfer.
The APS median time to fill positions is 67.7 days. The APS result is lower than the Other Public and has reduced by nearly 25% since the ACEPS study. The APS median is about 20 calendar days higher than the All Industry median; however, this All Industry median is affected by a very low result from a limited number of private sector organisations.
Training and development
The median training investment per APS employee23 is just over $1,054, which compares most favourably with All Industry $300 and the Private Sector at $719.
APS median training hours are 29.2 hours per employee per annum, considerably higher than the All Industry median of 10 hours, and a reflection of the relatively high investment identified above.
HR people however receive only a relatively small share of the APS training dollar. The APS median for HR staff training is $865, compared with the All Industry median of $1,137, and the Private Sector median of $1,538.
Occupational health and safety
OH&S costs are incurred through preventative, compensation and rehabilitation activities. APS investment per employee is reported at $780, which is slightly above the All Industry median of $735, and similar to the ACEPS result.
HR staffing
The average APS agency is relatively well staffed with HR people, although leaner than in previous years. The HR-to-all staff ratio in 1998 is 1:30 compared with the ACEPS ratio of 1:25, a reduction of 18%.
Just over a third (35.5%) of APS HR people are employed in HR administrative/processing roles. 57.6% are employed in HR advisory/consulting roles. This is a very positive result, effectively reversing the trend in the ACEPS study.
There are more Generalists than Specialists24. Specialisation appears to result in higher staffing levelsagencies with medium to high numbers of HR specialists are more likely to have high or median HR staffing levels; those with a low number of HR specialists are more likely to have median or low HR staffing levels.
HR expenses
Since the ACEPS study, HR expenses have reduced by 12%, due to the reduction in HR staffing. The median cost of providing HR services per APS employee is $2,838, compared with Other Public of $1,169, GBEs at $1,520, the Private Sector of $1,982, and the All Industry median of $1,298. The ACEPS result was $3,207.
Examining HR expenses by function25, we find that payroll consumes 28% (32.99%), recruitment and selection 8.8% (11.05%), training and development 13.6% (22.83%), OH&S 7.3% (5.85%) and employee relations 10.4% (6.63%) of total expenses. The remaining 22.4% (15.08%) is devoted to HR general activities such as HR policy, workforce planning, developing HR strategies etc.
21 Australia's Workforce 2005:Jobs in the Future, Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra, 1995, p.29, citing ABS The Labour Force, various issues.
22 HRM Consulting collects data quarterly from Australian organisations as part of a national benchmarking study, grouping the results by Other Public, Government Business Enterprises GBEs, and the Private Sector. The Australian All Industry benchmark has been prepared by aggregating data from all external (to the APS) organisations.
23 Formal, off-the-job training - typical costs include workshops and seminars, course fees, cost of internal and external trainers etc.
24 Generalists would typically include HR advisers who spend the majority of their time undertaking a range of HR functions or servicing a business unit/location as the first point of contact for all HR issues. Specialists would typically include HR advisers who spend the majority of their time on one focused HR discipline, such as recruitment, or training and development, or industrial relations etc.
25 ACEPS comparisons in brackets.
 |
 |