If your contact with the Department for Education and Employment leaves you feeling you could do better, well now you can!
Michael Bichard, Permanent Secretary at the DfEE has today announced a new secondment programme aimed at attracting those in management roles from other organisations to work within the DfEE on a number of projects for between 6 months and 2 years. The government says that as almost everyone is influenced by the work of the DfEE at some point - as teachers, childcarers, students, lecturers, employers, school pupils, jobseekers - they're providing an opportunity for some to become more directly involved with the policies that might affect them.
The government says the programme is aimed at helping ensure that the "DfEE becomes the sort of forward thinking, inclusive department that modern Government needs", and is particularly interested in attracting those from ethnic minority backgrounds for the scheme. Those interested should have 'proven leadership and communication skills', be good at understanding a brief, have good project management skills and currently be in a senior management position. In return, the DfEE will offers the chance to gain "a real insight into how national policy on employment and education is developed and rolled out".
Those currently on the scheme have been working on projects including performance management in schools and undertaking work in the DfEE's Corporate Stategy Team.
Michael Bichard said: "For any company that wants to develop their managers from ethnic minorities, this secondment scheme is ideal. It’s a great chance to offer people an insight into how Government works – and to contribute. Our secondees have shown us that the Department is a better, more in touch, and ultimately more effective organisation for employing bright people from a real cross-section of this country. My instincts as well as our direct experience tell me that attracting secondees with different work and life experiences – particularly those from minority ethnic backgrounds – to management roles here will be good for us, for them and for the companies that employ them. As the Department that is setting the workplace agenda, we need to be, as far as possible, a model employer. If we can’t offer our staff diversity, a good work-life balance, support and encouragement and all the chances to learn and opportunities they need to do well – then how can we ask other organisations to do so?"
The DfEE is placing adverts for the secondments in The Guardian and the Sunday Times. Information is also available direct from Nancy Haque or Mohan Yogendran at PricewaterhouseCoopers on tel. 020 7804 3895 or by e-mailing nancy.haque@uk.pwcglobal.com.
