Page 15 - WMPF Federation Oct-Nov 2018-flip_Neat

Competency and Values “ are committed ‘to increasing

Continued from Page 13 The Force and Federation

precisely the same way college.police.uk
the exact same representation at all levels
evidence.”
And he asks: “What in the organisation’. The
are the issues with Framework for policing
consistency? How are Overview of framework Force has an obligation to
these being addressed
and, in the examples BetterProfessionals ™ all of its staff and should be
forBetterPolicing
given and being
challenged, what is the mindful of well-intended
process? Is this an
acceptable level of
variance due to
subjectivity? illegal positive
“What about the
wash-up sessions? Are discrimination.
these attended by all positive action being “
assessors? If this is the
process, is this adhered
to? If not, why not?
Evidence suggests this
is inconsistent despite The promotions process
the claims to the
contrary.”
Another major concern has been that Competency-based interview
the overall score of candidates is not l Candidates are asked specific questions looking for behavioural evidence across six
recorded, only an average in the required competencies
competence areas. This means some higher
scoring officers fail while lower scorers are l There are no warm-up questions
going through. l There is a single question for each competency, with further probing questions from
The Federation wants officers who don’t the interviewers
succeed to have access to the notes taken by
assessors, to help them with any future l This lasts 60 minutes.
applications but also in the interests of
transparency. This feedback should also be
given in a reasonable timeframe whereas Briefing exercise
currently some candidates are waiting for l This measures the six competencies
months with some assessors admitting they
are ill-equipped to deliver subjective l Candidates have to review a brief and identify key issues and make
feedback. recommendations – 40 minutes
Finally, the appeals process is, according l They then present the analysis to assessors – 20 minutes
to the Federation, unclear and inconsistent.
“What are the terms of reference for the l Assessors ask questions to probe deeper – 15 minutes.
panel? Scope is also important as is
timeframe. Evidence supports the assertion
that there is a long delay between 1-2-1 meeting
submission of concern and action; it is l Measures five competencies
currently an average of eight weeks. This is a
time sensitive process so this is poor,” says l Looks at dealing with an individual performance issue
Tim. l Uses professional role players
The promotions process remains live,
with many officers currently making their l Candidates have to review a brief and prepare for the meeting – 25 minutes
way through it despite the unresolved issues l They then have to conduct the meeting – 25 minutes
that are outstanding.
The Federation is raising its concerns l Role players will provide verbal and written feedback to the assessors afterwards.
with the Force and calling for further
changes to be made to the promotions
processes. Wash-up
But it is also sounding a note of caution l This gives an opportunity for assessors to share ratings and behavioural examples
about some of the positive action features – and then come to common, agreed view of participants’ strengths or development
of the process. needs
Tim explains: “The Force and Federation
are committed ‘to increasing representation l They review positive and negative evidence
at all levels in the organisation’. The Force l Discussions focus on observed behaviours, trends, strengths and development needs
has an obligation to all of its staff and l This, in turn, provides input for candidate feedback.
should be mindful of well-intended positive
action being illegal positive discrimination.”

www.polfed.org/westmids federation October/November 2018 15