Page 43 - KZN Film A Report

TIntroduction
he 2020/2021 financial year began when the country was under level five (5) lockdown phase and just like the rest of the world, KZNFC had to quickly adapt to
the “new normal” and ensure that work continued in order to deliver on the mandate. The Human Resources team had to adapt to be able to conduct business remotely and/or virtually – be it recruitment, skills development, performance management, industrial relations, performance management, employee wellness and mental health well-being to ensure that adequate support was provided throughout the trying year.
KZNFC has been operating for five years. The approved organisational structure of 36 posts has been designed to deliver the mandate of the Entity while keeping the team small and with a limited hierarchy (flat structure). The personnel costs for permanent staff were limited to a maximum of 33.3%of the total budget. The only challenge that arises from such a flat structure, is when a vacancy arises, it has a substantial impact on the operations, control and effectiveness of the respective business unit as most units comprise of two people. Where possible, functions were outsourced to enhance efficiencies and governance e.g., internal audit, legal services, and company secretary.
Over the past five years, the number of strategic programmes has grown, and the establishment of the film cluster has required that the positions previously not filled, to be filled to service the increase in demands by the film industry which is seeing a significant increase in activities. Furthermore, several critical positions have remained vacant over the past few years which is hampering critical administrative support and industry programmes.
As highlighted, KZNFC has an approved organogram of 36 employees and currently, there are 22 permanently employed staff members and 12 vacancies. The Entity had a vacancy rate of 38.89% which included critical positions such as the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and key management positions dealing with productions and HCD as well as the several support positions in IT, HR, and Finance and Administration. The Finance and Administration program, which is critical to the governance and compliance and an enabler of service delivery, had the highest vacancy rate of 46.15% at the end of the period under review. The Marketing and Industry Development Department the backbone of KZNFC, had a vacancy rate of 35,29%.
Despite the moratorium on the filling of vacancies, the drive has been to operate optimally under the circumstances, and considerable effort was put in by employees to ensure
that the targeted outcomes were met during the period under review. This included hiring a significant number of temporary staff on fixed-term contracts to ensure that service delivery and internal controls were not compromised. For the first time since the inception of KZNFC, the MID department was capacitated by the end of the period under review.
KZNFC is committed to providing regular, comprehensive and tailored Skills Development/Training programs, and these are aligned to the Workplace Skills Plans and the Personal Development Plans of individual staff members. During the year, the entity rolled out 18 out of 19 planned training interventions (95%). The Manco/C Band Leadership intervention planned for the 2020/22 financial year was delayed due to COVID-19 and SCM challenges and is set to be rolled out from April 2021. Additional training was rolled out to address training necessitated by identified performance gaps in quarterly performance assessments.
Three (3) staff members received bursaries to further their studies at Tertiary Institutions during the period under review, and they passed their exams.
While the primary function of the quarterly performance management processes is to monitor employee performance to ensure that it is at acceptable levels, the system also aims to identify performance gaps that need to be addressed as well as to identify talent that can be developed. The right environment has to be created for an employee to develop and obtain feedback on performance and to identify opportunities for career advancement within the organisation. The development of common Key Performance Areas (KPA’s) and objective weighting for all staff members has created objectivity in the process. The Performance Management policy has been reviewed and was approved by the Board in December 2020 to include all staff on fixed-term contract of one (1) year or more.
With regards to the 2-year Internship program, the entity has been able to attract and develop high calibre ready-for work-graduates.
The eight graduates were taken through a structured program with clearly defined outcomes. The focus was to ensure that the Mentors provide a stable and supportive environment for the growth of the interns. Interns attend various training programmes during the two-year cycles which includes work readiness, interview skills, work etiquette, support in obtaining drivers licenses. The internship program has been a success and 5 Interns during the period under review were appointed into fixed contract position while one intern was appointed into a permanent position.
A Wellness service provider (Careways) was appointed
KZN FILM COMMISSION ANNUAL REPORT 2020/2021
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