Assessing the Size and Scope of Labor Restructuring

WHO SHOULD DO THE ASSESSMENTS?

Who should undertake the tasks of staff auditing, benchmarking, and work force analysis? This section considers the implementing agency's options in undertaking those tasks.

Commonly, the work can be done by:

• In-house staff from the enterprise.
• Other government advisers. Some governments have well-established staffing and planning units that undertake staffing assessments of both government departments and state-owned enterprises.
• External consultants, either from the private sector or from management training and similar institutions that provide consulting services.

Table 3.5 summarizes the strengths and weaknesses of each group. Particularly where the quality of data is poor, both data collection and analysis can be demanding of time and expertise. In such circumstances a combination of resources, such as inhouse staff and consultants, may be the best option.

Table 3.5: Pros and Cons of In-house and External Consultants

Source of expertise	Pros	Cons
In-house team from PPI enterprise	Has good access to data and individuals Has good understanding of the business and the sector	May be biased or lack independence May be reluctant to make recommendations that risk careers of colleagues May lack availability or sufficient time to conduct the work in-house May lack skills if in-house human resources function has been administrative rather than strategic
Internal government advisers	If linked to strong reforming central unit (e.g., office of the president or prime minister), may have strong authority Bring understanding of detailed problems that arise in other government departments or state-owned enterprises	May lack authority (look for evidence in the impact of previous reports) May have limited international experience
External consultants	Are independent Can transfer experience of the effects in other enterprises and organizations that have introduced private participation nationally or internationally May be specialists in the field of work force assessments May have methodologies for conducting staff audits Can provide specific training (e.g., in setting up a benchmarking program)	Reluctant enterprise managers can block access to data Will be more costly National consultants may lack knowledge of sector reforms outside the country International consultants may lack local understanding

It may be difficult for the implementing agency to find expertise within government to conduct fully objective staff assessments. This is particularly the case where staffing levels in the enterprise are based on old (public sector) standards and norms and do not take account of the impact of new technologies and work practices, or where there has been little other experience with the improvements in labor productivity that usually follow private participation.

External consultants can be one source of expertise although their costs may be higher than in-house and government resources. Even so, investment in high-quality staffing assessments is likely to be worthwhile. The assessments will help the implementing agency when consulting and negotiating with workers and unions. They will also form part of the overall due-diligence assessment for the PPI transaction. The issue therefore is not so much one of cost but of providing sufficiently accurate and reliable information to enable all parties–government and PPI investor–to properly assess the labor issues related to the transaction. Whether the work is done using government or private sector resources, the terms of reference will be the same and should aim to gather enough information to meet the objectives above. The Toolkit CD-ROM provides terms of reference for a scoping study.

Terms of reference for consultants to undertake a staff scoping study.

Home

How to Use the Toolkit

Labor Toolkit:
Framework and Overview

Labor Impacts of PPI

Assessing the Scope of Restructuring

Overview

Staff Audits

Benchmarking

Work Force Analysis

Who Should do the Assessments?

Material and Sources

Strategies and Options

Key Elements of a Labor Program

Engaging with Stakeholders

Monitoring and Evaluation

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