TIO annual report 2007/08

How we operate - our people

The TIO has faced many challenges during the year in ensuring it has the right people at the right time to enable it to deliver its mission of “providing free, independent, just, informal, and speedy resolution of complaints”.

Numbers grew by 46 per cent to 145.3 full-time equivalent staff, with 81 per cent directly investigating complaints

Recruitment

Due to the continued growth in complaints over the past financial year and staff turnover of 14%, the TIO has filled 81 vacant positions.

This includes 15 internal candidates who were selected for promotion to more senior positions. Thirteen were promotions within the investigation area and two moved to an operational and administrative role.

In addition to the above number there were 14 opportunities for TIO employees to act in various management and administrative roles as part of their personal and professional development. We also recruited and trained an additional 20 temporary agency staff as enquiry officers to help meet demand at peak times.

Equal employment opportunity

As part of its aim of becoming an employer of choice, the TIO is continuing to examine the relationship it has with its employees and to identify ways in which to adopt flexible working practices. Along with our philosophy of recruiting and selecting based on merit, this has ensured that the workforce at the TIO continues to diversify.

The graphs on page 23 provide a breakdown of the current workforce.

Organisational realignment

To meet our strategic goals (See Our strategic goals) at the beginning of 2008 we undertook an organisational realignment. The key aspects included:

• the creation of a Planning and Stakeholder Engagement Unit, which incorporates the Public Affairs, Policy and Member Communications areas
• the creation of several new senior management positions and a team management structure in the complaint investigations area
• the restructuring of some existing senior management roles.

The new structure has been progressively implemented over the last quarter of 2007/08 with full implementation scheduled for September 2008.

Learning and development

We continued our weekly training sessions during the year, with general presentations, such as occupational health and safety refreshers, and more specific sessions such as the investigative process and new technology.
External training was also conducted by various providers and included:

• disability awareness training presented as part of our Second Disability Action Plan 2008-2010
• training to help investigative staff deal with complaints that involve cognitive capacity issues
• internal consulting training to assist the business division support other areas of the TIO in a structured and professional manner
• effective management development delivered by Leadership Management Australia to develop management skills and provide development opportunities for potential leaders.

The learning and development team have continued to regularly attend meetings of the Australian and New Zealand Ombudsman Association’s learning and development committee.

The continuous recruitment of new investigative staff and the increasing demand for learning and development of existing staff has resulted in the appointment of a further full-time learning and development officer.

The TIO also provides financial assistance to staff undertaking additional study. This year assistance was granted to 26 staff who are undertaking a range of degrees and personal development activities.
Occupational health and safety.

We aim to eliminate or minimise the risk of exposure to hazards. Staff and management monitor and assess work practices and the working environment to identify and address hazards before they cause injuries or incidents.

In 2007/08, there were six reported incidents, with one requiring the person to take time off. This was related to the work being done to set up additional office space on the floor above our current offices and the dust and additional hazards that this created. However, this was a short-term issue and has been resolved.

Employee assistance program

TIO employees and their families have access, to a confidential counselling service. The number of staff using this service has increased by 52 per cent over the past year, with most people seeking help with personal issues. (This compares with a 46 per cent growth in staff numbers.)

Reports from the EAP provider linked the increase in work-related issues to people seeking assistance to build their confidence, and the counselling of people in interview skills so that they could make the most of opportunities created through the realignment.

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