Career Growth
Career growth in the Digital field is a key topic. It concerns either the CDO/BA or the team members.
Regarding the CDOs/BAs
Here are several ideas that could be explored:
Steer CDOs/BAs as champions/exemplars of tech talents in the public sector: specific communications to describe the network, each CDO’s history and past careers, skills and motivations to be in the public sector.
Open the possibility for CDOs/BAs to be “mobile”: for instance, after 3-5 years of service, make it possible for them either to change sectors, to work in the private sector or develop an entrepreneurial initiative.
Provide CDOs/BAs with training and learning options that could help them identify upskilling needs. For instance, one could want to take a managing position within a business department and build on the skills they develop as CDOs/BAs in other places in the public sector.
Explore the creation of leadership programs for high potentials: these could be inspired from what private companies often build for new recruits.
- Each year, a cohort of 10-15 people could be detected within CDO teams and proposed specific training, projects, and coaching in order to build career opportunities within governments.
- Another possibility would be to create recruiting program - similar to the French “Entrepreneurs d’intérêt général”, aiming at detecting tech talents within the private/startup sector and placing them in ministries to solve challenges (either linked to technology or based on a public policy challenge)
- This implies enhancing communications towards universities and startup communities
Develop a HR digital network: at RISA level, and in interaction with the Ministry of Public Service and Labor, build a 3 year roadmap to better structure HR for digital skills in the public sector. Among the foundations you could build: digital job description in the public sector (based on a skills assessment), rules on externalisation rate, remuneration scale (according to the job and year of experience), HR department at RISA, recruitment processes, training catalogue, … This implies to train or recruit HR specialists to build these strategies and be points of contact for the digital network workforce.
Strengthen CDO teams compositions with essential profiles to manage digital transformation: Among missing (or insufficient) skills identified are data-scientists, AI experts, UX/UI designers, legal experts, product owners and managers, devops, digital and data policy managers.
Regarding the CDO (office) team
Set a Rotation program for the CDO (office) teams: developers, IT help desk Officers and the other talents in the CDO teams can benefit from a rotation program managed by RISA in collaboration with the CDO Network structure.
Conduct annual interviews with each team member to understand his/her professional ambitions. Based on that, propose the needed training, task allocation and staffing that will allow the talent to grow and reach his/her ambition. There are two types of growth: the horizontal one and vertical one.
Horizontal growth of the CDO (office) Team:
To support horizontal growth within the CDO office, it’s important to facilitate role transitions. For instance, an IT Help Desk Officer aspiring to become a Network Specialist should receive guidance and support. This process involves:
- Advisory Support: The responsible CDO should provide career advice and guidance on the transition.
- Training Identification: Specific training programs required for the new role should be identified.
- Staffing and Task Allocation: Roles and responsibilities should be clearly defined to align with the desired position.
- Mentorship: Pairing the aspiring Network Specialist with an experienced professional in the field can be a crucial step.
- Action Plan: An action plan should be collaboratively developed with the talent to create an optimal growth environment, ensuring they have the resources and support needed to succeed.
Vertical Growth of the CDO Office Team:
Vertical growth focuses on enhancing expertise within the team. For example, a junior software developer should progress to a senior software developer over time. Achieving this involves:
- Experience and Training: Providing opportunities for gaining practical experience and targeted training programs.
- Increased Responsibilities: Gradually increasing the responsibilities assigned to the junior developer.
- Exposure to Case Studies: Offering real-world case studies and problem-solving scenarios.
- Mentorship: Ensuring that the junior developer is mentored by a senior talent, providing guidance and knowledge transfer.
By implementing these strategies, the CDO office can foster both horizontal and vertical growth, creating a dynamic and skilled team capable of meeting evolving challenges.
Whether for the CDO/BA or the members of his or her team, taking advantage of training is essential to improve career progression in public administration.
The training is managed by the RISA for all sectors. The training catalogue designed by RISA is categorised into three distinct groups: Soft Skills, Technical Skills, and Sector-Specific Skills. The strategic choice of training areas is reflective of the latest global trends in technology adoption across diverse sectors and industries, encompassing pivotal domains such as cloud computing, big data, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity.
In addition to the emphasis on technical proficiency, the plan acknowledges the significance of complementary skill sets crucial for personal development and self-management. These include Critical and Analytical thinking, Design Thinking, Creativity and Innovation, leadership and social influence, as well as effective communication and technical writing. Please refer to RISA to find out the comprehensive catalogue of training available.
However, there is a clear imperative to enhance the training process.
CDOs should have a training plan for their teams based on the needs of development of their talents. This training plan should be sent to RISA for consolidation at the beginning of the fiscal year (1st June) at the latest.
To draft this training plan, key steps are provided below:
- Conduct training needs assessment of the CDO (office) team
- Identify Gaps
- Propose key training needed to fill the gaps
- Define desired timeline for the training required
- Structure the needs by priority
- Propose alternative in case of unavailability of the training requested.
CDOs should collaborate with RISA in the purpose of raising funds for training. Every CDO must communicate the training needs to RISA on time and contribute if needed into the financial resource mobilisation.
CDOs must also ensure that, once the training slots have been communicated by RISA, all the talent takes part in the training. Follow-up is necessary to ensure that teams participate effectively.
Some training should be designated as mandatory, while others can be optional depending on the goals set by RISA and the sector in terms of IT talent development and competencies required.
During the annual interview (Minigo) conducted by the CDOs for their teams, training achievements, certifications earned should be assessed, as well as goals definition for the coming year in terms of training and required certifications.
RISA should conduct evaluation in collaboration with the responsible CDO for gauging the return on investment of the training initiatives.
The assessment will be quantitative, by evaluating the costs versus the benefits (money saved and earned), as well as qualitative (types of competencies gained, employee satisfaction and level of engagement in the work, employee confidence, leadership skills acquired etc…).
Collecting feedback from participants both before and after the training sessions is essential to improving their effectiveness.
Additionally, there is a need to complement the training package with elective courses tailored for senior management, addressing specific competencies aligned with emerging trends, team needs, and disruptive methodologies envisioned by the CDOs.
Innovative way of conducting training for the CDO teams:
A way to promote training is through communities of practice, such as Blue Hats, and Betagouv.