Called to account

Despite Wodger's soothing words I decided to make a thorough investigation into this business of the overdue accounts for SouthWest One. As a straight talking sort of guy, I went straight to the top. The Chairman is a very nice man indeed and he put me right about it all in a few moments. Then we had a fascinating conversation on matters much closer to my heart. Mr Titchmarsh, it seems, is a keen horticulturalist who likes nothing better than plunging both hands deep into a sack of peat and looking out for those elusive green shoots of recovery. He sent me a signed copy of his memoirs. Come to think of it Eunice is never happier than when she's on her knees, dibber in hand, giving the weeds a good seeing-to.

Welcome Aboard!

It is always a pleasure to usher new blood into our party. I was thrilled to learn that Steve Gill has decided to quit the Liberal Democrats and join me in my quest to turn Somerset bright blue. For Steve this was a brave move. His background is in the retail trade and the food sector. I believe he has a huge appetite and will add real weight to our team at County Hall. I first got to know Steve when he built this lovely wall at our modest Chilton Polden residence. He collaborated in additional Hux home improvements with some of my County colleagues, though the inspiration for what has been achieved owes everything to the good taste of dear Eunice. Eunice will be taking Steve in hand during the coming weeks and bringing him on as she has so skilfully done with others.

SW1 HUX

Wodger took me to one side and tried hard to explain the details. Apparantly there is a company doing all the council procurement work and much else besides. It is said that this company could save Somerset squillions of pounds. It all sounds so positive no wonder that other local authorities are falling over themselves to get involved. Except for one thing. Apparantly councils are obliged to inspect the books before signing up. "So"- I said to Wodger - "it cannot be good for us if our company has failed to submit its accounts on time. Sounds a bit naughty to me. It would be like a Councillor failing to enter any details at all into the Register of Members Interests" Wodger paused for a while, deep in thought, and then put me straight. "The very fact that this company has failed to submit returns to Companies House means that nobody can check what we've actually done against what we said we would do". I think I understand. I would have run it past Eunice but she said she was popping out to the shops for a while

H1 HUX

I am a man of the people. When I bump into my constituents in the King Alfred Division they often ask - "Hi Hux! Why is it called King Alfred Division?" This is a tricky question. I normally reply with a golfing analogy and mutter something about burned cakes. But the important thing we politicians must all remember is to engage the public and make sure that everyone knows exactly who we are. That is why I am now using the family runabout for many of my journeys into County Hall. The registration plate identifies me to passers-by and also helps me locate the vehicle in the parking lot. There is a serious purpose in subjecting my little black number to the envious gazes of the staff. We have just negotiated a new deal with Atkins to mend our pot-holed roads. This is a really original breakthrough. Atkins believes that if drivers lose weight there will be less strain on the tarmac and so fewer holes. Wodger said it would save us a fortune and who am I, a mere sports consultant, to query his genius. So the Boxster has a purpose. And I get a generous mileage allowance. If the suspension holds out we will all know that the policy is working. Eunice has also been out and about in her own sports car lately. She loves the feel of a little leather gear knob between her perfectly manicured fingers.

The thin end of the wodge

The coming weeks will be unremittingly busy for me. We are now on course for a triumphant relaunch of this computer thing that Wodger keeps telling me about. I cannot, for the life of me, see what was wrong with it in the first place apart from the fact it failed to do what it said on the tin. But Wodge insists that I must not worry. He sent me this e-mail yesterday:



Sent: Mon 12/10/2009 16:11
To: AllUsers
Subject: SAP Release Two

I am pleased to announce the proposed roll out dates for the next phase of SAP, but before doing that I want to say that the decision to proceed with Release Two has not be taken lightly.

There is always some level of upheaval associated with a change programme that involves all managers and staff. However, we want to absolutely minimise disruption with Phase Two by making sure that we incorporate the lessons we have learnt from Release One.

As further assurance, to staff who are working with Release One we will continue to provide support for you, as well.

As we commit to push forward, we will be focussing on the following activities:

full testing of all the applications coming up in Release Two
providing improved training material with a greater emphasis on help and guidance
allowing for 'go/no-go' decisions to be made along the way to make sure we are ready as an organisation
improved checks of data going into SAP to ensure accuracy before we start using it
providing our support teams, consisting of Super Users, floor walkers, change team members and service desk advisors with sufficient training to handle enquiries and to help staff from day one
Proposed Dates

To make sure we are driven by readiness rather than deadline dates, we are using 'proposed' dates at this stage.

23 November 2009 - A new Customer Feedback system to capture complaints, compliments and comments and a new Customer Relationship Management (SAP CRM) system will be implemented. SAP CRM will be used by the Customer Contact centre. This will coincide with the new joint County Council and Taunton Deane Borough Council website, known as Citizen Portal.

4 January 2010 - Employee Self-Service (ESS) and Manager Self-Service (MSS) systems, for everyone who has access, will be implemented. This means we will be using the electronic system instead of paper to record items such as expense claims, sickness and leave requests.

Business Intelligence Reporting - This is information that managers will be able to use to help them make business decisions in future.
Procurement - 2 November 2009
HR - 1 February 2010
More details about these new SAP modules, plus key updates relating to our roll out plan will be provided over the coming weeks.

Please make every effort to read these messages as they will help your understanding of the changes SAP will deliver as well as the benefits it will bring to you and the County Council as a whole.

Roger Kershaw
Corporate Director - Resources

I fear this will mean that I will be obliged to spend rather more time than I would prefer at my County Hall desk. Eunice has taken the news with her usual sang froid. I urged her not to fret in my absences and to concentrate upon her many absorbing hobbies. She is a great fan of one of the stars of some tv crime saga called CSI. Can't think of his name, But Eunice says he reminds her of someone.

Hole in one

"I want to get straight to the point." And what a point he made of doing it. David's conference oratory yesterday was pure Hux. I watched from the comfort of my new chair in the refurbished Conservative members room and rang Eunice straight afterwards. She was a long time answering my call and said she had been panting with excitement throughout. David has this instinctive feel for the people but the quality of his speeches owes much to the oratorical advice he receives. I claim credit for that pithy opening line which sought to capture the moment and succeeded brilliantly. David regards me as a master of the one-liner and, as you can see, frequently seeks my knowing whispers.

Team players

It is a pleasure to be able to bring you two pieces of extremely encouraging news. I am delighted to announce the appointment of my new research guru, Lauren, who will be helping me understand the geometric complexities of curves and graphs. Lauren has an honours degree in something or other. She also possesses extensive ground-level experience. Welcome aboard Lauren! Meanwhile the new man from the team in charge of making our splendid computers function correctly has also been busy. I am happy to pass on his message in total partly because of its positive content but mostly because, despite my extensive business background, I do not understand very much about the small print. That is why we have insisted on bringing in big brains. SOP has had a few teething problems but I am filled with hope now.


A message from Peter Armstrong, SAP Release 2 Deployment leader to all Southwest One staff

Dear Colleagues,

Agreement has been reached between the SAP Project leadership team, the Southwest One leadership team and our authority partners on the roll out dates for the functions in SAP (also known as SAP Release 2 or 'R2'). Further details about the roll out and news from the project will be sent to you over the coming weeks through the e-newswire and from Richard Jones. Please make every effort to read these messages as they will contain important information and dates. Talk to your Change Manager if you have any questions.

The SAP Release 2 programme plan

I'd like to tell you a little more about what I am working on at the moment and the key ingredients to making Release 2 a success. Not only is a successful release 2 important to the authorities, it is also our chance to enhance the reputation of SWOne as an organisation that delivers the very best service. As you know, a successful project doesn't happen by chance; it is achieved by everyone appreciating the steps that need to happen through the entire project from start to finish, along with outstanding team work and a lot of hard work to ensure that all of the components are well planned and executed, with meticulous attention to detail. In the end, success comes down to how well we perform as individuals and as a team associated with the development and implementation of the system, and how we support our staff in the first days and weeks after it is rolled out. There are 12 'Quality Assurance' steps built into the programme plan around these key themes of checking that;

• SAP is ready for roll out


• The service is ready and able to support the release of SAP


• Staff are trained and able to use the new functionality and processes.


• My current focus is ensuring that:

1. Remaining service and project activities such as testing are completed properly and as planned.

2. The plan to manage the 'cut-over' between existing systems and SAP is well constructed and communicated, and as we get closer to the roll out that the tasks, key check points and governance approvals are clearly identified and understood by all those concerned in SWOne and the authorities.

3. We are thorough in checking the data we load, so we are very confident that the information in SAP is accurate.

4. Our support team consisting of Super users, floor walkers, change managers and service desk advisors are ready, and have sufficient training to handle enquiries and fix defects. Between now and Release 2, there will be a number of checks undertaken by our colleagues in the Authorities and Service Line teams to make sure the activities in the SAP programme plan are progressing as planned, and to agree the steps to take if problems arise. Look for updates and news in the e-newswire and messages from Richard.

Best Wishes,

Peter

So that's alright then, isn't it?

Two pins

Once again the flags are flying for my favourite sport. As autumn leaves begin to fall the game takes on a new piquancy. But the sight of the sea also makes me sad. My own beloved vessel will shortly need to be hauled out for her seasonal winter rub-down. This will temporarily disturb Eunice’s passion for life on the poop deck, but the experts say that stubborn barnacles need vigorous anti-fouling. The question is where to berth her. I have considered using the new free car parking space allocated to me at the front of County Hall, but am loathe to risk the wrath of landlubbers. Unfortunately my vital county council duties have this year prevented me from attending Southampton’s Boat Show. I like to keep up to speed with all the latest marine technology. I think I may need some shiny new rowlocks soon. January beckons for the major national event and I sincerely hope dear old Tom will be able to oblige again with a couple of free tickets. Can non-executive directors do that sort of thing? How we miss him in Bridgwater. And how proud he would be of the transformation I have just approved for the Members Room at County Hall. Those new comfy chairs and the softer colour scheme will help us all in our important task of keeping tabs on the public purse. Economies will be necessary in future when the new Chief Executive arrives. I am glad to see that the search for the right person is being conducted by such an affordable company. And I was pleasantly surprised to discover that my investment in new furniture for Members left change from £11,000. Such is the calibre of our new regime that we strive to get results at any price.