Human beings, in general, don’t like change.
Change takes us away for our comfort zones and throws us into uncharted territories.
Change takes work.
But human progress depends on change; without it, the Cayman Islands would still be a mosquito-infested fishing village in which mere survival was the challenge of the day.
There is a plan afoot to institute a major change in the way our government operates.
Part of the plan has already begun with the reform of the financial management system of government.
Some of the government departments have embraced that change, others have resisted it. This is normal.
Already, however, we are seeing the benefits of that change, which puts an emphasis on outputs.
From a financial standpoint, government spending is less wasteful. When every ministry, department or agency has to pay for goods and services, managers tend to be more discerning in asking for things.
Now a second and related change, one to the management of human resources, is being proposed.
If the draft law is adopted, the civil-service system will change dramatically.
No longer will there be long and drawn out civil-service application process; no longer will managers be unable to offer remuneration based on market demand; no longer will good performance go unrewarded; no longer will seniority determine promotions and pay rises.
In essence, the government will structure its human-resource management more like a private business.
The goal behind this change is better accountability and better performance in government.
The government’s personnel reform goes hand-in-hand with financial-management reform.
If financial management emphasises outputs, it only makes sense to have human-resource management do the same.
In the post-Ivan Cayman Islands, where money is needed for a vast array of infrastructure projects, the government must explore all ways of paying for these projects.
Tightening the country’s budgetary belt and saving money is another way to increase government’s bottom line.
There will be many people who will complain about the civil-service reform.
Some long-standing civil servants will absolutely hate the concept.
But for the good of the country, the powers-that-be should support the move and make sure it becomes law.
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