TERMS OF REFERENCE
STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION EXPERT
Background
The new Public Administration Reform (PAR) strategy was adopted at the beginning of
2014 and the Action plan for implementation of PAR strategy in March 2015 covering the
period 2015-2017. These two documents constitute the strategic framework which provides
credible and relevant foundation for implementing more cost-effective ways of delivering
public services. PAR Strategy provides continuation of the previously initiated reform activities
and extends them to the broader system of public administration. Main reason for the
extension of the strategy is primarily related to the need to ensure the functional unity and
quality standards of activities which perform certain types of administrative tasks and public
authority, irrespective of entities (agencies, organizations, institutions). The new PAR Strategy
address areas related to improvement of organizational performance and public system
efficiency through restructuring of organizational structures, but also includes all key aspects of
the horizontal PAR - improving policy-making and coordination, budget planning, strengthening
the system of public procurement, public service system and human resources management,
fight against corruption as well as contribution of independent state bodies, and commits
special attention to harmonization of PAR process with the EU integration process.
In that sense, the Government of Serbia has initiated a deep reform process in the
public sector, focusing on both: a) short-term period aimed at reduction of costs of public
administration in function of fiscal consolidation and b) long-term period focused on
optimization and modernization of public administration in order to increase the quality of
providing of public services. Current efforts focused on improving public sector efficiency
includes cutting costs, reducing staffing, eliminating subsidies, restructuring portfolios and
generally improving how the overall business of public administration is conducted. Altogether,
they constitute the Government’s strategic approach to enhancing public sector efficiency, and
as a result constitute the immediate focus of the Government to address residual challenges in
public sector management.
As envisaged by PAR Strategy and Action plan, along with the Policy Note ‘A Modern
State – A Rational State’ which sets out the initial thinking of the Government on the rightsizing
process including the identification of a series of ‘quick win’ reforms, the Government has
committed to implement systematic and structural reforms within public administration which
would set foundations for a modern and rational state along with transformed cohesive public
sector that is performance-based, efficient, cost effective and service oriented.
Rightsizing and Restructuring Project IPA 2014
One of the initiatives in this context is Rightsizing and Restructuring project financed
under EU IPA 2014 Trust Fund and implemented with the support of the World Bank (20152018). It encompasses series of functional reviews that review in an in-depth manner the
organization and staffing principles along with cost-effectiveness of service delivery in key
spending sectors, such as Health, Primary and Secondary Education, Social Protection, Finance
and Agriculture, as well as a cross-cutting review of staffing and management practices in the
core state administration. This Trust Fund is a hybrid trust fund with Bank Executed activities
(BEA) and Recipient Executed Activities (REA). The project is based on interactive approach and
dedicated participation of all ministries, bodies and organizations across the public
administration, with MPALSG having a coordinating role throughout the whole process.
Specific project aim is improvement of organizational and functional structures in public
administration system through optimization process to be implemented in several public
administration sub-systems, accompanied by communication strategy.
The project encompasses two major components: a) The first component, for which the
World Bank will be responsible consists of series of functional reviews (FR); 2) The second
component, for which the MPALSG will be responsible, includes activities designed to support
implementation of recommendations coming from functional reviews. This will be done
through the Change Management Support Team which will be established at the MPALSG,
whereby change management is to be put in broader public administration reform context. The
project was launched in 2015 and will last until 2018, while in some sectors which are more
complex and requiring the implementation will last even after 2018.
The First Component of the Project is composed of four functional reviews:
1)
Horizontal FR ‘’State Administration Plus’’ (scope: all state administration institutions
plus certain agencies outside the state administration and Government service providers; 100
institutions in total);
2)
FR of Service Delivery System (Health, Education and Social Protection);
3)
Vertical FR of the Ministry of Finance and its portfolio;
4)
Vertical FR of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environmental Protection and its portfolio.
The Recipient-executed activities, for which the MPALSG will be responsible, will support the
Recipient’s reforms and will also oversee EU visibility activities during the life of the project.
This part of the Trust Fund will support the project throughout its duration by developing a
comprehensive change management and communications strategy, a communication campaign
for internal and external audiences, and organizing workshops and seminars with senior
managers of the Recipient’s public administration, and public employees. This component will
support, inter alia: establishing a Change Management Support Team (CMST) for the overall
project, and task force teams of Government representatives for each. Activities under the
Recipient-executed activities are expected to last about 24 months.
The Second Component of the Project: Change Management Support Team (CMST)
The main objective of CMST is to provide continuous advisory and necessary additional
analytical assistance to the MPALSG and relevant bodies in order to prepare, coordinate,
implement, “transpose” and communicate recommendations from FR. The CMST will be
established in the MPALSG and on behalf of the MPALSG will be managed by the (State
Secretary, AM). In order to enable understanding of processes and creating suitable climate,
CMST should establish a concept of change management and deliver guidelines for
establishment of relative structures (regulatory, organizational and communicational) - aimed
at implementation and improvement of process of change management. This team is expected
to closely collaborate with ministerial Task teams (consisting of employees dedicated to
rightsizing and restructuring process) and with WB consultants in preparation of roadmaps
(action plans), general guidelines, methodologies regarding FR recommendations along with
proposals for legislative modifications regarding restructuring process- all of these activities
accompanied by communication campaign.
Apart from above mentioned, CMST will be in continuous communication with all
project stakeholders regarding implementation of FRs recommendations, it will provide training
to ministerial task force teams and provide overall implementation support to the Government
on the proposed reform measures. The CMST will also be responsible for promoting a
participatory and collaborative process, as well as genuine ownership of project outputs by
Serbian authorities. Moreover, the CMST will facilitate the alignment of the project with the
Serbian PAR Strategy and Action plan 2015-2017, as well as with the Government Optimization
Program written in June 2015.
In particular, it is on CMST to conduct the following activities:
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Provide support to responsible PA bodies in implementation of recommendations from FRs:
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Support in development of roadmaps (action plans) for implementation of
recommendations from FRs;
Technical support in preparation/revision of relevant legislative pieces;
Preparation of additional analytical materials necessary for implementation of particular
recommendations/measures;
Support in implementation of recommendations related to organizational, institutional,
HRM and HRD aspects in PA and its subsystems;
Providing inputs and participation in design of other related technical assistance
projects, to be funded by international partners, while ensuring complementarities (no
overlaps) with the EU funded Sector Budget Support (SBS) complementary TA project;
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Assessment of the success of targeted subsystems of the PA system in implementing the
recommendations
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Assisting public administration sectors to set their visions for modernization and
optimization, along with developing accompanying policies;
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Review of international best practices on communication and change management in
public administration reform process;
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Development and implementation of comprehensive Change Management and Change
Management Communication Strategy in line with best practice;
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Implementing communication campaign in line with the strategy;
Conducting workshops and seminars with relevant stakeholders of the Recipient’s public
administration;
Conducting awareness raising workshops and other events to communicate planned
support mechanisms for staff dealing with right-sizing exercise;
Undertake EU Visibility actions as needed, in collaboration with government
counterparts;
Change Management Support Team Structure:
Team Leader, reports to DPM and State Secretary
Duties may include, but are not limited to the following:
Coordinating, guiding and supervising CMST members; preparing and implementing Change
Management Strategy; coordinating preparation and implementation of action plans; advising
ministries on implementing recommendations within the rightsizing process and in particular in
the HRM/HRD area; developing and managing/overseeing additional CMST TA projects if
needed; supporting development and implementation of Change Management Communication
Strategy.
Organizational Design and Development Expert (Deputy Team Leader), reports to Team
Leader
Duties may include, but are not limited to the following:
Supporting development and implementation of action plans in terms of organizational, legal,
HRM and HRD aspects; working closely with ministerial Task forces in implementation process;
preparing ToRs for additional projects/experts for ministries; ensuring implementation of
recommendation is in line with Serbian regulatory framework or proposing changes to this
framework when needed; Deputy Team Leader.
Strategic Communication Expert, reports to Team Leader
Duties may include, but are not limited to the following:
Developing and implementing Change Management Communication Strategy; preparing
communication materials and streamlining communication towards internal and external
stakeholders; assist and advise in the organization of workshops, consultations and debates;
training MPALSG staff involved with communications.
Strategic Macro Analyst, reports to Team Leader
Duties may include, but are not limited to the following:
Provide timely data-driven analysis on key aspects of change implementation (including
budgets and labour cost aspects), as well as help review existing FR and develop new analytical
work required to support the key objectives of the CMST, as well as the MPALSG senior
management.
Junior Analyst, reports to Team Leader
Duties may include, but are not limited to the following:
Provide full support to the Senior Public Sector Macro Analyst. Provide initial analyses and
support related to macro-economic, financial and statistical data required to support the key
objectives of the CMST, as well as analytical support to the MPALSG senior management.
Translate analytical materials into comprehensible materials that clearly present the messages
to stakeholders. Provide upon demand other analytical support to the Team Leader.
Short-term experts (on needs basis), Reports to Team Leader
Duties may include, but are not limited to the following:
Public administration, Legal or Sectoral experts (Education, Health, Social Protection, Finance,
Agriculture)
Advisor on integrating change management into broader PAR, reports to Deputy Prime
Minister and Team Leader
Duties may include, but are not limited to the following:
Providing regular quality assurance on overall material produced by CMST during functional
review process. When needed, elevating issues of concern or challenge in regards to
coordination of functional reviews for further action to relevant entities, in order to ensure
functional reviews and subsequent implementation proceed accordingly.
CHANGE MANAGEMENT SUPPORT TEAM STRUCTURE
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STRATEGIC COMUNICATION EXPERT
- Tasks and deliverablesThe Ministry of Public Administration and Local Self-Government is looking for a
Strategic Communication Expert to work with the MPALSG in managing and implementing the
change and organizational restructuring within the Serbian public administration, as a member
of Change Management Support Team. Specifically, the consultant would lead a strategic
communication campaign and will be in charge of implementing communication and awareness
raising activities regarding the support to the transformation of Serbian public administration in
the context of currently ongoing optimization and modernization process.
Objective
The Objective of the assignment is the design, implementation and evaluation of Change
Management Communication Strategy focused on raising efficiency of PA through rightsizing
and restructuring processes (and in line with project outputs), along with communication and
awareness raising campaign, whereby a highly participatory two way dialogue with all relevant
stakeholders, and among themselves, is essential.
Tasks
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Under the guidance of the Team Leader and In cooperation with other team members
design and implement a comprehensive Change Management Communication Strategy
(CMC Strategy) and the Action Plan for Implementation of the CMS Strategy in line with
best practice and recommendations coming from FRs as well as other received inputs
from the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office and Team Leader;
Develop upon demand individual targeted and detailed communication plans to
address specific needs of other government bodies and institutions;
Provide high-level advisory and expert support to the MPALSG, the Team Leader and
other relevant ministries on change management communication practice;
Review and analyse international best practices on communication and change
management in public sector reform and rightsizing/downsizing;
Provide technical support to the MPALSG in preparation of communication materials preparing briefs and developing communication documents such as newsletters and
promotional materials in order to communicate in the most suitable way even less
popular measures and activities related to the project (downsizing, rightsizing, raising
efficiency etc.);
Streamlining communication towards interested public and implementing
communication campaign, facilitating the rightsizing and restructuring process in line
with the developed CMC Strategy;
Promote active use of social media (including on-line surveys) for rightsizing and
restructuring purposes;
Assist in the organization and implementation of workshops, consultations, dialogues,
seminars for implementation of recommendations coming from FRs with key
stakeholders;
Facilitate awareness raising workshops and other events;
Provide support to the process of identification, selection, training and coaching of the
MPALSG staff involved in communications;
Regularly evaluate the CMC Strategy and respective targeted and detailed
communication plans, along with preparing proposals for their amendments or
revision;
Prepare regular monitoring and evaluation reports on implementation of the CMC
Strategy towards Team Leader;
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Provide inputs to design of ToRs regarding potential communication projects and/or
experts for implementation of recommendations within individual subsystems
(ministries);
Maintain high level of collaboration with all CMST members in preparation of
communication materials;
Provide additional support as required by Team Leader and in line with overall area of
expertise.
Participate at the Project Steering Committee meetings.
* All above mentioned activities will be conducted in line with communication and awareness
raising activities envisaged by TA being provided through EU Sector Reform Contract (SBS). It
is necessary to ensure complementarity and no overlapping with SBS TA communication
activities.
Deliverables
The assignment will generate the following deliverables:
1. Change Management Communication Strategy and Action Plan drafted – Q1, Q2 2016;
2. Targeted and detailed communication plans upon request drafted- upon request;
3. Implementation status reports (every 6 months) on the results from implementation of
the CMC Strategy;
4. Ad hoc reports on the implementation of the communication campaign- Year 1,2;
5. Reports with recommendations from each workshops and dialogues with public sector
managers, relevant stakeholders and interested public- Year 1,2;
6. Timely and appropriate high-level advisory and expert support to the MPALSG and other
relevant ministries on change management communication aspect-Year 1,2;
7. Draft training program for employees in the MPALSG dealing with communication
-Year 1,2;
8. Draft plan for transfer of knowledge to the staff in MPLASG and other ministries dealing
with communication;
9. Input to the Project Implementation Status Report;
All reports should be submitted in English and Serbian, in hardcopy or electronic format.
Remuneration
The consultant will be paid for up to 175 days of work within 21 months. The assignment should
start in March 2016 and last until February 2018. The consultant will receive fee payment from
MPALSG, based on the market value determined by the MPALSG and endorsed by the World
Bank.
The position will be based in the MPALSG; the twinning partners for this assignment are:
MPALSG, Cabinet of DPM and other institution employees in charge of communication,
MPALSG project team, operational teams in ministries and other stakeholders relevant and
collaborating on the implementation of roadmaps (action plans). The Consultant may need to
undertake operational travel in Serbia and externally – such travel will be reimbursed in
accordance with the applicable Law.
The Consultant will report to the CMS Team Leader and designated State Secretary from the
MPALSG.
NOTE: Currently pending on availability of funds.
Qualifications
The consultant will have the following profile:
1. Completed university degree, ideally at post graduate level in relevant subject matter.
Preference will be given to candidates with completed studies in media and/or
communication, as well as membership in professional bodies;
2. At least 7 years of work in the area of strategic communications, both internal and
external;
3. At least 5 years of work on strategic change initiatives, preferably within the public
sector (will be considered an advantage);
4. Demonstrable experience of working with local and international media, including social
media;
5. Demonstrable knowledge in the fundamental concepts of effective communication and
visibility campaigns;
6. Good working knowledge of new media technologies;
7. Strong client handling and creative thinking skills, including the ability to work
confidently across a variety of stakeholders;
8. Data visualisation skills (will be considered an advantage);
9. Excellent writing skills to a high standard;
10. Fluency in English and in Serbian;
11. Availability and readiness to work upon demand and flexible working hours with
minimal notice.