INVESTING IN THE UNITED NATIONS
For a Stronger Organization Worldwide
Report of the
Secretary-General
II. Investing in leadership
Context and challenges
32. If the end of the cold war and the advent
of globalization ushered in a new era for the work
of the United Nations, it also had direct
implications for the role of the
Secretary-General. As Chief Administrative Officer
of the Organization, I have managerial
responsibilities which have grown far more
demanding with the extraordinary increase in the
number and complexity of field missions and other
operational activities. Yet at the same time the
direct and active involvement of the United
Nations in a far wider range of issues than in the
past has placed enormous calls on my time and
capacity in my role as a political instrument of
the Security Council, the General Assembly and
other United Nations organs. In short, I am
expected to be the world's chief diplomat and at
the same time to run a large and complex
Organization, as it were, in my spare time. This
will hardly be less true for my successors.
33. Unmanageable span of control.
There are now more than 25 departments and offices
reporting directly to the Secretary-General, of
vastly different size, scale and complexity. The
biggest controls billions of dollars and tens of
thousands of people; the smallest a handful of
people and almost no resources. In practice, many
heads of department receive very little direct
guidance from me, and are consigned to operate in
isolated "silos" or expected to work together in
loose "executive committees" without management
support strong enough to ensure any real synergy.
In addition, there are a large number of special
advisers, envoys and representatives who report to
me periodically.
34. There are also 10 heads of programmes and
funds who at present report to me and require my
strategic guidance. The recently established
High-level Panel on United Nations System-wide
Coherence is likely to recommend changes to the
structure, governance and reporting lines of these
United Nations system organizations.
35. Insufficient operational capacity.
The post of Deputy Secretary-General, created by
the General Assembly at the end of 1997 to support
the Secretary- General, has provided a much needed
increase in capacity at the top of the
Organization. The terms of reference were broad:
to help manage Secretariat operations, ensure
coherence of activities and programmes, and
elevate the Organization's profile and leadership
in the economic and social spheres. Yet the Deputy
Secretary-General was assigned no explicit
statutory authority. There has been no clear
division of labour between me and my Deputy, and
all senior managers have continued to be
accountable directly to me. The position,
therefore, could do much more to strengthen
management capacity at the very top of the
Secretariat if it were given a wider set of
responsibilities and authority to carry them out
on the Secretary-General's behalf. Similarly, the
Chef de Cabinet post could be more clearly defined
in terms of supporting the Secretary-General
directly in the day-to-day management of his or
her immediate office and workflow.
36. Inadequate senior-level
development. There are many other levels of
leadership in the United Nations that also need
attention. A damaged culture, which is seen as
limiting creativity, enterprise, innovation and
indeed leadership itself, has meant that many
managers have simply lost the capacity to
manage.
37. Some have been trapped in a static
headquarters environment, with little challenge or
opportunity to develop the needed skills and
experience. Others have had to operate in
difficult field environments without the training
or the environment of user-friendly,
human-resources and financial rules that would
enable them to do their job. There is nothing more
heartbreaking than to see able young staff become
demoralized and disenchanted as the path to
management is strewn with apparently impassable
obstacles.
38. Many of these issues are addressed in other
sections of the present report. In the present
chapter, I propose some specific changes that I
believe should be given special priority because
they are directed at building our future leaders.
Vision
39. My vision is of an Organization whose
Secretary-General will be given the means he or
she requires to meet fast-changing needs and
expectations in all parts of the world – from
terrorism to human rights, from intra-State
conflict to HIV/AIDS. A reduced number of people
reporting directly to the Secretary-General will
to enable him or her to manage at the level of
strategy and policy.
40. This will have been achieved by two
principal changes: delegating authority to the
Deputy Secretary-General in a more systematic
manner and regrouping departments and other
entities around broad functional areas. The
Secretary-General will continue to fully lead the
Organization and direct political and policy
matters, but the Deputy will assume delegated
responsibility for management policies and overall
operational matters ?thereby obviating the need
that some have discerned for a new post of Chief
Operating Officer. While each group should
comprise a cohesive range of functions and
activities, headed by an Under-Secretary-General,
the intention is to reduce the direct senior
reporting span to about eight line and support
functions. This can be done by reorganizing
departments and in some cases by clustering
departments. In addition, the Deputy
Secretary-General would, therefore, assume formal
chairmanship of the Organization's Management
Committee, which I currently chair.
41. While this reform can be more appropriately
introduced when a new Secretary- General assembles
his or her cabinet at the end of 2006, I believe
it can be accomplished within the existing
Under-Secretary-General and Assistant Secretary-
General headcount and would not require new posts.
This arrangement will improve operational
accountability and performance management; help to
ensure greater substantive coherence and policy
direction for Secretariat operations; and allow
all heads of department to work in a more
effective way.
Managers more rigorously selected ...
42. Last year, I introduced new procedures for
improving the transparency and quality of
selection for the heads of the United Nations
funds and programmes. Interview boards were
created. Extensive reference checking was
undertaken. Several senior officials have since
been appointed following these new procedures –
including the Administrator of UNDP, the United
Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the
Under-Secretary-General for Internal Oversight
Services. The Department of Peacekeeping
Operations has also put in place new measures for
improving the appointment system for heads of
peace missions in the field.
43. In my vision of the future, such practices
– combined with much better organized recruitment
outreach than in the past and thus achieving the
geographical and gender balance that must
characterize the Secretary-General's own
leadership team – will be followed for all senior
appointments.
... better trained and supported ...
44. The Organization will also do a better job
of training and supporting its managers. Mandatory
induction of new managers is already being
introduced. The Department of Peacekeeping
Operations has held two sessions for field
managers and a similar session was held recently
for new Directors at the D-1 and D-2 levels at
Headquarters. This will be supplemented by
periodic training opportunities, allowing managers
to reflect on their management, learn the most
modern techniques and compare notes with peers.
Other Secretariat training programmes targeted at
leaders and managers are also under way. The
Secretariat will also have a strong management
advisory service, to which managers can turn for
help. This function, and the resources dedicated
to it at the time, were given to the Office of
Internal Oversight Services when it was created 10
years ago. With experience, I have come to the
conclusion that combining the roles of auditor,
investigator and management adviser in a single
entity is not the best formula. I hope that the
external review of oversight bodies which was
launched by the General Assembly in December 2005
will address this problem and offer alternative
approaches.
... and firmly but fairly assessed
45. A more rigorous selection process,
increased training opportunities and sustained
support for managers, combined with a clear
statement of their responsibility and authority,
will enable the United Nations of the future to
enforce stricter but also fairer accountability
rules for its managers. The Management Performance
Board, which I established recently, is in the
process of designing clear criteria for assessing
the performance of senior managers, who will be
required to do the same for the junior managers
working under them.
46. Nearly 15 per cent of Professional staff
with contracts of one year or longer will reach
retirement age by 2010. This will have a major
impact at the P-5 and Director levels. Such
retirements, combined with a buyout programme,
will give the Organization the opportunity to
bring in new talent at those levels, in line with
future leadership needs.
Proposals
Proposal 5
I propose to redefine the role of Deputy
Secretary-General and delegate to him or her
formal authority and accountability for the
management and overall direction of the
operational functions of the Secretariat. The
Secretary-General would continue to lead the
political and policy dimensions of the
Organization's work.
Proposal 6
I propose that my successor regroup the 25
departments and entities currently reporting
directly to the Secretary-General into about
eight organizational groups or clusters. Each
group would be headed by an
Under-Secretary-General.
Proposal 7
I propose to strengthen leadership
recruitment as well as training and development
plans to build the cadre of senior and middle
managers required for the modern complex global
operations of the United Nations.
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