Quiet man at the super ministry

By MARK STORY

The chief executive of the country's largest Government department, the Ministry of Social Development, Peter Hughes is a mish-mash of anomalies.

In stark contrast to his Work and Income NZ predecessor, Christine Rankin, he reveals little of his personal life.

But ask Hughes what's in-store for his "super ministry" and he'll wax lyrical.

A true-blue, Wellington-bred, grey-haired career civil servant, Hughes is comfortable portraying a humble persona. But this image belies his role as an agent for change - and the size of the Government purse he controls.

With a long history of change roles with public sector organisations - among them positions as deputy director-general of health, and CEO of the Health Funding Authority - Hughes was charged with completing the merger between Winz and the Ministry of Social Policy when he took the job last October.

He brings impressive ivy-league credentials and 20 years' experience climbing social welfare's corporate ladder. Hughes was shoulder-tapped to run the ministry after only nine months into his role as chief executive of the Department of Internal Affairs.

The new ministry is responsible for delivering employment and income support services, and advising the Government on strategic social policy.

Hughes is responsible for around 6000 Winz and ministry staff across 170-plus locations, and for spending $14 billion - a third of New Zealand's annual tax take.

But Hughes fell into a civil service career almost by accident. What sparked his interest in social welfare was a holiday job with the Department of Social Welfare while a university student in the early 1980s.

Hughes enjoyed working with the unemployed so much he favoured a full-time position as a benefits officer over completing the second leg of a double degree (in law) at Victoria University.

Much of Hughes' formative years in policy and operational roles fashioned his management philosophy.

"When I started my career, we were in the business of paying people benefits," he says. "The long process of doing that ruined their self-esteem. Twenty years later, we're doing all that processing up-front."

The change Hughes has brought to the ministry is a move away from a pay-out mentality to a relationships-based focus.

"Half of the $14 billion we spend goes on superannuation. The challenge is to make the other half go into investment funding by addressing underlying symptoms."

Is he making a difference? In the 2001/02 financial year the ministry met 93 per cent of its performance targets.

About 85 per cent of Winz clients rated the service as good or satisfactory. Winz claims to have placed a record number of people into work.

For the six months to December 31, the number of unemployed who remained off the register for a minimum of three months following placement into work was 25,315 - up from 23,519 the previous year.

Underscoring this success, argues Hughes, is a commitment to getting people off the dole. But it's an aim to keep them off that excites Hughes the most; that means making his mark on policy development.

"This organisation is a kind of social treasury," he says. "I and many of my staff talk with Government ministers about policies that impact an the entire country."

Hughes believes the ministry has improved the Government's response to complex social problems by working with communities, agencies and employers to help create jobs.

So what management skills are critical to running the ministry? Much of Hughes' role is managing costs and establishing delivery systems.

But he's no stranger to budgeting. In his former role with the Health Funding Authority he was charged with New Zealand's $7 billion health and disability services spending.

Hughes also runs the country's largest customer service business. The ministry deals with 10,000 face-to-face client interviews and 30,000 phone transactions daily.

But Hughes says service delivery and cost control explains only half of what he does. Running an organisation with so many stakeholders begs the need for outstanding leadership and teamwork.

Effective communication is the area where Kiwi managers are weakest, he says.

"Leadership is a process of interaction rather than a personality type. Business leaders who try to work off script, without injecting their personality, ultimately lack integrity and trust."

He doubts if the ministry will survive long-term unless it takes all stakeholders along with it. That means putting staff and the people at the centre of organisation.

An up-front communicator, Hughes aims to have a face-to-face meeting with every staff member annually. His visits to the regions on Thursdays see him running forums attended by up to 200 staff.

Preferring to run a flat management structure, there are only four levels between his 12-person executive team and front-liners.

He attributes the organisation's staff turnover (12.8 per cent for the year ending January, against a state sector average of 15.2 per cent) to the time spent identifying people who share his vision.

"I'm interested in people who want to make a difference," he says. Having decided that bonuses don't add value in this environment, Hughes scrapped them.

In the pay stakes, an executive job with the ministry won't look as attractive against private sector salaries. But Hughes wants executives willing to trade pay for job satisfaction.

"Dealing with the issues facing the unemployed is complex by nature. So we're looking for people people who can build rapport.

"The attitude of some Winz staff to beneficiaries can be brutal, but most staff get it right.

"I'm not bothered that few people know who runs this organisation, as long as they know what the organisation does and support it.

"We will invariably make mistakes, but when we do, we'll own them."

The CV: Peter Hughes

* Title: Chief executive, Ministry of Social Development

* Age: 44

* Place of birth: Wellington

* Family status: Single

* Education: Wellington College; Victoria University (bachelor of arts in French language and English literature); Massey (post-graduate diploma in business administration); Harvard University Kennedy School of Government (masters in public administration).

* Salary: $240,000-plus

* Personal interests: Keeping fit, New Zealand art, music and films; cooking.