Questions/Answers
Question 1
Please describe the objective of the initiative introduced (200 words maximum)
In 2016, the Department for Public Administration at the Prime Minister’s Office set up a digital-administrative procedure to be used by all Italian public authorities to redeploy public employees as a result of major institutional reorganization procedures, reduction of the size of the public sector, rationalization and reorganization of public functions.
More specifically, new provisions regarding metropolitan cities, provinces, union and mergers of municipalities (Laws 56/2014 and 190/2014), the reorganization of the Italian Red Cross (IRC) (Legislative Decree 178/2012), the transformation of the National Tourism Agency (ENIT) in a public body (Decree Law 83/2014), the rationalization of the Police Force, in particular the inclusion of the State Forest Corps (Law 24/2015).
To date, we were able to redeploy approximately 200,000 staff.
Question 2
Please explain how the initiative is linked to the category and criteria selected (100 words maximum)
The digital-administrative procedure was implemented through an ad hoc web-application called “Portale della mobilità” (Mobility Portal) https://www.mobilita.gov.it/home.php
This led to the creation of an efficient public labor marketplace which ensured, on the one hand, greater transparency and awareness of procedures and employment opportunities in public administration, and, on the other hand, faster and more efficient selection procedures.
All procedures – identifying staff to be redeployed, defining staff requirements, communicating vacancies, choosing the most suitable positions in line with applicants’ preferences, matching demand and supply, appointing staff based on ranking lists – were implemented on-line.
Question 3
Please describe in what ways the initiative is contributing to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the realization of the SDGs. Specify which SDG(s) it is relevant to. (100 words maximum)
Despite the privatization of public employment relationships in 1993, the Italian Government and Parliament continued to observe an element of strong rigidity in public labor legislation and regulations to access public employment when policies had to be developed to rationalize the organization of the State at all levels.
The Mobility Portal allowed to partly overcome this obstacle since it helped manage massive redeployments of public employees. It also provided law-makers with both a new technological and legal tool granting them greater freedom in managing the reorganization of the State in a more efficient and effective manner and more in line with the needs of the community and the social and economic evolution.
The relevant SDG is #16 – PEACE, JUSTICE AND STRONG INSTITUTIONS
Question 4
The initiative must have positive impact on a group or groups of the population, especially the vulnerable (i.e. children, women, older persons, people with disabilities, etc.) within the context of your country or region. Please explain how the initiative has addressed a significant shortfall in governance, public administration or public service within the context of a given country or region. (200 words maximum)
The unique and unprecedented service delivered by the Department for Public Administration helped facilitate mobility processes thanks to the use of new technologies which, for the first time, were used to reconcile the staff management needs and the personal and professional expectations of individual employees regarding mobility and life-work balance.
Question 5
a. Please explain in which way the initiative is innovative in the context of your country or region (100 words maximum)
Thanks to the Mobility Portal a win-win strategy was implemented: the legitimate interest of public employees not to lose their job, acquired skills, their job being conveniently located to family life needs, matched the public interest to exclusively hire actually needed staff in compliance with the financial and legal constraints imposed by legislation.
Based on its features, the Mobility Portal is a key tool to ensure an optimum distribution of staff between administrations and geographical areas, at a time when budget constraints strongly affected hiring in the public sector.
b. Please describe if the innovation is original or if it is an adaptation from other contexts (100 words maximum)
The design of the Mobility Portal is an exclusive initiative of the Italian Department for Public Administration at the Prime Minister’s Office. Its technological development follows a specific preparatory activity to draft the related legislation for the purpose of allowing the legitimate transfer of staff in bodies and institutions having a different contractual arrangement.
To date, we are not aware of any other similar initiative being in place in other European countries.
Question 6
Has the initiative been transferred and adapted to in other contexts (e.g. other cities, countries or regions) to your organization’s knowledge? If yes, please explain (100 words maximum)
This initiative was not transferred or adapted in any other national context since it natively but exclusively concerns public employment.
Question 7
a. What resources (i.e. financial, human or others) were used to implement the initiative? (100 words maximum)
The financial and human resources used to implement the project mainly came from the Department for Public Administration at the Prime Minister’s Office, with the support of the Department’s operational institution, Formez PA, which was responsible for identifying the technologies and the necessary qualified staff to implement it.
b. Please describe whether and how the initiative is sustainable (covering the social, economic and environmental aspects) (200 words maximum)
Not only was the initiative considered sustainable, but it is now an operational tool commonly used to manage non-voluntary staff mobility procedures.
For example, we are currently redeploying civilian staff working for NATO bases and other military bodies of the Atlantic community stationed in Italy who were fired by their international employer and applied to be permanently hired by our administrations by virtue of Law 98/1971.
Question 8
a. Has the initiative been formally evaluated either through internal or external evaluation?
Yes
Given the purpose of the Mobility Portal, the effectiveness of this initiative, from a quantitative viewpoint, is intrinsic in the activity since all redundant staff who apply to be redeployed have to find a new position.
From a qualitative point of view, the effectiveness of this procedure can be assessed through the number of staff who could not find a satisfactory position and were then redeployed ex-officio by the Department or those who appealed against the final decision about their redeployment.
b. Please describe the indicators that were used (100 words maximum)
Redeployment percentage of all staff registered to the Mobility Portal, ex-officio redeployment of staff registered to the Mobility Portal, percentage of appeals against redeployment decisions.
c. Please describe the outcome of the evaluation (100 words maximum)
As reported in the evaluation made by the Court of Auditors to prepare the Report to be submitted to Parliament on the General Statement on Accounts (attached), the overall redeployment rate is almost 100% with an insignificant percentage of ex-officio redeployments and appeals.
Question 9
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development puts emphasis on collaboration, engagement, coordination, partnerships, and inclusion. Please describe what and how stakeholders were engaged in designing, implementing and evaluating the initiative. Please also highlight their roles and contributions (200 words maximum)
Given the aim of the Mobility Portal and the corresponding legislation, cooperation with the stakeholders involved in the various redeployment processes, including trade unions, was achieved in compliance with the relevant legal procedures which have always been applied.
In addition to the relevant institutional contexts, the Department for Public Administration, has always adopted an interactive and cooperative approach throughout the process, setting up coordination groups and conferences of services with the different stakeholders when procedural problems were encountered, or adopting measures to fine-tune the regulatory framework if necessary.
Question 10
Please describe the key lessons learned, and any view you have on how to further improve the initiative (100 words maximum)
The Mobility Portal has consolidated its nature and operational features. Our future objective is to integrate the current mandatory mobility procedures with other procedures, always of a digital-administrative nature, to be able to manage voluntary mobility processes as envisaged by legislation, or complete the construction of the public labor marketplace and use digital procedures to manage, where possible, the whole recruitment cycle in the public sector.