Human Resources Management
Staff Development
Staffing
The Land Registry maintains a well-trained, highly flexible team of staff. Civil servants form the core staff of the Land Registry to ensure stability in the department and quality of service to customers. Non-civil Service Contract (NCSC) staff are employed to supplement the core staff, facilitating the department to respond to changes in operational or business needs in the most cost-effective manner.
As at 31 March 2012, the Land Registry employed 459 permanent staff and 126 NCSC staff. The permanent staff comprise officers in various grades including LROs, Solicitors, Treasury Accountants, Analyst/Programmers and general grades staff. They are supplemented by NCSC staff including Land Registration Executives, Solicitors, Accounting Executives, IT staff and contract clerks. We regularly review our staffing position and adjust the number of NCSC staff to meet operational needs.
Staff Training
Staff training is a critical component to facilitate human resource development of the Land Registry. We strive to provide opportunities and encouragement for staff at all stages of their career to realise their potential. In this regard, we develop a departmental training plan on an annual basis and organise quality training programmes for colleagues. The ultimate objective is to help staff work with confidence, strengthen teamwork and reinforce commitment to service excellence, and support continuous improvement in individual and departmental performance.
In the year, we arranged through various modes over 2,100 days of training on a wide spectrum of subjects. Highlights of training activities arranged in 2011/12 are as follows:
Theme Training
Theme training has been a core element of our staff development programme to promote organisational alignment and solidarity among staff members. To reinforce the ownership mindset of “Customer Service” as both an individual responsibility and a collective vision, the theme for 2011/12 was “Pursuing Quality Management, Pledging Service Excellence”. A total of 18 training workshops were organised for over 550 staff members in all ranks and grades between December 2011 and February 2012.
Organisation-wide Training
Throughout the year, the department organised a wide range of training courses to enhance the core competencies of staff members.
An in-house briefing on Title Registration Development was arranged in March 2012 for Officer Grades staff to provide an overview of the LTO and updates on the latest development from the legal and operational perspectives.
Maintaining a clean, honest and accountable civil service is vital to sustaining public trust. To strengthen our staff's awareness of integrity and refresh their knowledge on ethical management, talks on integrity management by the Independent Commission Against Corruption were delivered to Officer Grades staff in January 2012.
To equip officers with the knowledge and skills for effective management, we organised tailor-made courses on “Performance Management” and “Leadership”.
To strengthen staff's proficiency in communicating in Putonghua, we continued to organise Putonghua courses at different levels for all staff. Apart from Putonghua, workplace Chinese and English writing workshops were conducted to enhance written communication skills. Various computer courses were provided for staff throughout the year to equip them with updated knowledge on IT applications.
We also regularly arranged talks and briefing sessions by other Government departments and business partners in the private sector to broaden our senior staff's knowledge and exposure on land-related subjects, Government policies and topical issues.
Self-learning
In addition to conventional classroom training, the Land Registry encourages self-learning through e-learning programme. All staff are granted one day e-learning whereby they are free from their office work to pursue self-learning of various interested topics at our Learning Resource Centre.
Training Needs Survey 2011/2012
An in-house department-wide training needs survey was conducted in November 2011. The main purposes are to identify the training requirements and aspirations of staff and to ensure that our training initiatives and activities align with the development needs of our staff and the department. The findings of the survey form the basis for formulating the future Training Plans.
Staff Development and Management Initiatives
To broaden staff's perspectives so that they can meet new challenges, strengthen their communication skills and develop policy formulation and leadership capacities, a wide spectrum of staff development activities had been arranged. In 2011/12,
- one directorate staff attended the “Advanced Leadership Enhancement Programme” of the Civil Service Training and Development Institute;
- one Senior Land Registration Officer attended the “Management Development Program” at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology;
- one Administrative Officer attended National Studies course at Peking University; and
- one Solicitor attended a Legal Study Programme at Peking University.
Staff Motivation and Recognition
As a Trading Fund department, we continue to put strong emphasis on staff motivation and recognition for the continual pursuit of excellence in customer services.
Staff Suggestions Scheme
The Staff Suggestions Committee has been set up since 1993 with the objective of promoting team cooperation among staff to achieve greater efficiency and productivity.
A total of 21 staff suggestions on various issues including improvement of service quality, operation, environmental protection, Christmas card design and efficient use of resources were received in the year and awards were granted.
Best Staff of the Year Award Scheme
The annual award scheme “Best Staff of the Year”, first introduced in 1997, aims to motivate staff, promote work commitment and give recognition to staff with remarkable contributions.
In November 2011, Land Registry's staff were invited to vote among themselves for the “Best Staff”. Three prizes were awarded.
Long Service Appreciation Award Scheme
The Long Service Appreciation Award Scheme, launched in 1999, is another annual award to give recognition to staff with long and meritorious service in the department.
In 2011, a total of 33 staff with 25 or more years of service were honoured with the award, making a total of 182 awards since the introduction of the Scheme.
Best Frontline Staff Award Scheme
The Land Registry launched its Best Frontline Staff Award in April 2007 to foster a culture of good customer service and to recognise laudable performance and achievements of staff.
Individual staff members and teams receiving the highest number of commendations from our customers in each half-year are awarded. To give due recognition, the names of the winning staff members and teams are posted at the Customer Centre and NTSOs.
Staff Relations
The Land Registry recognises that effective communication between management and staff is crucial for the provision of quality service to customers. We are committed to providing an environment that encourages communication among staff at all levels through regular staff relations meetings, departmental publications and staff welfare functions.
Visit by the Secretary for the Civil Service
Miss Denise YUE, GBS, JP, the Secretary for the Civil Service paid a goodwill visit to the Land Registry in November 2011. Miss YUE was briefed on our work, daily provision of services and the latest progress on various projects and implementation of the title registration system. Miss YUE also had a cordial dialogue with our staff representatives on issues of mutual interests.
Departmental Consultative Committee
The Committee comprising 14 representatives of various staff groups and representatives of the management meets quarterly to promote better understanding and cooperation between staff and the management.
Staff Magazine
The Staff Magazine is a departmental publication issued periodically under an editorial board comprising staff of various divisions. It covers a wide range of topics including featured stories, business updates, community involvement, staff news and activity snapshots, environmental protection, health tips and language knowledge, etc. It is popular among staff and has helped promote team spirit and a sense of corporate identity.
Staff Recreation Club
The Staff Recreation Club is run by staff on a voluntary basis. In 2011/12, it organised various social and recreational activities for staff and their families, including the department's annual dinner, Christmas party, volunteer social services, interest classes and outings.
Knowledge Management
The Land Registry has set up a Knowledge Management System to facilitate systematic management and sharing of knowledge across the department. The system contains over 5,300 reference documents and precedent cases. Everyday, over 230 searches were made by our staff for reference in their daily work.