AAOM Handbook

INTERNAL

Levels of Work Context

On every occasion that a person is promoted to a new level within the structure of an organisation, or promoted to a new level in a different organisation, they are faced with the challenge of understanding what the work of the new role (level) is. Often, there is not much concrete guidance on how the expectations of the new role differ from those of the old role. The Business Process Framework is an operating model that defines the processes and the work necessary to deliver business expectations. It therefore makes sense to describe the levels of work around the elements of the BPF that fall within the work of the different roles in an organisation. Acknowledgement is made to material used here with the permission of Fred Stanford whom I worked with at Inco, Canada. Fred and I collaborated on the introduction of a change to the way that work is managed at Inco’s Ontario operations. Fred wrote an original version of a discussion paper on levels of work, and I have drawn from this. Purpose To describe the work of roles in a managerial hierarchy, in terms of the BPF. Definitions There are a few words and phrases, which are used a great deal in conversations about “work“, which may have different meanings for people. Four of these are very relevant to this document; accountability, to be accountable, work practice, and manager. For this document, the following definitions are used. Accountability – A measurable business outcome. To be Accountable – A requirement for a person to give an account of their work practices, such that a judgment can be made on their personal effectiveness in achieving the business outcome. Work Practice – A work related observable action. Manager – A person who is accountable for their own work, and for the output and work practices, of the people reporting to them. The above definitions of accountability and work practice are often used interchangeably but will be differentiated in this paper. For example, the above definition suggests that conducting an annual performance review is a work practice rather than an accountability. It is the observable action that is intended to advance the achievement of a business outcome, however, it is not the business outcome itself. This is not to suggest that an annual performance review is optional. It is a work practice that has been designated

© McAlear Management Consultants 2007

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