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Keystrokes helps Rotherham MBC understand Members IT training needs

Due to their diverse backgrounds, understanding and meeting the training needs of elected Council Members can be a challenge for Local Authorities. This is most evident in the area of Information Technology (IT), where the requirement for Members to use IT to enable them to carry out their duties more effectively has forced councils to focus on training needs to ensure success.

Fortunately, help is at hand in the form of Keystrokes innovative IT skills assessment tool Fiz-assist. Sue Palin, Director at Keystrokes explained:
“It is important to accurately measure the gap between actual skills and the skills required in a particular role for 2 reasons. Firstly, it ensures that any training required can be tailored to the individual and does not waste their time by telling them things they already know or do not need to know. Secondly, it ensures that IT is used as efficiently as possible, making the most of the organisation’s investment and the individual’s time.”

Rotherham MBC, identified as a local authority which is “Improving Strongly” by the Audit Commission in December 2005, asked Keystrokes to help them understand the IT training needs of their elected Members and designed a pilot that initially tested 9 Councillors. Three specific Member roles were set up that reflected the different requirements for IT skills among Councillors. The individual Members were then able to use Fiz-assist to assess their current IT skill levels against the role most appropriate for themselves.

ourThe Web-based design of Fiz-assist made it convenient, fast and simple for the busy Members to undertake. Each Member was able to complete their full IT skills assessment in 45 minutes.

The project was high profile within the Council, with the Mayor of Rotherham, Cllr Hilda Jack amongst those participating. All the Members who took part in the pilot were impressed with the ease of use and convenience of Fiz-assist and the feedback was very positive. Cllr Ian St. John commented: “I think all Councillors would benefit from the assessment.”

Jean Tracey, Lead Officer for Member training at Rotherham, found there were a number of positive outcomes from the pilot. She observed: “Using Fiz-assist has encouraged Councillors to take responsibility for their own learning. By clearly identifying their IT development requirements and ensuring that training is focussed on meeting these precise needs, it has also helped us hit our performance targets for Members learning and development.”

Due to the unqualified success of the pilot the Council now intends to use Fiz-assist to quickly and easily identify the IT development needs of all their Members after the May 2006 elections.

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