A day in the life of Damon McCarthy, HR Business Partner, Support Services, Surrey Police

No week the same as the next in this role!

Monday

• Chaired a departmental tasking and coordination meeting for an hour and a half. This is a chance for the senior management team to get together, share information and to discuss and manage senior management level tasks and activities. We also look forward to make sure we head off any identified risks.
• Attended a briefing by the assistant chief officer around a review of senior police staff leadership posts. HR is constantly dealing with the management of change and there are plenty of developments at the moment.  The organisation is undergoing a lot of change and HR is heavily involved in managing the process. Business as usual! 
• Had my regular catch-up with my two managers
  
  

Tuesday

• Attended workshop with colleagues from other support departments in connection with our national police reform programme. New ‘identity access management’ solutions in support of the Police National Database will have HR implications, with people needing to work in different ways and new security issues. We have a significant role to play within this working group to look at reviewing role profiles and linking security and access to systems through role profiles. 
• Spent rest of day preparing for a gross misconduct hearing as the senior police staff manager identified to be the adjudicating officer. This forms part of my responsibilities as a senior leader in the organisation rather than specifically as an HR practitioner.

Wednesday

• Chaired the gross misconduct disciplinary hearing and prepared and delivered my adjudication. 
• Had my weekly team meeting with managers. Followed up on some of the actions identified at the tasking and coordination meeting on Monday, focusing on the emerging issues for the team and cascading information relevant to my portfolio of actions.

Thursday

• Facilitated a ‘posting panel’ for sergeants. This is primarily a workforce planning role where co-ordination and the provision of support material for assistant chief officers and for the chief superintendent is required to help place recently promoted and displaced sergeants. The panel will take into account the skills profiles and suitability of individuals against vacant and high risk positions. I’m involved in making recommendations as to where people are placed and acting in a general advisory capacity in relation to the process.
  
  

Friday

• Had meeting with head of HR and head of learning and development about our training administration system. We need to be sure the system is fit for purpose, and is an effective way of monitoring, assessing and administering our training activities and the skills of our staff. 
• Had a ‘pre-meeting’ with others members of the senior management team and head of HR before our monthly workforce planning and performance board the following week. It is important to make sure all our documents, actions and responses are consistent, and we link in with finance on financial forecasting issues.