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Internal communication high on Force agenda
The Force highly values good and effective communication between officers at all levels as it is an important aspect of human resource management and staff relations.
"Better communication and understanding between staff and management is the key to the Force's continued growth, providing quality services to the community and meeting the challenges of policing into the 21st century,"Commissioner of Police Eddie Hui Ki-on said.
In April 1998 Mr Hui directed the establishment of the Steering Committee on Police Internal Communications chaired by Deputy Commissioner of Police (Management) Tsang Yam-pui and consisting the Director of Operations, five Assistant Commissioners (Training, Support, Personnel, Service Quality and Information Systems) and Deputy Regional Commander Kowloon East.
The Steering Committee was tasked with providing overall direction and to ensure the availability of appropriate funding and resources to enhance internal communication in the Force. Since its inception it has facilitated a number of initiatives aimed at achieving its goal.
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"However, as these enhancements are always implemented in an evolutionary and 'Silent' manner, they tend to go unnoticed by Force members," Mr Hui said."Therefore, it comes as no surprise that the Staff Opinion Survey conducted in the second half of 1999 found communication within the Force continuing to be an area of concern, as the majority of staff did not associate some of these initiatives with internal communication."
Mr Tsang said communication improvements which have been or are being launched, could be broadly divided into three major categories - written, electronic and direct.
Written Communication
"In the written category, the latest initiative is the launch of an Internal Communication Handbook which was developed with the help of communications experts from the University of Hong Kong to promote precise style and plain language for effective communication," Mr Tsang said.
"All Superintendent Cadre officers and their civilian equivalents have received a hard copy of the Handbook and its electronic version will be uploaded onto POINT soon for reference by other officers."
As a next step, half-day workshops to introduce the Handbook to the SP cadre and encourage wide adoption as a communication tool would be conducted.
Other measures to strengthen written communication include:
Electronic Communication
Mr Tsang said the Police Email Network (PEN) had been upgraded and since May 1 all officers of Inspector and above have been provided with email facilities. Plans are in hand to upgrade the system to provide a database platform later this year.
"To allow direct dissemination of information of Force-wide interest, POINT has also been upgraded to include the Daily Media Review, replies to the media, survey findings and other items of interest," Mr Tsang added. Databases already on-line include the Staff Suggestion Scheme and Staff Motivation Scheme, Glossary of Management Terms and a library of Lines to Take.
E-communication projects under development include:
Direct Communication
"As face-to-face dialogue is the most effective mode of communication, management attaches great importance to direct communication with Force members," Mr Tsang said.
"Two cycles of a total of more than 2,000 Living-the-Values Workshops have been conducted to allow staff to discuss issues in a focus group format and provide feedback to Force management. Comments from officers are very positive and another wave of workshops will be conducted to further enhance communication."
Open forums chaired by Formation Commanders have been included in Training Day programmes to strengthen communication with front-line officers and again the feedback has been favourable. Senior Directorate officers also visit formation staff regularly.
"The feedback is good with an increasing number of junior officers gaining the confidence to voice their views. The format of these visits is again under review for further improvements," Mr Tsang said.
Other measures aimed at boosting internal communication are:
Thanking Force members for their enthusiastic response to the Living-in-Values Workshops and surveys, Mr Tsang said many of the views expressed were valuable and constructive and had helped management identify areas of concern among staff.
"These, together with views received through other channels, will be taken into account in our continuing effort to enhance internal communication at all levels, in all directions," he said.
Do you have any views?
Since communication is a two-way process, staff with any views on how to further enhance communication within the Force are invited to contact Steering Committee Secretary and Superintendent of Service Quality Wing's Service Standards Bureau Chris Chu Fun-wing on 2866-6525 or fax 2529-8785.
Views can also be sent by post to Service Standards Bureau, Service Quality Wing, 4/F Tai Sang Commercial Building, 24-34 Hennessy Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong or email sp-ss-sq@police.gcn.gov.hk.
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