Pictured at the Irish Customer Contact & Shared Services Awards hosted by CCMA Ireland on Saturday night were, (L-R): Helena Cooney, Chairperson of CCMA Ireland; with Joan Greene, Magda Kacprzak, Carol Prendergast, Jennifer Nolan, Janice Witcombe, Siobhan Gaffey and Hilary Murphy-Fagan, all from the National Shared Services Office (NSSO). PeoplePoint is part of the NSSO, it is the HR and Pensions Administration Shared Service Centre for the Civil Service.
The Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Mr Brendan Howlin T.D., has today (16 November 2015) congratulated PeoplePoint – the Civil Service HR and Pensions administration provider – on winning the CCMA Shared Services Centre 2015 Award.
PeoplePoint provides HR and pension administration shared services on behalf of 35 Government Departments and Public Service Bodies for 30,000 civil servants. It is part of the National Shared Service Office (NSSO) within the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.
Commenting on the award Minister Howlin said:
“I want to congratulate everyone in PeoplePoint on winning this award. It is the result of continuous effort by committed and hard-working people to implement new ways of working for the Civil Service. It reflects the ability and determination of civil servants to overcome major challenges and obstacles to deliver significant change programmes successfully. Shared Services is a reform priority for this Government and I am delighted that the achievements to date have been recognised.”
Robert Watt, Secretary General at the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform said:
“I also want to congratulate all of my colleagues working in PeoplePoint. The use of shared services is a significant part of our public sector reform programme and indeed it is one of the specific actions contained in the Civil Service Renewal Plan. This award will give staff recognition for their hard work over the last two years.”
Hilary Murphy-Fagan, CEO of the National Shared Service Office, said:
“I am delighted for all the staff at PeoplePoint; this award is due recognition for all their hard work and the tremendous effort they put into improving the performance of the centre. The support from civil servants for the shared services model has also contributed to the achievement of this award.”
The 2015 Irish Customer Contact & Shared Services Awards were hosted by CCMA Ireland. 46 of Ireland’s leading industry practitioners in customer service were shortlisted. The special guest at the Awards was Minister of State for Skills, Research and Innovation, Mr Damien English T.D.
According to CCMA Ireland, these prestigious industry awards celebrate the high standards and service excellence within the Irish Customer Contact & Shared Services sector. The awards recognise and honour the companies and people who focus on being the best. Across the 18 categories were many leading Irish and International customer service organisations who have shown that they are at the forefront in supporting their customers through a range of channels.
The citation published by CCMA Ireland says that “the Judges congratulate the PeoplePoint leadership and teams on their work to date in demonstrating the value of the shared service model and ultimately achieving better public service value. The centre is setting standards for service delivery and customer support and is seeking to become a showcase within shared services”
ENDS
Notes to the Editor:
Awards Category description: SHARED SERVICES CENTRE OF THE YEAR
This category is in recognition of the valuable services provided by domestic and international shared services centres (SSCs) located in Ireland. Services supported can include IT, Finance, HR, Purchasing, Tendering and Payroll to name just some of the activities supported by SSCs. Entrants will be required to demonstrate how they have maintained optimum efficiencies balanced with excellent levels of customer service whilst delivering a combination of front end support and back office capability.
Shared Services in the public sector context can be defined as the consolidation of corporate services into a Shared Services centre administered by the Public Service, to enable increased standardisation, efficiency, purchasing power, service quality, automation, and control. The move to Shared Services is beneficial, as well, for allowing organisations to focus retained resources on core activities.
The National Shared Services Office (NSSO) is responsible for delivering Shared Services within the Civil Service and setting standards and implementing government policy for Shared Services across the Public Service in Ireland. It is currently an administrative office within the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, set up as part of the Government’s reform programme.
Since the publication of the 2011 Public Service Reform Plan, two Shared Services Centres have been established in the Civil Service, with more planned. This includes PeoplePoint (the HR and Pensions Administration Shared Service Centre) and the PSSC (the Payroll Shared Service Centre).