If project governance can slow down delivery, an organisation's corporate governance - which is often further removed from delivery teams - can be an even bigger blocker, an even greater hurdle to get over. This case study is the story of how at the Food Standards Agency we're changing corporate governance so that it supports delivery. Corporate governance is a key area in the 'environment' surrounding delivery teams. It has the power to massively impact (or even block) delivery, yet it is traditionally very rigid and waterfall. At the Food Standards Agency, we're thinking about who 'uses' the corporate governance, and using service design thinking to shape the service so that it is responsive to their user needs.

1. Corporate
Governance
Richard McLean
@mcleanonline
DESIGNING A
SERVICE THAT
ADDS VALUE
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2. What I’m going to be talking about
• Intro: Why the environment matters
• Case study:
oThe basics: What the service? Who’s it for?
oChanges for directors
oChanges for delivery teams
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3. Governance of digital delivery in
government has got a bad press
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4. There are great governance
principles out there:
Go and follow them!
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5. The environment matters
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6. “Build projects around motivated
individuals. Give them the
environment and support they
need, and trust them to get the job
done.”
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7. “Good managers
are bullshit
umbrellas”
Meri Williams
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8. Like governance of a digital service,
corporate governance can slow down
delivery
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9. The Food Standards Agency
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10. The Food Standards Act 1999
“There shall be a body to be called
the Food Standards Agency.”
“The Agency is a body corporate.”
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11. The Food Standards Agency has a
unique role in Government
• To protect public health from risks
relating to food
• To protect consumers’ interests in
relation to food
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12. Expenditure: 0.08% of food sector turnover
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13. I joined the FSA to deliver
food we can trust
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14. Redesigning corporate
governance in the FSA
Case Study
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15. What is the service?
•Setting direction
What objectives do we want to achieve?
•People and money
What people and money are we going to use to achieve those objectives?
•Providing assurance
Are we achieving those objectives?
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16. Who is the service for?
• Tax Payers
• Parliament
• NAO
• FSA Board
• Chief Executive
• Directors
• SROs
• Delivery teams

17. Corporate governance can appear complex
…and never ending
• FSA Board
• Audit & Risk Assurance Committee
• Food Advisory Committees
• Science Council
• Exec Management Team
• Portfolio Board
• Investment Board
• People Panel
• IT Management Board
• Programme Boards
• Project Boards

18. As a Director, I want…
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19. Pain points
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20. Consider the right things at the right
time in the right place
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21. As a delivery team leader,
I want…
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22. Institute for Government, October 2016
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23. “Only one more
hurdle to go”
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24. The simplest way to simplify
governance is to strip out layers
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25. Stripping out layers of governance
• Exec Management Team
• Portfolio Board
• Investment Board
• People Panel
• IT Management Board
• Programme Boards
• Project Boards
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26. Working
out loud
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27. END
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28. Some further reading/viewing
• GDS: https://www.gov.uk/service-manual/governance/index.html
• https://gds.blog.gov.uk/2013/07/04/exploring-user-needs-governance/
• https://digitaltransformation.blog.gov.uk/2014/06/24/governance-principles/#trust-and-verify
• https://medium.com/@markdalgarno/principles-for-governance-of-agile-user-centred-delivery-
677b7ae82313#.7usy7p66o
• NAO: https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/governance_agile_delivery.pdf
• Institute for Government: http://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/publications/making-success-digital-government
• HMT & Cabinet Office:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/220645/corporate_governance_good_pr
actice_july2011.pdf
• Stephen, J., Page, J., Myers, J., Brown, A., Watson, D. and Magee, I., Sir, System Error: Fixing the flaws of
government IT, Institute for Government, London, 2011 www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/publications/system-error
• HM Treasury, The Green Book: Appraisal and evaluation in central government, The Stationery Office, London, 2013
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-green-book-appraisal-andevaluation-in-central-governent
• HM Treasury, Agile Digital and IT Projects: Clarification of business case guidance, HM Treasury, London, 2015
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-green-book-appraisal-andevaluation-in-central-governent/agile-digital-
and-it-projects-clarification-of-business-case-guidance
• http://12thprinciple.org/
• http://sdlearningconsortium.org/index.php/home/what-we-have-learned/full-report-2016/
• ‘Is Whitehall's obsession with business cases getting in the way of delivery?’ Civil Service World, Andrew Greenaway
http://www.civilserviceworld.com/articles/opinion/whitehalls-obsession-business-cases-getting-way-delivery
• ‘Why agile doesn’t scale’ Dan North https://youtu.be/H9ev3ga1dSQ
• ‘Why Leadership Training Fails—and What to Do About It’, Michael Beer (et al) in HBR Oct 2016
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