Page 78 - URA Annual Report 2021-22

CORPORATE SUSTAINABILITY
Building our People Capacity
In addition to taking care of our stakeholders, the URA cares about the well-being and development of our staff whose contributions are vital to driving success of our urban renewal work.
Empowering Our Staff to Ride the Pandemic
The URA implemented various measures to maintain the productivity and efficiency of our staff amidst the pandemic. Four levels of Work-From-Home (WFH) arrangements were put in place in response to different severity levels of pandemic situation. A drill was conducted across the organisation to test the capability of the full WFH mode. Meanwhile, IT infrastructure resources were reallocated to enhance the performance of Virtual Desktop Interface, allowing all URA staff to hold video conferences and simultaneously access corporate emails, computer servers and applications remotely during the WFH period.
During the year, the We Care Programme was launched to promote physical and mental health awareness within the URA. All staff can get weekly tips on combating the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as attending wellness talks on health-related topics. In addition, we promote a work-life balance culture to support the workforce to ease stress brought by the pandemic. Staff were also incentivised with a one-off award as a recognition of their contributions during the difficult times.
Attracting, Motivating and Engaging Our Staff
Workshops were organised,
as part of the URA's 'We Care Programme', to help employees relieve work stress.
Facing a competitive labour market, the need for effective means to tap the right talent remains high. In order to attract, motivate and retain qualified and promising young professionals, upward mobility opportunities were provided to support and accelerate their growth needs. Professionals holding key strategic positions were closely managed for optimal career exposure and proper coaching.
During the year, an organisation structure review was conducted to reduce organisational layers and increase managers’ span of control, with a view to enhancing collaboration, promoting development and empowering employees. Positive feedback, including expedited decision-making process and better communication between managers and team members, were received. To build talent pools for succession of key positions, a talent review and succession planning model was developed to identify candidates with potential for managerial grades and above, and support was provided to facilitate their career development. Meanwhile, a job rotation programme was in place to broaden the on-the-job experience of staff while promoting cross-divisional exposure. A Planner Trainee Programme with a well-designed career development path has also been introduced since 2020 to attract and retain high potential planning graduates, and develop them to professional planners.
We also strengthened internal communication amongst all staff. To minimise the health risks amidst the pandemic, staff briefing sessions, annual staff celebration and staff activities were conducted virtually in 2021/22. Separately, our Staff Suggestion Scheme continued to draw innovative ideas from staff members for improving work efficiency and effectiveness, and served as a platform to enhance their sense of belonging. During the year, around 54% of the staff suggestions were identified by the Management as beneficial to the organisation and subsequently implemented.
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