Appreciate there is a lot of negative faff kicking about just now……this thread is not that.
The new regional support pillars system rolling out across the corps, what’s the views?
My wing is lucky to have a fab WExO, so am naturally nervous about major shifts in ways of working.
Crucially: Does it increase the admin burden, or reduce it?
Honest constructive feedback please…
You are Tony Keeling and I claim my prize.
The pillars work well in LaSER. Rather than a WExO and Staff who have to do a little bit of everything, it allows us to have HEOs with their specialist pillar, and the E1s and 2s supporting.
One questionable thing is what the pillars should be called and what responsibilities come under each pillar. It would appear that what was being implemented within SW did not match what already exists in LaSER.
Pros and cons:
Current process: WExO, generalist. Can do everything, specialises in nothing. Easily covered by next door wing when they go on leave, disappear etc.
Pillars: qualified specialist in certain areas, knows that area inside out. Can assist whole region effectively. But when disappears/on leave that capability is completely gapped for the entire region.
Given I doubt any region can staff all “pillars” with no gap, it means you end up with regions with entire vacuums of knowledge.
Is that better than a WExO going off leaving a wing in limbo?
Probably not, just different.
Rearranging deck chairs on the titanic springs to mind.
Just choose your shade of, ahem, brown.
From the user (customer?) perspective broadly neutral, leaning towards the positive.
Perhaps the only major downside is you don’t have that direct context with someone who works full time for your wing. (And losing uniformed WExOs but that seems to be on its way out anyway).
Pluses - less risk of a single point of failure and the pillars can specialise so should have a better handle on their AoRs than a generalist.
Like any of these changes it takes a bit of time to bed in, once it does it works well.
Do you find that the HEO leading a pillar is busier due to covering such a vast area?
Is there knowledge gaps? WExOs know their wee patch inside out. Pillar leads would know the process well, but not the ‘customer’?
How does one asses a generalist HEO becoming a specialist in an aspect? Down to individuals choice/experience I assume. Does that lead to a ‘messy’ transition?
How does it work for things like Safeguarding? In the old system the WEXO was effectively the entry point for concerns as the first “paid” supervisor, where do these concerns go in LASER?
Believe it ir not some actually see some positive, arfg maybe i am TK lol
Email to the shared pers email, or as required a phone call to the HEO/WExO equivalent in charge of that pillar.
Are we suggesting that each Pillar Lead actually gets some form of training or qualification? . . .
Surely stuff that is “Need to know” doesn’t go to a shared mailbox 
The alternative is to call the HQ “Duty Officer” directly as per ACP 4. . . but that’s just a collection of people on rotation surely?
Reporting Safeguarding issues up to the relevant Pillar isn’t “breaching need to know”.
It’s fine for general queries. I thought proper safeguarding referrals go direct to HQ now?
If people use the new pillar webpages, they specifically state who to contact dor safeguarding issues, so potential breached are avoidable as long as people follow the instructions.
what is the “HEO” title?
And in LaSERs case, the go to pers HEO/WExO is a very experienced safeguarding person who was for a long time a part of the HQAC safeguarding team!
It’s a grade rather than a titles. Think rank equivalency. In our case our WExOs (role) are normally HEOs (grade) I think.
And whilst we’re discussing pros and cons, as much as I like the new system, one big con is that you lose a level of appeal. If you disagree with a decision made by your first level of PS, you now have to go to HQ to argue the case. As before it might be Wing, Region then HQ.
HEO - Higher Executive Officer grade. Used to be known as a C2.