Transforming Leadership of Programmes

The Home Office is a Ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for immigration, security, and law and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service (MI5). It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs, counter-terrorism, and ID cards.

In June 2008, ILX Group (ILX) worked with the Home Office to develop and deliver an accredited qualification for Senior Responsible Owners (SROs) as an industry standard. The programme was the World's first comprehensive training course to measure the leadership of Programmes and Projects at Sponsor level and is known as APMG Programme & Project Sponsorship or 'PPS'. The qualification is fully accredited by the APM Group and is open to businesses and individuals across the public and private sectors.

Based on a series of Executive Briefings developed by ILX for the Home Office, the qualification sees the briefings equip senior level staff with the practical knowledge and skills needed to lead the successful delivery of complex policies and initiatives. ILX is the only training provider to support the development of this product from conception through to launch of the qualification, including an active role on the APMG exam panel.

To date, over 70 people have attended the briefings and over half of these have now taken the new exam.

The Home Office currently has 35 major projects/programmes in progress costing in excess of 40 million pounds and many hundreds of smaller ones. The APMG Programme & Project Sponsorship qualification takes the training a stage further by testing the key components through a formal exam. The exam certifies that sponsors are equipped with the knowledge and skills needed to lead successful delivery of a policy or initiative.

Howard Joseph, head of PPM skills in the Home Office Centre of Excellence said: "The SRO Executive Briefings take a new and practical approach to project leadership by providing sponsors and SROs with the top line information, cherry picked from the key products that are available.

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