Affiliations: Office for National Statistics, Newport, NP10 8XG, UK
Note: [] Corresponding author: Gary Brown, Government Buildings, Office
for National Statistics, Cardiff Road, Newport, GWENT, NP10 8XG, UK. Tel.: +44
01633 45 5649; E-mail: [email protected]
Abstract: The UK Office for National Statistics' (ONS) vision is to be widely
respected for informing debate and improving decision-making through high
quality, easy to use statistics and analyses on the UK's economy and society.
ONS is responsible for the collection, compilation, analysis and dissemination
of a range of statistics in line with the UK Code of Practice for Official
Statistics. However, like other statistical organisations, ONS faces increasing
pressures for more data, available in less time, in more accessible formats,
while maintaining high quality standards and coping with an increasingly
difficult financial situation. To address these challenges and help the
organisation meet these demands, the office instigated the ONS 2012 programme
which brought about changes to the way the office functions, including major
changes to its internal organisational structure. The programme aimed to
reshape ONS to better meet its future challenges. The motivation behind this
restructure can be linked back to the original design principles of the ONS
Design Authority; for example moving away from a stovepipe model, and designing
solutions that can be shared and integrated across ONS. With regard to
integration, one of the key organisational changes made was to bring together
the Methodology and Information Management directorates to create a new
directorate, Strategy and Standards. This directorate brings together the
methodologists who specify the statistical methods with the Information
Technology (IT) teams that build and maintain the systems, and provides the
opportunity for new ways of working. Design Authority principles are also
embedded into the aims of the new directorate; for example providing common
standards for statistics and statistical systems. At the heart of the new
Strategy and Standards directorate is the ONS Strategy, which has been
developed by a new Strategy Division. The ONS Strategy sets out the vision for
the organisation; what it aspires to and how this will be achieved. The
strategy also aligns with IT architectural design and Design Authority
principles. One of the key aims of the new directorate is to deliver this
strategy, and ONS methodologists and IT experts are working together to achieve
this. This paper sets out ONS's experience so far in developing and
implementing the strategy in the new organisational structure, plus some key
successes and challenges.
