Regarding the launching of our new website, we inaugurate here a new space on the CIAT blog, dedicated to the analysis and reflection on human talent in tax administrations, where the constant processes of tax management improvement have without doubt progressively imposed new requirements to public servants in the institutions dedicated to the collection of public revenues.

Much is discussed about the tax processes, organizational models, relationship with taxpayers or administrative facilities and technological transformations.

In Latin America, we have a wide range of tax models, countries in which tax administrations are responsible for internal taxes, foreign trade (customs) and social security contributions, but also countries where these three types of taxes are completely separated. Likewise, we have administrations responsible for national and subnational taxes, tax administrations that are mostly decentralized or deconcentrated. In short, a wide spectrum of possibilities.

According to the OECD estimates with data from 194 countries (members and non-members of OECD), their tax administrations bring together about 2,363,495 workers, without including the subnational and municipal tax administrations. This leaves us with elementary questions to trigger the reflection and dialogue.

How is the number of workers in a tax administration determined?
What rationality operates in determining the number of employees in each process or business area?
How are we measuring the performance of people and departments?

In addition, of course, what should we do in tax organizations, to attract, retain and, particularly, develop the human talent? In this space, we will open different lines of analysis related to the management of the human talent, as an institutional asset and no less important than any other component of the tax administration. This is not in any way an isolated discussion, since we are referring precisely to the transformations that we require in the human resources field that are directed to fulfill the strategic vision and the goals of any organization responsible for the country’s revenue collection.

The management of human capital is undoubtedly a topic of interest, not only for the expectations of contribution to the organizational results, but also for the very dynamics that their processes have in each context. Recruitment and selection, training, civil service are an inexhaustible source of new questions and not to mention the incorporation of good practices, such as management with focus on professional competencies and their certification.

The use of new information technologies also influences the human capital cycle, in order to optimize the officers’ incorporation, shorten their learning curves and document the quantitative compliance with goals. In another order, the methodological contributions for human development reactivate some less recent debates on the new trends of Organizational Development and their contributions to the satisfaction’s levels at work or the performance management under pressure.

There are current trends such as telecommuting (working from home), co-working (sharing the office or the absence of them), monitoring the organizational climate, and self-directed groups. Let us also mention empowerment, gender equity, global executives, part time workers who are not just half-time young rookies; there is a new model for retired experts who still perform at a high level, but who do not want a full day’s work either.

And as many other challenges as the reinforcement of cultural diversity in organizations, which is a rather concrete idea, but not so easy to explain in formal human resources policy documents; Without neglecting succession management, career plans and new trends in remuneration.

We also find tools such as coaching and mentoring for managers. These are tools for the development of key people in key positions closely linked to the management of generations such as millennials and centennials, which already form (or will form), part of the tax administrations and point towards another kind of motivators and satisfiers far away from the old school of public management. In other words, high commitment and hard work are not sufficient and are not synonymous with efficiency or excellence; many other ingredients are in the mix.

We note also the difficulties experienced by many tax administrations in terms of social security and health in the workplace, where it is possible to observe important lags compared to other institutions that already offer alternative health, savings and retirement mechanisms, a topic not to underestimate in our region.

This first brainstorm of ideas would be truncated if we forget the component of ethical performance. There are many challenges in this field, not only related to the training or regulation on the limits of public and correct behavior; but also to create conditions favoring that exemplary performance that we wish to project to influence the taxpayers’ voluntary compliance.

We will report many of these issues as well as the actions of the CIAT’s Permanent Committee on Ethics, which has recently met with the invaluable support of the CRA of Canada and other countries.

This set of issues aims to add to the development of personnel, more resilient organizations, able to maneuver in a demanding, changing environment, in which the talent management is part of the strategy. The possibilities are very broad because we deal not only with training; the management of diverse organizational projects and people provide us with a solid base to contribute to the situational analysis and the design of viable answers.

Welcome to all and let us soon be reading each other,

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