8.2.1 Leadership

8.2.1.1 Appointments

After the enabling law, the appointment of NHRI members or the governing body is critical. Since this process is intrinsically linked to the accreditation of the NHRI and to compliance with the Paris Principles, it is dealt with in detail in Chapter 10.

Implications for the Establishment Phase: A survey shows that diversity in the governing body appears to be a challenge for NHRIs, and so this should be taken seriously as an area to be addressed at the Establishment Phase rather than dealing with these issues later on.

See OHCHR, Survey of National Human Rights Institutions: Report on the Findings and Recommendations of a Questionnaire Addressed to NHRIs Worldwide. 2009. www.nhri.net

8.2.1.2 Leadership development

Investing in NHRI leadership is fundamental to its human resources management. Although this is linked to training and professional development, NHRI members merit separate attention. They are frequently brought into these positions with little prior experience with NHRIs. Leadership development programmes should be dedicated to this group, in part because of the members' unique responsibilities.

These topics have been identified by the AP Regional Initiative:

• orientation and training on strategic planning for leaders,
• leadership modelling,
• result-based management,
• change management, including stakeholder engagement and managing external relations,
• competency-based recruitment for both management and staff – including practices that are sensitive to diversity issues,
• negotiation skills and consensus-building,
• Ethics, and
• human rights training.

AP Regional Initiative NHRI Capacity Assessment (see note 1, above)

8.2.1.3 Role Definition

At the Establishment Phase, a clear definition of the roles and responsibilities of each member or groups of members should be defined. While the Chief Commissioner or Ombudsman will have obvious responsibilities as the senior official, the roles of other members should be clarified. This will avoid overlaps and conflicts later on.

8.2.1.4 Vision and Leadership

NHRI leaders need to know when they are succeeding in their work: indicators of such include developing the capacity to:

• maintain the autonomy and independence of the NHRI;
• influence key stakeholders and government to change behaviours and to respond positively to recommendations of the NHRI;
• lead the organization through strategic planning (see the next section), including developing a shared vision, mission, values and codes of conduct;
• motivate staff to implement the programs and activities emerging for the planning process;
• protect staff who are conducting investigations;
• communicate effectively the vision and achievements of the NHRI to the media and to stakeholders;
• establish processes to evaluate the organisation and its staff effectively and fairly;
• establish networks and contacts with other NHRIs, regional associations and the international human rights system; and
• Ensuring that the members are focused on major strategic decisions, engaging stakeholders and ensuring the stability and finding of the organisation.

In terms of indicators for human resources, baseline information should be obtained from stakeholders and staff about the relative speed of decision-making. Staff should feel that they are supported by the senior leadership of the organisations in terms of openness and responsiveness to suggestions, and in terms of creating opportunities for professional development.