In government, it is imperative to measure our performance. However, in a lot of cases, creating measurements becomes a once-a-year financial exercise or defensive tool during the budget process. Performance measurement should not only be a work task but a real asset to an organization’s vitality. Bottom line…it should be meaningful. As a leader or manager, are you up to this challenge? Continue Reading ->
Finding the “right” staffer in the development and building services arena who fits not only the professional qualifications, but also the “feel” and “new attitude” you are trying to create during process improvements may seem like a near impossibility. The other scenario is the new staffer that is trying so hard to fit in that they are absorbing all the bad habits of the entrenched staff and are not grasping the new development processes as fully as you would like, making the shift to the new that much more difficult. The Human Resource function is so much more than filling a position; it’s making sure you have the correct tool or resource for the job.
Does your organization strive to get customers involved in development services-related performance improvement? Most communities have recognized that creating a public/private partnership with customers for managing services is essential for existence. Customers want you to succeed, but they have to be involved to help you. Experience has shown that creating a partnership, involving customers sincerely in your day-to-day challenges will create opportunities for support for resource additions, better communication, and at a minimum an appreciation for how hard your job is. Yes, you read it correctly. Development services is a tough business.
Surveying your customers is likely one of the most important things you can embark upon in the development processing system. Customers can be brutally honest if the survey process is confidential and timely. However their feedback often provides clarity on priorities for improvements, bottleneck areas, and generally gives a snapshot about frustrations they have experienced. Yes….you also get positive feedback about what you are doing right, much more than you would expect. Remember though, customer feedback is “perception” of your services. It is up to you to relate that perception to your processing system components and separate angst from reality.
Making significant improvements in the development processing system is a very difficult and risky venture from the perspective of the staff members involved in the effort. Staff (and customers) are being asked to change old habits and embrace new ideas for providing information and processing permits or applications. As an individual, you could be leading an improvement team or you may be asked to participate as a contributing team member. So, how can you optimize your participation in the improvement effort? How can you be viewed as a contributing team member?