STAFF REPORT
Operations Committee,
January 3, 2008
Organization Review
(AD08-008)
Consideration of an organizational effectiveness
study to be conducted by CH2M Hill
Speaker: Mr. Bill Coleman
From: William B.
Coleman, Jr., Town Manager
Prepared by: William B. Coleman, Jr., Town Manager
Approved by: William B. Coleman, Jr., Town Manager
Approved by: Benjamin T. Shivar, Assistant Town Manager
Over the past several years there have been significant changes in the operating environment of the Town, particularly in the areas of public works, utilities and engineering. The catalyst for these changes has been population growth, geographic expansion, significant state and federal regulatory changes, heightened environmental awareness, focus on regional problems and solutions, an expanded and more complex capital budget and the addition of more complex and sophisticated equipment and facilities. Into the future, these factors will continue to affect our operating environment as a result of the economic vibrancy of the area and continued urbanization.
For the Town, these changes have had significant impacts in the planning and operating areas of Public Works and Utilities and of Engineering. These changes have encouraged us to take a look at organization structure, staff assignment, staff responsibilities, day-to-day decision-making authority, functional alignment of personnel and functions and other management and strategic planning questions. Our goal has been to consider the optimum organization arrangement and assignment of responsibilities to deal with today’s complex environment today and as that environment changes over the next ten years. We have made some changes, but need to take a broader look at additional changes that are necessary to better enable us to address issues in the future.
To accomplish this, I am proposing that the organization complete a comprehensive organization review in these areas. The review will identify our day-to-day operating structure, decision-making assignment and responsibility, assignment of functional responsibilities, alignment of responsibilities and personnel, and challenges. Our goal is to identify any organization changes we need to make to improve operating efficiency, accountability, alignment with goals, assignment of appropriate decision making responsibility, accountability and compatibility with current issues and future challenges. The same will be accomplished in the area of responsibility for strategic planning in the organization for these functions. The final product will be recommendations for organization structure, appropriate assignment of responsibilities and decision making, greater accountability and identification of our overall operating and strategic goals in these areas.
I am proposing that the staff work with the national engineering firm CH2M Hill to accomplish this review. The project manager will be Joe Stowe, former director of the Charlotte/Mecklenburg Utilities Department, who currently does these types of studies nationwide. In addition, Mr. Stowe has contacts with national organizations and public works and utilities professionals in larger metropolitan areas who will assist in completing this review. The process will take four to six months and will include a thorough review of the current organizational structure and how it functions day to day, as well as how it functions in the area of long-range planning. We will review and evaluate our operating and long-range goals and immediate and future challenges, and then evaluate what changes need to be made in the organization and with personnel to better enable the organization to meet current and future challenges. A valuable part of the process will be a review of our issues and potential changes with public works and utilities professionals from larger urban areas in the United States. Our goal is to create a new organization structure based on current and future challenges and to align that structure with clear operating and strategic planning goals.
Fiscal Impact: The cost of the review will be $120,650.
Staff Recommendation: Staff recommends that council endorse the organization review and appropriate $120,650 from unappropriated fund balance to fund this project.