September 29, 2008
I have had an opportunity to meet with many employee action teams. I always walk away from each and every meeting proud to be a member of a county team that is caring, dedicated to public service and striving to be the best. I have listened and learned. I wanted to take a few minutes to thank all of you for your hard work and especially your volunteerism. Each of you is “Making A Difference.”
I would like to share some of my observations and hopefully it will spark a thought or approach that you may want to consider in addressing your issue. First and foremost the team needs to have a very specific issue. It needs to be very focused. Many teams have an issue that is so broad that it causes discussions to be wide ranging and often times disjointed. For example, one team was trying to tackle the issue of training. They believed that they needed more training. They had several interesting alternatives but the alternatives were very broad. By asking a series of questions, I learned that their concern was the team needed more training in maintaining our new equipment. By narrowing the team’s focus to a very specific training issue ie training in maintaining new equipment, the team focused on the shortfalls in this one area.
A second observation is how to measure success. What do you expect the outcome to be if you implement your recommendation and how do you measure the results? Answering this question is difficult but necessary. For those teams who are addressing the issue on improving communications many teams are developing a survey specific to their issue. Other teams will utilize the next employee satisfaction survey results to determine success.
A final observation is how to gauge progress toward attaining your team’s goal. The best method is to post the results on a chart in a public area for all employees to see so they know how they are doing. If you know how you are doing then you can adjust your efforts to insure you will meet the target. This is simply called feedback.
I intend to meet with all our teams. Please let Larry Daniel know when you meet so he can coordinate my calendar. I want to meet with you and learn.
Bob McLaughlin
County Administrator
rrmclaug@co.escambia.fl.us
Thank you, Escambia County employees, for your dedication, trust and hard work during this fiscal year. The last 12 months we saw a challenging reorganization, a hefty budget cut and a brush with a tropical storm and hurricane. Tomorrow, Tuesday, September 30th, the last day of FY 2007-08, the bureau chiefs and managers and I will be dishing out ice cream at ten different locations throughout the day, as a way of showing our sincere appreciation for your support. Bring your appetites, and let us serve you a treat, as you have served the county so well this past year.
See you then,
Bob McLaughlin
Locations: Roads/Road Prison, Solid Waste, Parks, BID, Facilities, Public Safety, One Stop, Animal Shelter, Governmental Complex and Corrections (Corrections held one day earlier)
PUBLIC TRUST & CONFIDENCE
On April 24, 2008, representatives of the Public Trust and Confidence Team made a presentation at the BCC Leadership Workshop highlighting the findings of the team’s citizen interviews conducted earlier this year. The team is not scheduled to meet again until January 2009 when it will regroup to ask the interviewees the same questions to determine any variance in the public’s perception of county government and its level of service. This year’s survey established that 60% of respondents felt that County services used ‘met expectations.’
It is hoped that current initiatives and steady progress toward mandates driven by the passage of Amendment One will help to rebuild the public’s trust in the BCC and County Administration. The departmental reorganization (government down-sizing), realignment of budgets and improved, more consistent processes, directly address several ideas identified by the interviewees as trustworthy accomplishments.
The team, formerly chaired by Janice Kilgore, is comprised of members Lisa Bernau, Sonya Daniel, Lloyd Kerr, Cheryl Lively, Trisha Pohlmann, Marcie Whitaker, and Randy Wilkerson.
BALANCED SCORECARD TEAM
Balanced Scorecard Team:Currently working with BCC staff to populate data collection templates from Florida Benchmarking Consortium. Specifically Code Enforcement, Public Works, Information Technology, Purchasing, Fleet Maintenance, Fire/Rescue, HR, Parks and Planning are involved. Project is approximately 60 % complete. Data will allow staff to identify process improvement opportunities, compare their operations with other operations around Florida, and allow for networking among peers.
BASK team would like to thank Steve Littlejohn, Duane Chase, Rich Andrews, Deans Stallworth, Lori Kistler, Terry Gray, Lt. Ackerman, Kevin Jones, Michael Rhodes and Charlie Gonzalez for their assistance.
FUNDAMENTALS OF PROCESS IMPROVEMENT - Graduates of Modules 1-4
Corrections Bureau |
Management and Budget Services Bureau Neiqhborhoods/Community Services Bureau |
EMPLOYEE ACTION TEAM CORNER
One of our employee action teams has completed work on their Employee Survey issues. Administrative Services presented their process improvement to the County Administrator on May 9, 2008. The team, led by Team Leader Ruthie Miller, addressed the issue of Communication.
Their solution was multi-faceted, and included recommendations such as additional review of documents prior to posting on Livelink, timely routing of documentation to the County Attorney, establishing internal guidelines for processing of BCC recommendations, and the institution of meetings designed to brief the staff on the results of BCC meetings, COW meetings and Budget Workshops.
Congratulations to Ruthie and her team mates: Rebecca McMullen, Bernie Gangloff, Stephan Hall, and Sherry Holland. WELL DONE!
Another Employee Action Team has completed work on their issues as identified on the survey taken last November. A team from Public Safety presented their process improvement(s) to the County Administrator on Friday, June 13, 2008. Under the direction of Team Leader Bill Hopkins, this group addressed the issue of Employee Morale.
Their solution shall be the reinstitution of an Employee Newsletter, formerly known as “The 4-1-1 On 9-1-1.” If successful within EMS, it could be used to share information and happenings for the entire Public Safety Bureau.
The tool the team chose to “measure their results” will be an internal survey. Employees of EMS may expect the “baseline survey” to be conducted soon, with a follow-up survey taken at a later date.
Congratulations to Bill (a.k.a Pineapple) and his team mates: Annette Lanham, Jimmie Powell, Joe Mack, Kara Montanye, Jennifer Caro, and Trish Pohlmann.
WELL DONE!
October is Adopt-A-Dog Month! Come visit your Escambia County Animal Shelter (200 West Fairfield Drive, 595-3075) and see all the wonderful dogs they have ready to be adopted (and email that web page to your friends too!). Millions of dogs are surrendered nationally every year, not because they are bad or unlovable, but because their owners just couldn’t take care of them anymore. Now these dogs are homeless, and they need a second chance.
Big dogs, small dogs, adults and puppies -- you can find them all at our shelter. Dogs promote exercise, help lower blood pressure, prevent heart disease, and fight depression and loneliness. Plus (if you're looking for more than a pet in your life), dogs often can serve as “social aids,” helping people get to know others and sparking conversations. So, adopt a dog and make friends too!
