7/26/2012. As leaders in the community, elected and appointed officials must be able to work together to build the community they envision.

Transcription

1 As leaders in the community, elected and appointed officials must be able to work together to build the community they envision. Kathie Novak Center for Local Government Research and Training Buechner Institute for Governance School of Public Affairs University of Colorado Denver What do I want to get out of this session Sometimes, the citizens.. Topics or issues I hope we will address Sometimes it s a council member. 1

2 Sometimes it s several council members Sometimes it s council and staff Understand the challenges in the council staff relationship. Understand the new roles that elected officials are undertaking and why. Clarify the roles and responsibilities of the mayor, council, manager/administrator, and key staff. Understand how council protocols can be effective in developing a positive partnership. Articulate what mayors, council members, and staff expect from each other. 2

3 Greatest Challenges in Working with Elected Officials Managers and Staff say: Keeping communication going Developing and focusing on goals and priorities through year Understanding that council is singular, not plural Hidden agendas Getting council to work as a team and be civil Lack of experience & knowledge on how to lead large complex organization of highly skilled professionals Greatest Challenges in Working with Managers and Staff Elected Officials say: Failure to communicate Private meetings with some council members Disrespect Lack of clearly defined, shared vision of city s future Manager has too much control Manger entrenched in ways of doing things Lack of clarity as to whole council s goals Inability to cut to the chase too diplomatic We already tried that Three characteristics common to the highly effective city council: 1. The willingness to address difficult issues often those that deal with the "big picture" problems in a city 2. The ability or capacity of the council as a team to deal with these issues 3. An effective relationship with professional staff (John Nalbandian, 1999) Obstacles that are often underestimated by councils and staff: 1. Difficult, big picture issues that raise questions of competing values, which many people are inclined to avoid because of the potential conflict involved 3

4 Politics involves the art of recognizing and balancing legitimate, conflicting values. Questions of values really are no right answer problems, and they almost always involve difficult choices, which lead to conflict. Natural incentives to avoid these conflicts, especially when smaller, more manageable issues are available to deal with. Obstacles that are often underestimated by councils and staff: 2. Governing bodies operate under a set of conditions that impede the hard work it takes to focus on the big picture; and Easier to be effective helping citizens deal with their individual problems on an ad hoc basis, than to build and maintain a sense of community by addressing big picture issues. Membership and Group Formation Terms of Office and Council Life cycle Political Administrative Relationship Authority and Power Relationships Operating Procedures and Problem Solving Environment Schwarz, Consulting to Council Manager Groups, PAQ, Winter, 1991 Obstacles that are often underestimated by councils and staff: 3. Elected officials and professional staff bring fundamentally different perspectives to their work. If not understood, these perspectives can foster distrust. We tend to see what we expect to see. 4

5 Perception Drives Behavior Representatives vs. Experts Problem solving Approaches Playing the game vs. solving the problem Story telling vs. Reports: What do you hear? vs. What do you know? Role of city manager as translator Conflict, compromise, change vs. harmony, cooperation, continuity Develop and hold to protocols and practices Establishing and maintaining trust (Nalbandian, 1999) My responsibility is to get my 25 guys playing for the name on the front of the shirt and not the one on the back. Tommy Lasorda, Former Manager, Los Angeles Dodgers Focus on the goal Work that matters (30,000 ft. level) The foundation for a sound Council Manager Staff relationship begins with a clearly defined long range vision and strategic direction for the organization. Legacy value of big picture focus 5

6 Create public value Articulate vision, mission, values Meet mandates and fulfill mission Produce fundamental decisions and actions that shape and guide what the city is, what the city does, and why it does it Create ideas for mission, goals, strategies, actions, and other strategic interventions Build capacity for ongoing implementation, learning, and strategic change Organize effective participation Build wining coalitions Adapted from Bryson, Strategic Planning, 4/e, Jossey Bass, What are we in business to do? What exactly do we do? How do we figure out what is core, or of highest importance? What do you want to keep (not what you want to cut)? How do we know if we are successful? How do we ask better questions that lead to better decisions about what we do and why we do it? *Center for Priority Based Budgeting What are out one time and ongoing revenues and expenditures? How are they tracked? Do our forecasts demonstrate these differentiations? How doe we differentiate program revenues from enterprise revenues? Do we have a formal Revenue Manual? What type of information is included? Do we have a written fund balance reservation policy? How are we monitoring to ensure reserves are maintained? *Center for Priority Based Budgeting Are our established working capital reserves sufficient to meet emergency needs or short term revenue shortfalls? Do we have an inventory of all other restricted or designated fund balance reserves? Are variances between budgeted and actual revenues and expenditures analyzed and explained? How do these impact future budget cycles? Do we have a formal compensation plan to establish salary/wage ranges? How often is it updated? Are benefit packages included in this assessment? *Center for Priority Based Budgeting Does our five year forecast incorporate other longterm plans developed by your organization? Do we have a Capital Improvement Plan? What information is included and how is it used in our budget process and financial forecasts? What tools are used to communicate financial information to elected decision makers? *Center for Priority Based Budgeting 6

7 Goals Policies Plans Priorities Values Mission Vision Develop and hold to protocols and practices Establishing and maintaining trust See Carl Neu: Why do Our Meetings Take So Long? October Research indicates that the primary cause of dysfunction in boards (and the board/staff relationship) is a lack of clarity in roles, goals and expectations Council Roles: (Policy) Representational Governance Supervisory Other Manager and Staff Roles: (Administration) Determine purpose, scope of services, tax level, constitution issues Pass ordinances; approve new projects an programs; ratify budget Make implementing decisions (e.g., site selection); handle complaints; oversee administration Where to Draw the Line Council s Sphere Mission Policy Administration Advise (what city can do may influence what it should do); analyze conditions and trends Make recommendations on all decisions; formulate budget; determine service distribution formula Establish practices and procedures and make decisions for implementing policy Suggest management changes to manager; review organization s performance in manager s appraisal Management Manager s Sphere Control the human, material & informational resources of organization to support policy and administrative functions Source: Jim Svara, Dichotomy and Duality: Reconceptualizing the Relationship between Policy and Administration in Council Manager Cities, Public Administration Review, Vol. 45, No. 1, pp ) 7

8 Determine purpose, scope of services, tax level, constitution issues Pass ordinances; approve new projects an programs; ratify budget Make implementing decisions (e.g., site selection); handle complaints; oversee administration Where to Draw the Line Council s Sphere Mission Policy Administration Advise (what city can do may influence what it should do); analyze conditions and trends Make recommendations on all decisions; formulate budget; determine service distribution formula Establish practices and procedures and make decisions for implementing policy Suggest management changes to manager; review organization s performance in manager s appraisal Management Manager s Sphere Control the human, material & informational resources of organization to support policy and administrative functions Source: Jim Svara, Dichotomy and Duality: Reconceptualizing the Relationship between Policy and Administration in Council Manager Cities, Public Administration Review, Vol. 45, No. 1, pp ) Robert Root Bernstein: "Crystallization: Levo, Meso, and Dextro", 60 x 24 inches, paper construction, Lawmakers Policy makers Consensus builders Political entrepreneurs Civic catalysts System linkers Leaders Institution builders Power brokers Overseers Financiers Negotiators Enablers Facilitators Communicators Decision makers Translators Ombudsman Regional actors Full Time Team builder Community builders Enablers of democracy Facilitative leaders Partnership builders Consensus builders Customer Service Rep Change Agent and Leader Entrepreneur Innovator Coach Networker Coordinator Connector Policy formulator Implementer Evaluator Educator Information Source Persuader Inspirational Problem Solver Policy Analyst Translators Act on Behalf of constituencies Know Your Job directing the aim of the community, not high level managing Set Targets outcomes and results Identify Risks economic, political, social Delegate the Work roles, relationships, expectations Assess Performance When? How? Practice Discipline governance vs. customer service Report Back Communicate with community 8

9 Council s Expectations of Staff What council expects of the Mayor and the other council members. What they are willing to give to each other. What council expect of staff. What they are willing to give to staff. What staff expects of council. What they are willing to give to council. Don t cause us embarrassment Be non political in a partisan sense Help make our job easier Give us accurate and current data Leave personal bias out of reports; arguments should stand on own merits Provide guidance when requested Provide short, well written reports Provide several options when suggesting possible solutions to a problem Council s Expectations of Staff (cont.) Present requested information in a timely manner Show us how to avoid known pitfalls of recurring issues Be accessible Be respectful regardless of how you feel personally Keep us equally informed; do not show favoritism Provide historical continuity where appropriate Staff s Expectations of Council Be fair in dealing with us don t automatically assume citizen is right and staff is wrong Read the material we have proposed Ask questions Examine all the facts and make the best possible decision Give criticism privately when appropriate Give public praise when and where appropriate If you make a decision based on politics, help us understand City Staff and Elected Officials What s working? What do we do well? What could we do differently? What s missing? What needs action? 9

10 Develop and hold to protocols and practices Establishing and maintaining trust Formal Practices and Procedures that Can Minimize Conflict (help discern between an organizational issue and a personal issue) Protocols ground rules on how to work together Have clearly written and approved procedures for evaluating the chief Have regular board training sessions Protocols should answer: How do you want to be treated? How do you think you should treat others? How do others think you want to be treated? How will we resolve conflicts? Develop and invoke a set of ground rules to build trust Protocols may include: Overview of Roles and Responsibilities Policies and Protocol Related to Conduct Council Conduct with One Another Council Conduct with City Staff Council Conduct with the Public Council Conduct with Other Public Agencies Council Conduct with Boards and Commissions Council Conduct with the Media Leadership Selection Process Committees and Appointments Agenda Setting Process Sanctions 10

11 What s working? What do we do well? What exists both formally and informally? What might we do differently? What s missing? What needs action? Develop and hold to protocols and practices Establishing and maintaining trust Staff training and development Council training and development Periodic reflection/discussion What s working and not? What s missing? What needs action? Steps? Resources? Develop and hold to protocols and practices Establishing and maintaining trust Power Needs Political Irrationality versus Technical Rigidity Different Perspectives Part time versus Full time Technical expertise versus Citizens Formal Proceedings Professional conduct (no surprises) Remember perception drives behavior Listen for understanding Avoid sniping and personal attacks Don t take sides or go through one member to get to the group. Communicate with all consistently, equally at the same time 11

12 True communication is the response you get. What s working? What do we do well? What exists both formally and informally? What might we do differently? What s missing? What needs action? Develop and hold to protocols and practices Establishing and maintaining trust Trust is the necessary precursor for: feeling able to rely upon a person, cooperating with and experiencing teamwork with a group, taking thoughtful risks, and experiencing believable communication. Made up of 3 components: 1. the capacity for trusting 2. the perception of competence 3. the perception of intentions.. Credibility: includes the synonyms of trustworthiness, reliability, and integrity Respect: Respect involves being considerate, thoughtful, and showing deference and admiration toward others. Fairness: Equity, impartiality, and justice Responsibility: being accountable and answerable for your behavior; acting in a manner that is congruent with cultural norms and expectations: following through with the obligations Tway, Duane C., A Construct of Trust, Dissertation, Article Source: 12

13 The best way to maintain a trusting work environment is to keep from breaking trust in the first place. The integrity of the leadership of the organization is critical. The truthfulness and transparency of the communication with staff is also a critical factor. The presence of a strong, unifying mission and vision can also promote a trusting environment. Develop and hold to protocols and practices Establishing and maintaining trust Tway, Duane C., A Construct of Trust, Dissertation, 1993.? 13