Monthly Archives: February 2015

41 – ‘Where does the customer fit into a service operation?’ A brief discussion of the work of Richard B. Chase.

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Posted by Lancing Farrell                                                                                                     1200 words

In 1978 Richard B. Chase published his paper Where does the customer fit into a service operation? John Seddon says this article began the separation of front and back office operations; something that he believes has created many problems in public sector service delivery today. Maybe he is right. But when you read the article, what Chase is advocating makes sense and I can’t help thinking that it isn’t necessarily a bad idea, rather it is an idea that has been used badly.

Chase is an operations manager. By 1978 he had already co-authored a popular operations management text. He starts his paper stating that a manager needs to understand the ‘operating characteristics that set one service system apart from another’ in order to make improvements. Continue reading →

40 – Unskilled, unaware, or both? The Dunning–Kruger effect at work.

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Posted by Colin Weatherby                                                                                         800 words

One of my favourite sayings is that ‘anything is possible when you don’t know what you are talking about’. I have often wondered why I feel the need to use it so often at work. After a colleague sent me link on the Dunning-Kruger effect I am starting to understand why.

The Dunning–Kruger effect is named after David Dunning and Justin Kruger of Cornell University. They published ‘Unskilled and Unaware of It: How difficulties in Recognising One’s Own Incompetence Lead to Inflated Self-Assessments’ in 1999. The title gives you a good idea about the contents. The focus of the paper is;

We argue that when people are incompetent in the strategies they adopt to achieve success and satisfaction, they suffer a dual burden: Not only do they reach erroneous conclusions and make unfortunate choices, but their incompetence robs them of the ability to realise it.

Continue reading →

39 – Applying the public value scorecard in local government services. Part 2.

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Posted by Lancing Farrell                                                                                             780 words

This post continues discussion of the Public Value Scorecard by looking at the scorecards for legitimacy and support and the operational capacity.

Legitimacy and support scorecard

This scorecard links the external demands accountability in the authorising environment of the organisation, with ongoing public discourse on public value. The demands for accountability in the public sector are continuous and come from several sources. Individuals complain or join forces with others to form interest groups. The media amplifies the complaints of individuals and groups. Councillors represent their constituents and demand accountability. The Ombudsman, Auditor General and Local Government Inspector are powerful external sources of accountability. The real problem is that demands for accountability come from many different places and focus on different aspects of performance. Some are more disciplined and consistent than others. Continue reading →

38 – Applying the public value scorecard in local government services. Part 1.

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Posted by Lancing Farrell                                                                                              700 words

There have been a number of posts on public value (use the theme ‘public value’ to find them).  The idea that is is important and how it relates to private value has been discussed.  This post looks at how public value can be measured using the Public Value Scorecard. 

According to Mark H. Moore, public managers can improve the performance of public organisations by committing to the discipline of a public value ‘bottom line’. In the private sector, the ‘bottom line’ is a compelling and effective business concept. This post discusses the practical application of Moore’s public value scorecard in local government. Continue reading →

37 – Risk delegation. Who has it at your council?

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Posted by Colin Weatherby                                                                                         480 words

Have you ever wondered who has the formal delegation to accept risk on behalf of the organisation? I know that you probably spend most of your time dealing with systems that seek to reduce or eliminate risk, but what happens when risks must be taken? How do you assess and accept those risks?

My bet is that there is no system to accept risk and that your organisation has little understanding of the risks that are being taken by managers each day. I think that the absence of a system to formally assess and accept risks is the reason there are endless systems to get rid of it. I am not talking about the Risk Register and the big strategic or operational risks that are obvious to everyone. I am talking about the daily risks that arise when something hasn’t worked out the way you would like it to but work must go on. Continue reading →

36 – What did you like and dislike about your previous managers?

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Posted by Whistler                                                                                          430 words

A colleague told me recently that they had been asked, along with the other managers in their branch, to write a list of the things they had liked and disliked about their previous group managers. The intention was for the new group manager to understand how managers would prefer to work with him. The method of finding out was just a little unorthodox.

The list of likes and dislikes had to be submitted typed on plain paper in an unmarked envelope. Each manager’s anonymous list would then be re-typed onto a longer list to be tabled and discussed at a branch meeting. This whole approach made me think about my previous branch managers, so I made my own list. It was a cathartic exercise. I can recommend it. It is also a way to crystallise your own thinking about what works for you in your relationship with your manager.

Here are my lists. Continue reading →

35 – Accountability in local government. Who are we really accountable to and why does it matter?

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Posted by Lancing Farrell                                                                                              650 words

The demands for accountability in local government are continuous. The challenge is that they come from many different places and focus on different aspects of performance.   Sometimes they create conflicts. For example, strict adherence to procurement policies can remove the flexibility required to respond quickly and meet complex community needs. But it keeps the Audit Committee happy. A community interest group gains political support for a project that hasn’t been included in the budget. But the councillor and their constituents are happy. I am sure you can think of other examples. Continue reading →

34 – Middle managers in local government: the ‘scrapers of burnt toast’?

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Posted by Colin Weatherby                                                        620 words

burnt toast

This is the phrase used by Peter R. Scholtes in The Leaders Handbook to describe the work of many middle managers as ‘expediters or troubleshooters’ in organisations that have yet to eliminate waste and create ‘efficient, smooth, uncluttered flows of work’.   He says that in a ‘flat’ organisation the layers of middle management have been removed as part of the focus on eliminating waste. In an efficient system, they are unnecessary and non-value adding roles. I am sure he doesn’t think that middle managers aren’t required.  You just need less.  It is an interesting idea.

Scholtes says that removing layers as part of improving organisational performance reduces opportunities for promotion. As a result, people leave to find less efficient organisations where their skills in ‘expediting and troubleshooting’ are required to deal with inefficiencies and waste to make the system work. I started thinking about my role and the role of colleagues in middle management, and what we spend each day doing. What do we talk about when we meet in the corridors? Are we mostly adding value or just spending our time making dysfunctional systems work? Continue reading →

33 – Developing an organisational performance measurement system. Some ideas.

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Posted by Lancing Farrell                                                                                     820 words

I have been thumbing through ‘Improving Performance – How to Manage the White Space on the Organisation Chart’ by Geary A. Rummler and Alan P. Brache, in particular the chapter about performance measurement. In it they describe measurement is the single greatest determinant of an organisation’s effectiveness as a system, and as the primary tool for ‘communicating direction, establishing accountability, defining roles, allocating resources, monitoring/evaluating performance, and taking improvement action’.

I haven’t seen a local government that has actively used performance measurement this way. Instead, it tends to be driven by external accountability requirements. We use the performance measurement that we do to convince others that we are doing what we should. Continue reading →

32 – Deeper Water.

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Posted by Whistler                                                                                          230 words

deep water

I posted some weeks ago on whether or not local government is a country song. It started me thinking about the connection between popular culture and working in local government. In the Paul Kelly song ‘Deeper Water’ he describes the process of growing up and becoming an adult through a series of images beginning with the child guided into deeper water in the security of an adult’s company; the adolescent getting out of their depth in order to grow up; the young adult being taken into deeper water by life’s inevitable events only to discover they are now out of their depth; and finally, dealing with death and moving through the waves to calm water.

In many ways the story parallels our growth and development as professionals. We begin conscious that we don’t know what we are doing but having a go in the knowledge that you are supported by more experienced colleagues. We then start to take risks in trying out our own ideas and testing our ability in new situations. If we don’t do this we will always remain dependent on others. Then we realise we are competent and capable and we have to step up and accept responsibility. The challenge becomes delivering, not mastering. Finally, we move beyond the turbulence of learning and practising to understand the deeper meaning of what we are doing. The patterns underpinning our professional life have become apparent to us. We now know how to act effectively to change and improve what we are doing.

If we are lucky.  Some of us are just out of our depth.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gsm82xc43Oo