There’s more than one way to change an organization. I’ve thought, over the years, that there were two principal ways: begin by shaping the attitude of employees, or by shaping their behavior. (I see that it’s possible to begin with both, but my point would be that one typically begins by emphasizing one over the other.)
Change the feelings and attitudes of associates and one hopes to change consequently their behavior, to the betterment of an organization and its patrons.
Change the behavior of associates, and one hopes that these new behaviors will lead to a new attitude toward the organization, from associates and clients.
Each of these methods are meant to lead to the same place – a better organization.
Looking at the current municipal administration, under city manager Kevin Brunner, there was an early effort to shape attitude, within the administration, but quickly set aside. Early use of slogans, like a saying from hamburger magnate Ray Kroc, constituted part of this effort.
(I think I have the origin of the saying right; I’m not certain, as I have never read the collected works of that hamburger king.)
It didn’t last, likely for inability to overcome entrenched resistance from long-standing employees and their friends in town. It’s natural to meet resistance, but it must be overcome in ways other than complaining, whining, or getting upset.
Those who won’t change after thorough discussion need to be disciplined or removed.
That hasn’t happened in this administration, for a few reasons. First, leadership knows less than it thinks it knows, so associates come to see contradictions and inconsistencies. Some of these emperors are under-dressed.
Second, leadership in the city is often thin-skinned, and associates quickly see the weakness in that hyper-sensitivity. The minute someone seems concerned about his public image, he’s easy prey for backbiting employees.
Third, when one people realize that there are no consequences for obstruction, or that enforcement against obstruction will be administered haphazardly, there will only be more obstruction.
Paper tigers catch no prey.
Yet, beyond all the internal fuss and drama, there’s a city to manage. It’s a troubled city with poverty, unemployment, and competitive challenges from other communities.
If changing the attitudes and behaviors of our municipal staff has proved far beyond our municipal leadership, then what is to be done?
There’s a third option, one that’s unsound, but that has been the path of our current city manager and his predecessor. The city commits to a never-ending series of public works projects, to gain support from a few hundred people, and to convince countless more, that all is well.
After all, the city’s on the move, and it must be doing well, or we wouldn’t have a new roundabout, park shelter, lake front area, etc.
The harder work of governance, based on sound principles, diligently defended, is set aside for an ever-growing Potemkin village.
I’m being unfair – it’s not that these projects have no value to the lives of thousands, it’s that they have negligible value.
They do, however, make great photographs.
All the while, as the city spends taxpayer money and issues bonds as debt, it over-regulates and holds back the productive, private initiative that needs no municipal guidance.
We find ourselves with a few new projects that are merely valentines from a taxpayer-funded administration to itself, without change in poverty, or permanent improvement in employment.
These projects are also a huge burden on city government, for negligible or no gain to the community. The administration finds itself acting as a magician, looking for the next, supposedly amazing feat, to captivate a small circle of town squires and cheerleaders.
There are only so many plates one can keep spinning, before the spectacle loses interest, and the china crashes in any event.
In this regard, our current municipal administration is no different from the one before – the hard work of day-to-day governance has been replaced with project-building, dumb show, and incredible pronouncements about each supposed accomplishment.