Off the top

The County’s chief administrative officer Merlin Dewing

County to eliminate eight senior positions; $1.2 million in savings

The County took another big step toward fixing its business last week— trimming its senior ranks by eight positions—with more to come.

After two rounds and several months of analysis and assessment, County manager Merlin Dewing has eliminated 34 positions while creating 26 new positions. He expects the changes to result in operational savings of more than $1.2 million per year. This represents about a 12 per cent reduction in staffing costs budgeted at just under $10 million, excluding H.J. Mc- Farland Memorial Home and the Fire Department, in 2012.

Earlier this summer, Dewing announced he was cutting senior staffing ranks in half—eliminating commissioner positions in Planning as well as Recreation, Parks and Culture—restructuring the municipality’s operations under two commissions: one broadly defined as infrastructure; the other overseeing finance and services. He has retained human resources as well as the problem child of Economic Development, now Community Development, under his direct oversight.

Dewing says the County’s operation has burdened itself with too many layers of management and entangled itself with too much process.

“Everything had to go upstairs for an answer,” said Dewing. “Staff couldn’t make decisions on their own.”

He says this exercise is meant to push decision-making and accountability deeper into the organization, guided by clear policies and procedures.

Mayor Peter Mertens

“We are looking to create a leaner organization,” said Dewing.

Council, he says, is buying into the idea of delegating authority. But Dewing suggests he and council have more work to do to define the goals, objectives and policies that will guide the new structure.

“It is not just about changing the organization; if we don’t change the way we define and use policies, procedures and methods then we will have to rethink the entire exercise. In absence of clear goals and objectives it is difficult to measure against them.”

He doesn’t mask the difficulty of this task, nor the anxiety restructuring has caused and continues to churn within his organization. But he profoundly believes that the culture within the County’s business must change.

“There will be difficult changes because we are thinking very differently about how we do business,” said Dewing. “All our managers know that we are changing the way we do business and they have to embrace that.”

A harder sell may be to the rank and file. The next phase of restructuring will examine the general staffing complement of the municipality. Dewing expects a comparable number of jobs contracted among staff, but anticipates smaller impact on costs due to the difference in salary levels between management and staff. In particular, he sees an abundance of administrative staff. He expects attrition and retirement will achieve much of the targeted staffing reduction.

He reports that morale among staff is mixed.

“Those who understood we were fluffy at the top see this as a positive direction,” said Dewing. “Obviously there are some who are concerned about their job and their futures. But these aren’t jobs for life. What we are trying to do is create an organization that is responsive and lean.”

In a statement Mayor Peter Mertens underlined the significance of this sometimes painful restructuring.

“Each of these steps brings us closer to our goal of a brighter future for the County,” said Mertens. “Together they lead to the creation of a streamlined and sustainable municipality with effective customer service delivery.”

Mertens commended council for working together to achieve these structural changes and lower costs. He acknowledged that there is not always agreement on the manner of change but notes that there is a widely shared view among council members that organizational change is long overdue.