by Mike Ososki, PMP
Another delicious PMI dinner at Maggiano’s. While most of us indulged in a nice variety of Italian culinary delights, we networked by telling everyone two truths and one lie. The trick was to pick out the lie—not easy! Then came announcements—see them all on our Event Calendar.
Srinivas Jalla, P.E., PMP then shared from his 25+ years of high level private and public business leadership experience. He spoke to us about “Tailoring PM Skills to Maximize Public Sector Effectiveness,” especially in the areas of change management. He asserts that, as a Project Manager, “You are a Change Agent,” and helped us see how to create the conditions required for the desired change and develop the metrics to monitor it.
As a springboard, Srinivas used a Gwinnett County public sector case study: OPA : Operational and Performance Assessment. This is an objective and comprehensive assessment to ensure future sustainability. It addressed the current state, and the enablement of positive change operational excellence to maximize efficiency and effectiveness.
Phase 1 was an assessment completed in December 2022. It included review of existing processes and policies in (14) County departments, 100s of interviews. 1000+ survey responses, plus job shadows and field verification. These resulted in 500+ recommendations and a 1,300-page report. Interestingly, 61% of those involved were staff/non-supervisory personnel whose contributions and observations resulted in 41% of the recommendations.
Phase 2 was implementation—”to break the mold.” Diverse cross-functional teams of County employees led the charge, with no department leaders involved. The expectation was to provide regular updates and address every observation and recommendation.
Voila! – we have a project: scope, authority/charter, approach, team, roles & responsibilities, schedule and risks. The operating environment included the organization, OPA teams, and front-line employees. Some elements were financial (do more with less), institutional resistance, no external help or model to follow, more responsibility with no change in workload, and long-term engagement with no tangible incentive. It was especially challenging for the front-line, who had no incentive to change, with limited trust in government and prioritizing job stability for themselves.
So the game plan was to have a consistent approach with one voice, to be decentralized and employee-driven, and again, achieve operational excellence. Perhaps the toughest nut to crack was culture change.
Good news! It mostly worked, with over 30% of recommendations being addressed. The OPA teams earned trust from the frontline employees. They felt heard, with a sense of belonging, and brought up new issues and ideas. The OPA teams worked hard to sustain energy and passion, knowing that success feeds passion, which is contagious.
Dissatisfaction leads to desire for change—the primary fuel. It makes a compelling case and often requires encouragement from leadership. The vision must be clear and succinct, aligning with values and beliefs. The first steps must be practical, clear and easy, emphasizing to retain motivation and celebrate progress. All of these must then add up to be greater than the resistance to change. Gwinnett’s approach was People FIRST and take time to build trust.
Finally, monitor the metrics. Focus on leading metrics that are measurable, influenceable, and predictive. Focus on behavior such as autonomy, engagement and exploration. Reach acceptance and support objective solutions. Guide everyone through the Kübler-Ross change curve:
