Operational Efficiency and Effectiveness LONG Overdue

SOURCE: RYAN COOL, PURCELLVILLE TOWN COUNCIL

Operational Audit is long overdue.
Long standing systemic issues that don't happen overnight.

This town's press release takes the soft approach. I will be providing additional information and data for each item that clearly illustrates long standing management inefficiencies that we have been mostly unaware of, until now.

TOWN OF PURCELLVILLE MANAGER TRANSITION CONTINUES PROGRESS WITH ENHANCEMENTS TO OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY AND EFFECTIVENESS
PURCELLVILLE, Va. April 24, 2018 — Purcellville’s new Town Manager, David Mekarski is settling in and getting to know the Town’s staff, citizens, and businesses. As we move forward, theTown of Purcellville would like to take this opportunity to express our gratitude for the strong performance and commitment of our Interim Town Manager, John Anzivino, and the guidance he provided during the transition to the Town’s permanent Town Manager. The Town benefited immensely from Mr. Anzivino’s experience and expertise and in the spirit of transparency and open governance, the Town would like to share his observations and recommendations.

Mr. Anzivino acknowledged that he encountered a challenging situation when he arrived. The Town faced significant issues with staffing and crises at every turn. However, through his practical leadership and dedication, we have accomplished much to move our administrative and operational service delivery and customer service to a greater level of efficiency and effectiveness.

The following highlight Town achievements under the leadership of Mr. Anzivino:

• Implemented the Fiscal Year 2019 budget review and adoption process, ensuring a high level of participation with key stakeholders and citizens of our Town while focusing on minimizing fiscal impact our residents and businesses; 
• The appointment of an Interim Town Attorney who provided significant assistance to guide the Council, in its investigative process, leading the Council on clear path to identify truth, administer justice, and work toward the resolution of the administrative instability impacting the organization; 
• Solicited Request for Proposals for the Town’s first Classification/Compensation System review and Personnel Policy overhaul since 2005/2007; 
• Addressed problems stemming from a leaking water tank and an underfunded water tank maintenance project; 
• Pursued a contract to purchase filters at a discounted rate for the wastewater treatment plant, saving the Town thousands of dollars a year from our former procurement process; 
• Worked with Council for the recruitment and evaluation of candidates for a new Town Manager; 
• Expanded, reviewed and adjusted administrative policies leading to improved governance practices including but not limited to greater internet security, a more defined FOIA policy, improved hiring practices, and a better records retention system; 
• Moved forward with the organizational assessment/operational assessment process; 
• Concluded the first phase of an investigation of a range of events that Mr. Anzivino defined as the “Perfect Storm” of local government and taking positive action to begin a return to organizational normalcy and with the selection of our new Town Manager toward a path organizational excellence. 

Mr. Anzivino outlined recommendations for the new Town Manager which will help guide the new administration to work with the Mayor and Council on an organizational assessment and the implementation of measures to strengthen the efficiency and effectiveness to all operations.

The outlined recommendations are:

• Personnel Policy – update the 2005 policy to current federal/state law and best practices 
• Completion of a New Classification and Compensation Study – utilizing outside resources 
• Address the Town’s Outdated Emergency Operations Plan – it is recommended that the Town convene a panel of staff to identify deficiencies and update the plan to include local fire, EMS and County resources 
• Develop a Master Plan for New Water Meter Installation and Rollout 
• Develop a Detailed Technology Plan – outlining the Town’s goals for use of technology, both hardware and software, to ensure that the Town makes the best investments in the future 
• Coordination of Software Purchases with the IT Department 
• Build Department Head Accountability for Budget Management and Personnel – expand the annual evaluation process to ensure department heads are being assessed on specific aspects of personnel and departmental management practices and are measured against those criteria as key factors of their departmental business plan. 
• Development of a Records and Retention Policy and Records Storage/Recovery System 
• Cultivate and Nurture a Staff Culture of Creativity – encourage creativity in addressing and solving problems coupled with recognition for creative solutions. 
• Foster a Culture to Address Issues Proactively – focus efforts on looking to the future to identify and evaluate potential issues rather than a reactive approach. 
• Simplify Meeting Agendas – to streamline and increase efficiency of meetings 
• Development/Update of Internal Administrative Policy Manual – review and update existing manual 
• Development of a Press Release Policy – to define what items and events should be released to ensure that they are timely and noteworthy to capture the press’ undivided attention as oversaturation results in diminished interest. 

Mr. Anzivino charted a path to help make our Town stronger and higher performing and to set the stage for Mr. Mekarski, our new Town Manager. We look forward to working with Mr. Mekarski on the continued implementation of positive change as we strive to continue to provide the citizens of Purcellville the open, transparent, and effective governance they deserve.

The following items are per former Interim Town Manager, John Anzivino.

Item #1 - Lack of Planning for New Water Meter Installation and Roll Out
The Town has embarked on a program of replacing older ‘radio read’ water meters with meters that read continuously allowing staff to monitor customer usage on a continuous basis, providing opportunities to identify leaks and unusual patterns of usage to be addressed prior to the next schedule bill being prepared. Unfortunately, there appears to have been no uniform plan in place concerning where new meters will be installed and what challenges may exist in ensuring they read properly. Consequently, the system has resulted in new and old meters being placed in residences next to one another resulting in inconsistent information being made available to customers when problems occur. In addition, the newly purchased meters, in some cases, have not had strong enough, or clear line of site signal to the software system which logs in the meter reading data, resulting in reading inaccuracies. In addition, only limited planning appears to have been given to integrating the old and the new software systems relative to the meter reading and billing systems.

Item #2 - Building Department Head Accountability for Budget Management and Personnel

Discussions with key staff lead to a sense that some department staff who are in responsible positions do not truly have a sense of accountability for preparation and management of their departmental budgets nor do some understand their primary responsibilities as managers of personnel. This is borne out by some recent budget amendments for major contracts and what seems to be a high rate of turnover for probationary employees.

All department heads need to be evaluated annually as to how they manage their departments, with one possibility being development of an annual ‘business plan’ in concert with their budget submission. Realistic budgets (forecasts and expenditure levels), staff hiring and turnover, suggested and achieved training courses related to employee development, success in meeting goals and related factors need to be included as a business practice, and staff, including department heads, need to be measured against those criteria as key factors of the departments business plan.

Item #3 - Outdated Emergency Operations Plan

During the recent wind event the Town and Town Hall lost power for several days. In accessing the Town’s Emergency Management Plan (EMP) I found it was outdated and dealt with few of chapters of what typically constitutes an EMP. Limited protocols exist in regard how to communicate with citizens, with outside agencies and who takes the lead on what. In addition, we found that Town Hall’s generator, while having the capability to provide a higher level of electricity to the building, only provides enough power for lighting for only a few areas; not the whole building and does not provide enough power to provide heating or cooling to any portion of the building. The recently identified deficiencies leave the Town with a system which is less than optimum for employees who are needed to provide service and citizens who may be in need of service during emergency events.

Item #4 - Lack of Coordination in Software Purchases – Lack of a True Technology Plan

Minor software purchases have been carried out by various departments in the past with no consultation with the Town’s IT Director, even though an informal policy requiring review of the purchase prior to purchase was in place. This practice can result in seemingly good and beneficial software packages being purchased, that when needs arise, cannot be integrated (data or process) with one another leading to more work to extract the data needed and leading to inefficiencies.

The Town has invested in technology as would be expected for a community in a county like Loudoun. Unfortunately, in some cases, software investments haven’t always been coordinated with IT. In addition, the Town while having a rudimentary IT plan admits it is not all inclusive and as forward looking as it might like.

Item #5 - Outdated Personnel Policy

The last update to the Town’s personnel policies was completed and published in 2005. The framework is still valid, but much of the language is outdated and changes in law and practice are not reflected at 2018 levels. Quotations are currently being sought for an update.

Item #6 - Outdated Classification and Compensation System

The Town’s classification and compensation system was last updated in the 2005 to 2007 timeframe. Over the ten to twelve year period jobs have been added to and deleted from the Town system and many have had changed duties which materially affect the value of the skills required to do the job. Some jobs have been added to the system without a systematic evaluation of the job and have been placed in pay grades on a ‘best fit’ basis leading to potential inequities when comparing similar types of jobs. In addition, the pay schedule has not been updated and at least twelve employees are placed above the maximum and continue to receive increases even though they would have been ‘topped out’ in most systems. In addition, a competitive analysis of benefits has not been completed and may not reflect shifting trends in employee participation rates and overall allocations. Quotations are currently being sought for an update.

Item #7 - Building a Staff Culture of Creativity - Building a Culture Which Addresses Issues ‘Head On’ in a Proactive, Rather Than Reactive Manner

Creativity in solving problems appears to be a challenge in some areas. In many cases we do not look beyond Purcellville for best practices which often can be ‘stolen’ from other entities and adapted to fit the Town’s needs.

Town staff appear to have good ideas on how to solve problems. In many cases, I have found that they have been hesitant to bring them to the table because in prior years they were not implemented or were not considered when raised. In addition, when needed resources were required to resolve an issue related to a related problem or issue that could be fixed at the same time they were not allowed to fix both issues concurrently. Finally, issues appear to arise that could be dealt with before they become issues if staff had been given the opportunity to look to the future and evaluate how dealing with current issues often impacts the future.

Welcome to Election Season

WoW! You can really tell it is election season. The people I thought were respected in the community have really shown their spots. I have learned they are two-faced and that's not the kind of community I thought I lived in. Many may be found on the lesser Facebook group known as Purcellville Matters unCENSORED.  These same people welcomed me when I arrived many years ago and now, they are some of the nastiest people I know. If only their children could see their behavior.

The post below is from the group’s leader. 

Let me address his points here.  Let me first say that I have not met Chris Thompson.  I don’t work with Chris Thompson and have no idea about his leadership skills nor his integrity.  What this writer is saying is that Thompson’s skills are superior to our current Mayor Fraser’s skills. Honestly, I can only know the skills of our current Mayor which has been thoughtful, methodical and transparent.  Unless you’ve worked with Thompson, how could you possibly know this?

I am so proud of Mayor Fraser for doing something NO ONE has done before, collecting data before making rash decisions.  If the previous mayor had done this we wouldn't be in the financial pickle we are now and wouldn’t have that Town Mahal that keeps us spending money.  So if collecting data is bad before making a financial decision, then I can see why he's on "Team Bob" aka Chris Thompson.

This “writer” states that Mayor Fraser’s leadership skills and his private agenda (hahahahaha) has “cost the taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars”.  What the "writer" is really saying is that he and Rob Lohr had a great relationship to get things accomplished for his family business.  Talk about hundreds of thousands of dollars!  Look at what the costs of 21^st Street was for the improvements.  You ask, how is that related to the Chapman development?  Banks want to assure that the area is viable before giving money for the project.  They also want to make sure that things like utilities are available, and that it can be easily marketed to new tenants.  With recently revitalized sidewalks and scapes, this will be more attractive to tenants.  This is not just your money, this money came from a grant from the State for this improvement, so this is everyone’s money!  I wonder if I told someone in Ashburn, “thanks for helping with the Purcellville beautification project”, what their response would be.  No wonder he was outspoken when Rob retired, and I believe he’s still whining about it.  My goodness!  Let the man do what he wants.  Since when can you not change careers?

He also says that Mayor Fraser has a private agenda.  I wonder what that is because his agenda seems to focus on the citizens of this great town and stay involved in the community.  What an upbeat and approachable individual Mayor Fraser is.  You mean like the $300K private agenda of the former mayor, that assured that the funds to his new employer, Northern Virginia Regional Commission (NVRC) would be available to "carry out its mission" for the military bases, upon his retirement as mayor, as Purcellville proudly stood by as the pass-through agent for the funds?  Forgot about that didn't you?   

The “writer” also says that he talks with businesses weekly that steer away from Purcellville.  He says that Purcellville’s reputation has suffered and says it’s a fact but provides no facts to back it up.  If he’s talking about the FAKE media thats swirling, well, that’s how they sell ads and soon enough their laptops will close because this Mayor and Council did nothing to create this fictitious turmoil in town.  What is the “writer” saying, that he didn’t want the procedures to be followed when complaints are brought forward.

What the "writer" wants to create is a message to the people of Purcellville that the sky is falling.  His superhero is Thompson who will guide the town staff to do more special favors for developers and continue to expand the town beyond its borders through annexation.  Annexation is not the answer.  It leads to more road congestion and overcrowding in schools.  Who pays for that?  EVERY TAXPAYER!

The culture the town staff depleted when Rob’s main goal was to breathe over their shoulder in his micromanagement style.  Watching who came to the front door via the cameras and listening to phone conversations and yes auditing email traffic.  That is not what a manager does.  The manager trusts his staff to accomplish the mission of the people.  It’s sad to say, but I think he didn’t trust his staff.  When the staff tell you that they are being watched by Rob, as a citizen you wonder what it must be like for these employees. Chapman you are correct on about the Town Council.  They should have evaluated Rob’s performance in more detail before the employees were overburdened by his management style.  Luckily for Rob, he retired before they had that opportunity.  In this same comment you state that the employees were afraid they may lose their jobs if they came forward about abuses, seems officers came forward, so it can’t be all of staff that was afraid. 

I'm thinking that each of these "likes" to the post from Purcellville Matters unCENSORED may have something to loose if a new mayor is elected.   

The “writer” won’t comment on this post, but I am sure his trolls will.

The Difference Between Elected Officials and Hired Staff

The community chatter is gainfully engaged with some added finger-pointing at the elected officials over the issues that occurred last year and are still on-going through an independent investigation.

First, let me set everyone straight, the Mayor and Council (all of the them) do not operate the town.  They do not make personnel decisions, with the exception of the Town Manager and the Town Attorney.  Issues that have come to light are the responsibilities of those in leaderships positions in the town which include the Town Manager and the Department Managers.  Many think that the Mayor and Town Council hired the Public Works Director, who was placed in a temporary, interim Town Manager responsibility.  They did not.  They selected him as an interim probably because he manages the largest department in town and has been tasked with the position previously.  The public also thinks the Town Council fired the Police Chief.  They did not.  Hiring and firing of staff is the responsibility of the Town Manager. 

Secondly, it is obvious that the existing town policies have not been adhered to in the past, or there were none.  It is the Town Council's responsibility under the leadership of the Mayor to develop policy.  It is the Town Manager's responsibility to enforce it.  Conducting an operational audit will reveal deficiencies to Council and lead them where policy needs to be developed or improved.  Beyond this level of oversight, the Town Council performs no work for the people of Purcellville.  It is ultimately the responsibility of the hired staff, not the elected officials, to accomplish the goals of the people.  The Town Council is your voice. 

The two town employees, the Town Manager and the Town Attorney will still be managed, as written in the Town's charter, by the Mayor and Town Council.  What I recently discovered when reviewing last year's budget, was that the organization chart had changed to where the Town Attorney was now reporting to the Town Manager, Rob Lohr.  That in itself is not what the Town's charter dictates.

Notice below that the org chart for FY 2016-2017 had Sally Hankins, Town Attorney with a dotted line to the Town Manager, indicating conferring with the Town Manager, and a solid line to the Town Council, indicating reporting to the Town Council. 

Then in FY 2017-2018, the chart magically changed to have Hankins report directly to Lohr.  Before the budget was finalized Lohr retired.

Maybe it was just an oversight, maybe not.  There have been many internal personnel changes the Town Council, the public's representatives, were not made aware of.  These org charts are fun, don't you agree?  If you want to look at more, they can be found on the Town's website under:

      Government>Documents>Finanical Documents>Prior Year Budgets

Or click here to access them. 

When the budget sessions begin, one of the items covered in department's funding is employees, whether they need an additional part-time or full-time employee, whether there will be changes in department mission and have cause for a reduction.  The accountability that the Town Council is tasked with is overseeing that the funds are allocated to perform the mission of the citizens, providing us water and maintaining our assets.  They are the oversight on spending. The key words in all of this is oversight. 

There are so many unanswered questions involving poor decisions by staff.  Why was the Town Hall purchased for an extraordinary amount over assessment? 

Why was the Chairman of the Planning Commission involved in design of the new Town Hall, and was paid by the Town, a direct conflict of interest?

What is Northern Virginia Regional Commission and why was the organization paid $300,000 by Purcellville, in former Mayor, Bob Lazaro last year in service, which he is the Director of the Northern Virginia Regional Commission.   What does Northern Virginia Regional Commission do for Purcellville? 

Why was the traffic study being conducted between Catoctin Meadows and Country Club interrupted by the Fire Department?  If a permit was needed to block the street, then where was the permit when other streets were blocked?  Why didn't staff know about the permit process?

Why was core sampling not performed on the 21st Street Streetscape project in the area where the fuel tanks under the street were surprisingly discovered?  (even though there are historical photographs that reveal it)  Was there a permit from the Fire Department for this?  Why did the Fire Department's concern for the redesign of 21st Street go ignored? 

Why is the Train Station under utilized and not paying for itself?  If you are a non-profit I understand you get the use at a discounted rate.  But if you don't have documentation, as indicated on the reservation application, indicating that you are a non-profit, you don't get it for the reduced rate, I don't care if your book club isn't making money. The answer is no, you pay the full amount. 

Why is the Southern Collector Road under utilized?   Because it's a further distance for some.  Many stop in at businesses on the way home from work.  Or is the real reason to put a school in for the church?  Maybe to ruin Crooked Run Farm?

What is the policy for businesses that store exercise equipment on the side of the building for years?  Is there any civil penalties for that eyesore?

When will Purcellville truly be walkable?  32nd Street anyone?   You take your life in your hands trying to walk in the ditch. And no, traffic is not going 25 mph.

Why was an Assistant Town Manager ever needed?  Just a thought, but maybe the Town Manager was busy micro-managing.  A Town Manager that commands a hefty six-figure salary, plus a monthly stipend,  such that the Town is offering should be able to manage 6-10 people. 

I am sure that you can think of some of your own questions to ask of why things happen or don't happen in town.  It would be good to share with the Town Council as they start to look into an operational audit. 

For more information on the relationship and responsibilities of elected officials and hired staff click here.