Agenda - Council Work Session - 10/03/2006

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Quality of Service Participants largely believe that public perception of city services is good, but can't be certain if this is true. A frequently expressed question was, "If I don't know what resident expectations are, does anyone else that works here?" Similar questions arose regarding the types of services the City should offer, and the level of service expected by residents. There is also a belief that new residents' expectations for services are greater than current residents. Most felt that a community -wide survey was needed to help the City set priorities and direct resources into the most appropriate areas. Major Challenges The biggest challenge on everyone's mind is the Town Center project. There is need for the Council and Management Team to fully understand the changes that Town Center will bring to the way services are delivered. Further discussion and awareness of service issues related to Town Center needs to factored into the City's organizational planning. A related challenge concerns communications, particularly in relation to the Town Center project. Council and senior staff should continue to emphasize_ clear communication of the City's current initiatives, goals, and activities. These communications should information on special projects as well as developments within the City's core services. The other major challenge identified was the increasing rate of change in the community and the organization. While many of the younger staff seem to be comfortable dealing with rapid change, the pace is of greater concern to long-time employees. Some feel that training on change management would be helpful for the organization. Communication The speed of decision-making causes concern with a number of employees, though they do feel that the Management Team is open, responsive, and listens to them. Employees believe that they can bring up negative or controversial issues at any time to the Management Team. They feel that they are empowered to make day-to-day decisions and get support from the Management Team. One statement illustrating this feeling was "it's OK to make a mistake here, which I did not feel I could do in positions in other cities." Staff understands that due to time constraints, decisions need to be made and then communicated down the hierarchy, sometimes against their input, but they feel "invested" in the City and want more discussion of issues that affect their daily work.