National Association of Counties *
Washington, D.C. Vol. 32,
No. 15 * August 14, 2000
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Free Refills
A great county labor relations manager, Kevin B. Kelleher, recently
spoke of having lunch at a fairly expensive restaurant only to find that
he was charged for refills of his beloved diet soda. This led to a
discussion of quality of service and offering more than the customer might
expect.
This exceed expectations way of thinking has great merit
in public administration, especially since many of the customers of
government agencies would rather not be required to have a building
inspection, be incarcerated in the county jail, be a guest of the county
court system, etc.
On the other hand, most county customers
represent a wide cross section of the community who use 9-1-1 emergency
dispatch, parks, libraries, animal care, and a whole lot more even if they
may not appreciate or understand the complexity of delivering these
services.
There are many opportunities to provide free refills in
the way county business is conducted. Free refills represent a synergy
among services, increasing their value to the citizens and helping build a
stronger community. Local governments can do this far better than the more
distant state or federal levels. However, examples such as those that
follow will not surface without an administrative environment that
supports suggestions and innovations. They will not surface in an
environment presided over by Godzilla The Manager (see the HR Doctor, June 7,
1999). They will not develop in an environment that does not recognize
and appreciate the contribution of employees.
Here are some free
refills for readers to consume and think about:
- Why not station a firefighter/paramedic at a school to serve as a
resource officer? Not only might these employees be a bit less
foreboding to children than police officers; they may also be able to
provide health information, immunizations and basic first aid as well as
immediate acute emergency intervention.
They could also speak of
the dangers of drug and alcohol abuse, driving without a seatbelt or
simply not taking good care of oneself with more authority than a
teacher. This is an opportunity for partnership and shared funding with
school districts.
- What about using the thousands of senior citizen contacts through
Area Agencies on Aging to serve as a volunteer clearinghouse to put
mentors, reading tutors and story tellers into libraries or recreation
programs?
- Day care licensing programs could expand to provide a database
matching senior citizens interested and able to provide one-on-one
after-school companionship to a lonely latchkey child.
- The experience and knowledge of the medical examiner can help
educate first offender drunk drivers or drug users to better appreciate
the pain and suffering their actions cause. This could be done with
training programs, lectures or supervised viewing of an autopsy. The
medical examiner can also do as Broward Countys Dr. Joshua Perper has
done, and create anti-smoking information for students, focusing on how
lung cancer destroys healthy tissue.
- Law enforcement or human services can identify frail and infirm
senior citizens and arrange for regular phone calls to check up on them
and demonstrate that someone cares.
- Recreation employees are naturals for encouraging health and
wellness and can spread this positive message by programs that leave the
confines of a park and are delivered in a manner similar to Meals On
Wheels to retirement homes and shelters for abused children or domestic
violence victims.
- Engineers can adopt a school science club and develop internships to
encourage students from the community to consider public service as a
career.
These are only a few examples of doing little things at little or no
cost that improve the services we provide (i.e., free
refills).
The reality is that every county employee can be a
positive role model for public service. When we step back from day-to-day
administration and problem solving, we can see what a difference county
services, in partnership with other agencies, have on the lives of
individuals and the community at large. By offering and creating free
refills, value-added services built on existing county functions, the
result can be spectacular!
Kevin, I owe you a lunchwith
refills.
The HR Doctor wishes you all the best. Visit the office
at http://www.hrdr.net/.
Sincerely,
(Rosenberg is the Human Resources director for Broward
County, Fla.)
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