The Council has held 2 budget deliberations meetings so far with sparse attendance. There are several more scheduled before the end of this fiscal year. I want to take the opportunity to personally invite you to attend these meetings. The next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, March 31 at 8:00pm at City Hall Library. Your input is not only desired, but necessary.
While I am not a member of the finance committee, I did want to share some of my thoughts. Sitting in these meetings brings back memories of management courses heavily based on the teachings of Porter, Senge and Drucker. What would these management gurus say about Plainfield? Probably something simple, obvious and catchy but previously not clearly stated. For example, Plainfield should implement the “3 Ps - Priorities, Process, Performance”.
1. PRIORITIES - We need to prioritize the services we want. Having limited resources means we need to make tough decisions. Several Councilors have already suggested adopting a list of priorities and I agree whole-heartedly.
2. PROCESS - We need a yearlong budget process encompassing both passing the budget and managing it throughout the year. The Finance Committee is already working on a process to pass the budget for this year and next. I would also like to see how the Council will oversee the budget throughout the year. For example, reporting on monthly department spending would give us an idea of where we are over budget or under budget and allow us to work with the CFO to encumber department budgets when necessary. In other words, it allows for more controlled spending.
3. PERFORMANCE - We must measure the impact of spending. This will ensure that we are getting a return on our tax dollars. In addition, it sets the standard for one year so that we can raise the bar in the next year. This was discussed during budget meetings held last fall and should be continued this year.
I hope to see more residents at the next meeting.
.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Monday, March 2, 2009
IT in Plainfield (Part III)
The Administration pulled the Salary Ordinance for the Director of Data Processing off the agenda tonight. I am happy to say that the Administration has promised to give the Council a detailed presentation on the creation of this position at the March 9th meeting, allowing the Council more information and time before deciding how to move forward.
Detailed presentations illustrating the thought process behind making any decision should be standard. It should be the rule and not the exception. Going forward the Council must accept nothing less. I look forward to seeing a thorough presentation by the Administration.
As I have stated before, I am committed to bringing Plainfield’s technology into the 21st Century; however, I want to make sure that the decision on HOW to do this is well thought-out and carefully considered. I am accountable to the residents of Plainfield and I have not forgotten my promises to taxpayers.
Without the support of residents via response to my blog entry, phone calls and e-mails sent to me and other Council members, I would not be reporting such an outcome. THANK YOU!
I have posed a number of questions over the past several weeks that have gone unanswered. I have listed those questions (and the suggested questions of resident Sandy Gurshman) below. Please suggest any additional questions that should be addressed next week.
1. What will be the total IT cost (best estimate will do) for the remainder of this year? What are the annualized costs?
2. How does the City plan to off-set these costs?
3. What research has been done on the possibility of a shared service agreement, either to replace or to supplement the position of a Director?
4. Are there other options? (ex: Livingston has an IT Manager at 70k/yr)
5. What are the expected outcomes of hiring a Director of Data Processing?
.
Detailed presentations illustrating the thought process behind making any decision should be standard. It should be the rule and not the exception. Going forward the Council must accept nothing less. I look forward to seeing a thorough presentation by the Administration.
As I have stated before, I am committed to bringing Plainfield’s technology into the 21st Century; however, I want to make sure that the decision on HOW to do this is well thought-out and carefully considered. I am accountable to the residents of Plainfield and I have not forgotten my promises to taxpayers.
Without the support of residents via response to my blog entry, phone calls and e-mails sent to me and other Council members, I would not be reporting such an outcome. THANK YOU!
I have posed a number of questions over the past several weeks that have gone unanswered. I have listed those questions (and the suggested questions of resident Sandy Gurshman) below. Please suggest any additional questions that should be addressed next week.
1. What will be the total IT cost (best estimate will do) for the remainder of this year? What are the annualized costs?
2. How does the City plan to off-set these costs?
3. What research has been done on the possibility of a shared service agreement, either to replace or to supplement the position of a Director?
4. Are there other options? (ex: Livingston has an IT Manager at 70k/yr)
5. What are the expected outcomes of hiring a Director of Data Processing?
.
IT in Plainfield (Part II)
I shared the following information at Monday night's council meeting:
On Thursday evening I called for an IT committee meeting. The Union County Director of Data Processing agreed to come in and share her opinion on creating the position of an IT Director. During our initial phone conversation she was adamantly opposed to creating this position, suggesting instead that 2 technicians would get Plainfield moving in the right direction. At the meeting, however, she presented the opposite viewpoint - that an IT Director IS needed. I was thrown off by this change in opinion; however, I wanted to share this new piece of information with the public.
If there is a need to bring in a technology professional with a high-level understanding of technological processes and systems, then we should continue to look into what options exist to meet those needs.
.
On Thursday evening I called for an IT committee meeting. The Union County Director of Data Processing agreed to come in and share her opinion on creating the position of an IT Director. During our initial phone conversation she was adamantly opposed to creating this position, suggesting instead that 2 technicians would get Plainfield moving in the right direction. At the meeting, however, she presented the opposite viewpoint - that an IT Director IS needed. I was thrown off by this change in opinion; however, I wanted to share this new piece of information with the public.
If there is a need to bring in a technology professional with a high-level understanding of technological processes and systems, then we should continue to look into what options exist to meet those needs.
.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)