I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 3:14 Imagine trying to swim against the current in this picture. Impossible, if not for some force outside yourself. I sometimes think of the journey of faith as being on a river. We want to get upstream, to life, not downstream to death. Yet, the journey upstream is not easy. In fact, if we do …
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I’m working with a local government department director who regularly talks about “his projects”, “his people” and “his plan”. No mention of the team, but a lot of mentions about him. It’s probably natural to talk this way, but it doesn’t speak to humility or teamwork – both important traits that value others. Something about the language of “me” drives me crazy. He’s subtly saying “he” has all the answers and everyone else is at there to serve …
Local government leaders we meet with tend to focus intentionally on a few key priorities. They: Consistently reinforce the organization’s purpose and major goals Measure and track performance and Invest in each team member so they are positioned for success This blog is about 4 ideas you can implement to invest in your team. The most effective community leaders with whom we’ve worked understand that developing their team fosters loyalty, camaraderie and a commitment to greater service. As Teddy Roosevelt said, “people …
You may be wondering what WIGS and local government have in common. The WIG I’m talking about is a “wildly important goal”. WIGs are extremely important goals that can change the landscape of an organization. A WIG is such an overpowering goal, that if you accomplish it, you will likely (as a side benefit) make big headway on 2-3 related goals. For instance, if you solve a challenging crime problem, you may also indirectly improve your economic development problem, your …
One of the things we observe a lot of in serving local government leaders is a lack of time to focus on strategic goals. Everyone’s plate is full. As leaders of key departments in cities and counties it’s imperative that you find ways to delegate projects and routine items to others on your team. But, we sometimes we don’t want to delegate because: No one can do is as well as us. No one else has room on their …
Georgia cities and counties that regularly measure both current performance and progress toward future goals are ahead of their peers. Having access to metrics, seeing changes in performance over time and then tracking future-facing initiatives is vital to providing quality service delivery. Tracking Current Activity Progress Over Time Your city or county likely tracks numerous activities each day, week or month. While you may be tracking current performance in areas like law enforcement or water quality, how many …
Committing to and achieving something becomes more of a reality when we state exactly what we want. If I tell you I’m going to publish an RFP for a new software for the City or County, that’s not a very compelling goal. But if I tell you I’m going to draft, approve and advertise the RFP by February 10th, that’s stronger. The specifics drive me to act. When we talk about goals in specific terms, we move to commitment. Committing fully to goals is …
Sometimes big projects that are new to us or are filled with lots of stages of deployment can seem overwhelming. We want to get moving but the day-to-day fires eat up our thinking, our energy and our focus. Sometimes what we need is a set of fresh eyes to ask questions, probe for hurdles, discuss options for how to frame something up…this is our passion at InnerComm. Helping local government make progress on the big initiatives that often get stuck …
Nearly every City and County government does a wonderful job of serving our communities. But not all departments, not all cities and not all counties are the same. Some experience various turmoil, others have repeated turnover, some lack management and leadership skills and others are overwhelmed putting out the day-to-day needs of local government. Whatever the reason for this lack of progress within government efforts, there is hope. Tools, systems, books and operational methods are widely available to help teach businesses or local government …
For us busy, busy people, it’s easy to be so focused on what we’re doing that we miss a lot of what’s going on around us. You may have seen the unfortunate, but revealing, video of the lady texting in a mall and then falling into the fountain. We’re often so busy we are not able to see the proverbial “forest for the trees”. You may have known a man or woman who, for instance, had no idea they were being romantically …