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HomeMy WebLinkAboutADMIN-11-92 /. THE CORPORATION OF THE TOWN OF NEWCASTLE REPORT Meeting: General Purpose and Administration Committee File # bc~~ .(~\ld. ,CTC Res. #C~A -7a~-9a Date: November 16 1992 Report #: ADMIN. 11- 9t2ile #: By-Law # Subject: Recommendations from the Mayor's Task Force on Economic Development Recommendations: It is respectfully recommended that the General Purpose and Administration Committee recommend to Council the following: 1. That Report ADMIN. 11 - 92 be received; 2. That the comments contained in Report ADMIN. 11 - 92 be forwarded to the Mayor's Task Force on Economic Development for information; and 3. That the Mayor's Task Force on Economic Development be thanked for its submission. 1. BACKGROUND 1.1 Several recommendations were submitted by the Mayor's Task Force on Economic Development to Council. At its meeting held on September 28 1992, Council received the recommendations and referred them to staff for review and the preparation of a report to the General Purpose and Administration Committee. 2 . TASK FORCE'S RECOMMENDATIONS AND STAFF COMMENT 2.1 Recommendation No.1 "The Town should have a full-time Economic Development Officer. The role should be delegated to an existing employee of the Town (i.e. no new hiring) or through reallocation of existing resources." i 1 r\ " I L I f-ltCVCLED!':t\ PAPIER PAPER 'ttJ:1 RECYCLE TH~ IS PRINTED ON RECYCLED PAPER Staff CODDDent The Economic Development Strategy Report prepared by the Town's Consultant, Mr. Stephen Chait, has made a similar recommendation that one individual in the organization be responsible for the economic development function. It is expected that the Council will be dealing with this recommendation in conjunction with its consideration of the Chait Report and an overall economic development strategy for the Town. It is anticipated that staff's report on Mr. Chait's strategy may be available in December. It should be emphasized that every attempt has and will continue to be made in order to maximize the Town's resources while at the same time minimizing or where possible decreasing expenditures. 2.2 RecoDDDendation No.2 "Town staff should use a local business person to come along on calls to prospective business investors. This will build and strengthen government links to existing business and credibility with the potential investor." Staff CODDDent This suggestion has considerable merit and should be addressed in conjunction with the Town's economic development strategy. It would be appropriate to involve local business representatives as ambassadors for the Town. 2.3 RecoDDDendation No.3 "The Economic Development Officer should have on hand an information package on educational paths, skills development training, education and training options, and sources of funding. We have provided such a package to the person responsible for Economic Development in the Planning Department." Staff CODDDent Staff acknowledge receipt of an information package from members of the Task Force and wish to thank the members for their assistance. The Town will continue to be in communication with Durham College, the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Technology and other sources in the areas of labour education, skilled training and related funding or initiatives that may be available. 02 2.4 Recommendation No.4 "Recent press reports indicate that major changes to the Municipal Act are proposed which will affect the incentives a Town will be allowed to offer potential investors. Town officials should immediately investigate these proposed changes so that a pro-active plan of action can be prepared. " Staff comment In the early part of 1992, the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Technology contacted the Mayors of all local municipalities including the Town of Newcastle to advise that the Ministry is contemplating the possibilities and various means to provide local municipalities with the authority to give incentives to industries and businesses. In this regard, the Town has responded to a questionnaire from the Province providing some suggestions and input. We understand there will be further consultation with local governments if changes to legislation are proposed and will continue to monitor same. 2.5 Recommendation No.5 "A T.Q.M. (Total Quality Management) program should be initiated by the Town administration. This is an organization wide, all encompassing way of doing business that ensures that the right product is delivered at the right price at the right time. The concept is deceptively simple, however, it requires both training and a wholesale change in attitude. Members of the Task Force can assist Town management with obtaining materials to get started with. Subsequent task force recommendations will build on this. Staff comment The concept of total quality management has been explored and used to a certain extent by different levels of government. In our municipality, the quality management concept has been oriented towards service delivery at reasonable cost. This has involved a shift in traditional thinking that has become more quality oriented and is responsive to various needs on an ongoing basis. Attachment #1 provides the general change in thrust from Conventional to Quality Management thinking. This more recent concept stresses the following: 03 * monitor quality levels so they can be managed * focus on continually adjusting service levels to satisfy needs * utilize skills and knowledge at all levels within the organization * provide for ongoing training and skills development to deliver services most economically and efficiently (keep current) * think long term, act short term. It should be emphasized that such an approach is an ongoing exercise and requires considerable time, effort and commitment at all levels. The process has been initiated for several recent years and has focused its attention on providing an excellent service to the public. The Town's efforts have resulted in various enhancements as a result of the shift away from traditional approaches as have been reflected in the various services the Town now provides. This has been achieved while adhering at the same time to strict budgetary guidelines. This direction has been endorsed by the present and previous Councils as desirable and necessary. It is recognized, however, that this approach is a long term process requiring major time and financial commitments. The Town would welcome any resource details that the Task Force may wish to provide which would enhance the Town's efforts in this regard. 2.6 Recommendation No.6 "Internal goals should be set by the Planning Department with increased customer service as the focus. Examples of measurable targets might include "days from first application to building permit" or "number of customer complaints per month". Both the targets and the actual goals should be determined by employee/customer teams rather than department heads so that all employees "buy-in" to the goals." Staff comment The suggestion of setting target dates for the issuance of building permits has merit and is consistent with the recommendation of the Chait Report. Staff is currently examining the target dates for various types of permits and "1104 applications. These streamlining aspects are being reviewed within the context of the Town's efforts to improve the level of service. 2.7 Recommendation No.7 "This Task Force was quite concerned to learn that elected officials are not part of labour relations with the unions representing Town employees. The taxpayers must be represented at negotiations. Therefore, we recommend that a Council member be a working part of the negotiating committee at the upcoming negotiations. The appointed Council member should have a small advisory team drawn from the Town's major taxpayers." Staff comment This suggestion is a topic that has caused considerable discussion over the recent past. More specifically, it would appear that the intent of the Task Force's suggestion relates to what level of involvement the Council should take in the process related to union negotiations. Previously, the practice of the Town has been such that face to face negotiations with union representatives have been undertaken by the administration following review of various requirements with the Mayor as Chairman of Administration and all Department Heads. Furthermore, liaison would take place, where necessary, with the members of Council on an as required basis. Ultimately the Council would consider all issues related to the contract. It should be emphasized that during the evolution of the above process, the Town's approach to bargaining has always focused on establishing the most reasonable settlement within the parameters established by Council for any current year through the budget process. In addition, the Town has been cognizant of similar processes in the surrounding municipalities and aspects related to inflationary indices in the general area which are taken into account. Recently, the Council requested staff to review the formulation of appropriate guidelines to serve as parameters relative to Council's participation in the Collective Bargaining process. This is the subject of a separate report. 1 1 05 3. FINAL COMMENT: 3.1 The Town recognizes the considerable and valuable efforts of the Mayor's Task Force on Economic Development and thanks its members for their assistance. Staff will continue to communicate with the Task Force regarding the above. Respectfully submitted, {LClfl(oC (j./7-- Lawrence E. Kots~tf, Chief Administrat~ve Officer LEK:nof Att. #1 -l 1 06 WHAT IS TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT? Attachment #1 to REPORT ADMIN. 11 - 92 Conventional Management thinking Total Quality Management thinking . Quality improvement costs money and time . Quality improvement saves money and time . Work is a series of events (marketing, operations, finance, etc.) . Work is an integrated process . Quantity is as important as quality . Without quality, quantity is irrelevant ~ -- . 95% is great . Only 100% will do c:;) ~ . Quality is the result of better inspection . Quality is built in from the start . Suppliers must be kept on their toes . Suppliers must feel like they are your partners . Customers are who you sell to . Customers are an integral part of your organization . To achieve quality we need more and better people . Quality can be achieved with the people we have right now--simply by leading and training them differently