"The cream rises until it sours." –Dr. Laurence Johnston Peter
Once again, Lenny Young dutifully maintains his role as the Washington State Department of Natural Resources go-to guy for stating why a money-saving idea is being turned away. In light of Lenny’s opinion on the matter, the fact remains that whenever a manager goes on vacation, retires, or takes an extended leave of absence the work still gets done.
I think Lenny missed the section on the Peter Principle in his management lessons. Only those who practice a forced obliviousness would find it easy to locate his skilled group of managers within the crowded population of individuals who have been promoted into positions beyond their level of competency.
Another wave of layoffs is expected to hit in November. While the workforce shrivels, the number of managers is expanding. There is no data to support these layoffs have been an effective means at dealing with the budgetary issues yet this is the course they maintain. I’m reminded of a story they told us during basic training in the Navy. Here’s a video version…
Leave Region & Division Manager Positions Vacant
SUGGESTION: “I noted with interest that DNR will be filling 5 exempt positions, 3 Division Managers and 2 Region Managers, with a top salary of $91,992.00 each at this point in time. Of course, starting salary would be slightly lower. Right now, when the Region Manager goes on vacation, he assigns signature and representational authority to one of the Assistant Region Managers. In the past, we have done cross training in some of those positions. Why can we not leave those positions vacant for a year with the proviso that the assistants will take rotating turns in the position at their current rate of pay, and then do the hiring? That would give them all a chance to experience the position, gain knowledge, and be better able to apply for the position when it is finally filled. That alone would save us close to $500,000.00.”
RESPONSE: Even during very difficult budget circumstances, we must ensure that DNR continues to accomplish its mission. The region and division manager positions that DNR will soon be refilling on a permanent basis are critical to mission accomplishment and to providing strong leadership for DNR’s employees. While I have high confidence in our assistant managers’ ability to carry out their managers’ duties on an acting basis, I don’t believe that this is a viable, long-term solution. We still face tough budget challenges, need to begin to strategically rebuild programs that have been heavily impacted by expenditure reductions, and will soon launch a number of new initiatives that require strong leadership from a skilled group of division and region managers.
Author Lenny Young, Department Supervisor
Post Date 7/30/2009
