Friday, January 09, 2009
The buck stops with city council
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Ron Herring
Herring, of Roanoke, is the retired CEO of Lutheran Family Services of Virginia and adjunct faculty at Radford University.
Past and current consideration by city management and city council regarding planning for the Market Building reminds me of an observation often made about organizations having difficulty with decision making. It's called the paralysis of analysis. In the case of Roanoke, this can also be referred to as deja vu, รก la Victory Stadium, Countryside Golf Course, a city amphitheater, etc.
I have lived in several states and their communities but confess that I have never observed such decision-making paralysis as that in Roanoke city. Most decision-making bodies confront difficulty with some decisions occasionally, but they do not have the consistent problems Roanoke has.
One of the most troubling consequences of city decision making is that it comes at a high cost to taxpayers. I would like to see the total cost figures for consultation and other outsourced planning costs over the last few years on some of the projects noted. And I would be curious about how one budgets in a government that conducts what appears to be unplanned multiple consultations and studies in the hundreds of thousands of dollars each to make decisions about almost every major project the city undertakes.
Mayor David Bowers is correct when he observes this decision-making pattern should not be inflicted on the community after the recent split on the council on how to proceed with the Market Building planning. This brings us to the question: What is the reason for all this costly, protracted and often divisive decision making? There are several possibilities, often in combination.
n Divisive and partisan politics. We have experienced some of this in the past, but recent Roanoke elections seem to have minimized this to a degree. We need only to observe our national political scene over the past eight years to verify the impact of this decision-making model. Differences of opinion are one thing and healthy, but how they are managed is critical.
n Inability of policy decision-makers like city council to get meaningful, timely and accurate information for decision making. Often one must look to operations and management staff to provide this for decision-makers, and often they fail to look here for reasons why decision-making processes are breaking down.
n Inability of decision-makers to understand the importance of working as a group to reach consensus while at the same time holding different views. The capacity to compromise among members has been lost. Egos and special interests are often common causes.
n An almost pathological resistance to change with a need to hold onto things of the past. This resistance is usually exercised by those who have historically held power and influence and do not want to give it up.
n Fear of making the wrong decision. Leaders understand that they cannot always be right or make perfect decisions, and if they do they would make few good ones. If they lack this quality, they should not be in their position. This fear is dramatically reduced if the other possibilities above have been acknowledged and addressed.
Finally, I would observe that hiring consultants before all of the community stakeholders, city management and city council have done their collaborative homework to develop their vision for the project is premature. I find it difficult to have consultants suggest solutions before this community homework and dialogue have taken place.
Consultants are helpful after this process occurs, but they cannot tell a community what it wants and needs. They are better at telling you how to get where you want to go, but not where.
Consultants are helpful, but not in multiples. They are only part of the decision-making process and have no magic to offer. Why were prior consultations regarding the market not used? In the end, the buck stops with city council. Maybe we need to look at how we make decisions that are more cost-effective.
