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The Pleasanton City Council last week authorized City Manager Gerry Beaudin to sign an agreement with a consultant to develop a comprehensive citywide assessment designed to streamline the city’s organizational structure and identify cost savings.
Following the 4-1 vote, the consultant — Citygate Associates — will begin reviewing documents and data; interview city leadership and employees; and compare Pleasanton’s current practices against industry best standards as well as other municipalities.
All of the information will culminate in a report that will include cost-effective recommendations and cost-saving measures, which Beaudin said could all help the city prepare for future budget discussions.
“We are looking for efficiency constantly but we are running the organization at the same time,” Beaudin said during the Nov. 4 council meeting. “So to have an outside, independent, third-party assist us with an evaluation of our overall operations at a time when we’re going through budget challenges … is going to be a really helpful framework for the council as we move into the next round of budget discussions.”
According to the staff’s presentation that night, the city issued a request for qualifications this past July and received proposals from 10 different firms. After conducting two rounds of interviews with the top three firms, the city decided to recommend awarding the nearly $250,000 professional service agreement to Citygate Associates.
Some of the reasons cited for that decision — apart from the price and timeline for completion — were the Folsom-based consultant’s extensive experience with other state municipalities, the strong methodology used when conducting the comprehensive assessment, its proven track record and a focus on using data and analysis during the process.
“It’s really important that you get the most out of everyone and that they feel a sense of renewed vision and purpose and this is actually feasible to do,” Chad Jackson, president of the firm, told the council during the meeting. “And to do so we’re going to have to make sure we’re the most efficient, we’re leveraging technology appropriately, we’re not focusing on tasks that are unnecessary and that bring little value to the city and the community.”
Jackson added that while he understands $250,000 seems like a lot of money right now, it really is an investment because through the assessment, they can find ways for the city and its employees to be more effective and save money.
He also noted, after hearing some concerns from the council, that doing the assessment doesn’t necessarily mean they will be looking immediately at cutting jobs.
“We’re not going out trying to find whose job we can axe — that’s not how we do this,” Jackson said. “We’re trying to find out how we can support and learn about what you do … and how we can better equip you to do what you do better.”
He said one way they would do that is by introducing tiered recommendations starting with cost-saving measures that would cost the city no money, such as redeployment of tools and staff; consolidating programs; and other low-hanging fruit that could be addressed almost immediately. The higher the tiers go, the more analysis would be presented regarding the pros and cons of what the consultant would be recommending for cost-saving measures.
Some issues raised by the council also had to do with the timing of the assessment given the greater context of work that city staff are currently doing.
Councilmember Craig Eicher said his biggest concern is making staff take part in such a venture with everything currently also going on within the city’s purview, such as having to implement recent organizational changes following this summer’s budget cuts.
“When you’re in flux, is that the best time for the assessment? Eicher asked. “Or do you wait until you stabilize a little bit before you have that assessment.”
However, Beaudin said that he “absolutely think it’s the right time for us to do this” and that he doesn’t think waiting another two years will help.
“There is no better time than now, other than two years ago,” Beaudin said. “This is a necessary step, in my professional opinion. And it is an opportunity that we can forgo tonight, but I think that when we get to the next two-year budget we’re going to regret forgoing.”
Beaudin said that given the skepticism he saw from the community during the city’s last two-year budget development process about the work that is coming out of the city, it is important to have an assessment of how the city operates and what the city needs before they head into the next budget cycle.
Councilmember Julie Testa was the lone No vote on the item. She said while the assessment seems like a valuable tool, she was a bit skeptical about the city being able to afford it.
But Beaudin doubled down that the assessment is an investment and will yield savings over time and find efficiencies they are not finding currently in the organization. He also said that the city made a commitment to the community that it would be focused on an organizational assessment after the last round of budget discussions when there were a lot of questions surrounding organizational needs and services.
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An old adage says “Those who can, do. Those who can’t, consult.” If staff were to spend more time doing the work for which they are paid and less time seeking guidance on how to do the work, perhaps efficiency would be the result. And that $250,000 could be put to use bringing down the structural deficit instead. Free advice from a casual observer who is up to her neck in surveys.
Keek, yours is an elaboration on the original (which was ‘teach’) but believe readers get your point.
Clearly, City leadership looks at this expenditure as an investment in future efficiencies. And City leadership possibly lacks the experience and objectivity to do this task with the needed result. Hence, consulting.
As an ‘investment’, there should be a projected payback with a commitment for follow-through on recommendations. The lack of these could be what bothers people.
PleasantonWeekly – was any expected payback mentioned in the proposal or during the meeting?