LGMA - National: : Facilitators Review

Facilitators Review

The 2008 International Leading Practices Symposium was conducted on 29 and 30 May 2008 in Surfers Paradise, Queensland. This joint venture initiative between the Local Government Managers Australia (LGMA), New Zealand Society of Local Government Managers (SOLGM) and the US International City/County Management Association (ICMA), was attended by over 60 delegates.

The two day programme involved presentations of case studies and break out session workshops where participants were able to discuss the presentations and relate it to their own experiences. The delegates actively participated in sharing (and gaining) knowledge on various topics, and put into context the implications of current or contemporary management in leadership issues occurring in Australia, Canada New Zealand, South Africa and the United States of America. The following notes are merely a summary of the key points articulated by various presenters which were used by facilitator Garry Hunt in the summary of each session. The full case studies are available on the LGMA website and were circulated to delegates at the Symposium. Workshop activities that were captured are also available from the LGMA website at www.lgma.org.au

KEY NOTE ADDRESS
The key note address on Day One was presented by Professor Yasuyuki Kitawaki, of the Centre for Multilingual Multicultural Education & Research, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies. Professor Kitawaki gave a detailed explanation of the amalgamation process in Japan over recent years. The approach has been revolutionary, and has resulted in a significant reduction in the numbers of Local Governments. It was interesting to note that although the number of amalgamations was significantly larger, the impacts and identified benefits for the community from within Japan reflected outcomes within the last decade in South Africa, New Zealand and Australia.

CASE STUDY 1

South Korea:
Korea E-Government, Contributing to an Enhanced Community Wellbeing.
Presenter - M. Jae Moon – Professor of Public Administration, Yonsei University

The presentation focused on the efforts made by the Korean Government, at both national and local government levels, to provide better services to the public through e-Government. It provided overviews on some of the best practice cases of Korea’s e-Government which contributed to enhancing the wellbeing of local communities in terms of increased access to services, opportunities to benefit from IT enhanced e-participation, and local economic development.

At the national government level, Korea implemented the “Information Network Village” (INVIL) project in 2002, where more then 300 local villages that have been designated as “INVILS” are supported with internet access, PCs, Village IT Centres, IT training and, basically, assistance to create village communities that can benefit from the advantages of IT. This project has been visited by numerous foreign delegations, not only from overseas governments but also from international organisations, and it has been a target for joint research projects by foreign research and international organisations.

There are also numerous other e-Government best practices pursued at the local government level. The Seoul Metropolitan City, which has been ranked first among 100 cities around the world by Rutgers University, provides integrated services through a single channel for enhanced public convenience. It also facilitates online public participation and provides features for online reservation and payment.

The presentation provided information on how the South Korean Government and the City progressed the development of the e-Government road map of the City Of Seoul; a fully integrated, whole of Government approach to doing business in South Korea.

For a copy of the South Korean case study, please select Attachment 1 below.

CASE STUDY 2

The United Kingdom:
Kaizen, A Model for Continuous Improvement.
Presenter - Allen Campbell, Chief Executive, Aberdeen Shire Council and Pat Browne, Kaizen Champion, Aberdeen Shire Council.

Aberdeen Shire Council in Scotland has adopted Kaizen as a model for continuous improvement and has built in- house capacity to sustain an ongoing programme of events. In three years, the Council moved from a position of being unsure about how to use such a technique, to seeing staff fully believing “This is how breakthrough improvements get done around here”. It has not been an easy path, but one which has produced fantastic results for management, employees and, most importantly, the customers of the Council.

The Chief Executive is often heard to describe this as a programme he should have started much earlier in his tenure, stating it to be the best thing, in terms of managing and motivating people, that he’s ever been involved with.

The presentation gave an outline of Kaizen, which has been used by the Aberdeen Shire Council, to progress and overhaul management and performance of the local government. The focus of was presentation around clearly identifying that employees are “PEOPLE”. The presentation outlined the significant benefits of empowerment of people through training, education and enlightenment. Kaizen blitz is an adaptive model with considerable focus on the ongoing implementation of the monitoring of activities.

For a copy of the United Kingdom's case study, please select Attachment 2 below.

CASE STUDY 3

Australia:
Transforming Environmental Performance.
Presenter Geoff Lawler, Director Sustainability and Regulatory Services, City of Melbourne.

A little over a decade ago, the World Economic forum in Davos, Switzerland, asked its high level delegates to name the five most pressing issues they faced. Making the top five was the Greenhouse Effect. This was to have profound ramifications in Melbourne, a City on the other side of the world to Davos. It sparked the environmental awakening and flourishing of a City which is now recognised as a world leader in environmental initiatives. Melbourne developed partnerships that catapulted it into the thick of global debates. It set ambitious greenhouse and water reduction targets, built Australia’s greatest purpose-built office building and installed the largest solar photovoltaic installation in the Southern Hemisphere. However, the principles it followed were simple and easy to replicate in everywhere from the smallest to the largest of organisations.

The presentation detailed the journey of the City Of Melbourne in the area of Environmental focus, at both policy and project implementation stages.

For a copy of Australia's case study, please select Attachment 3 below.

CASE STUDY 4

Canada:
Intelligent Waterloo.
Presenter Simon Farbrother, Chief Administrative Officer, City of Waterloo, Ontario.

Last May, the City Of Waterloo was named the ‘2007 Intelligent Community of the Year’ by an independent global think-tank based in New York. The presentation gave insights into participating in the intelligent community process, with a focus on the short and long-term benefits that Waterloo had seen as a result. It provided participants with the opportunity to learn more about Intelligent Waterloo, to explore the networks that exist in their own communities and to learn more about the role that municipal government can play in building community partnerships that will allow them to compete and thrive in a global broadband based economy.

The presentation outlined the journey of the City of Waterloo becoming one of the most recognised, innovative centres both within Canada and the northern hemisphere. The focus of the presentation was on the collaborative approach between the City of Waterloo and key community stakeholders, including the business sector. The City of Waterloo focused on research into collaboration, innovation, reinvestment and strong interaction between the educational sector and the research computer sector, which provided learning opportunities for all delegates.

For a copy of Canada's case study, please select Attachment 4 below.

CASE STUDY 5

The United States:
Preparing for the Next Generation.
Presenters Doctor Frank Benest, City Manager, City of Palo Alto, California and Mr Kevin O’Rourke, Principal, KOLGS, O’Rourke Local Government Solutions, Fairfield California.

A whole generation of baby boomers are retiring from local government service and there are fewer numbers of Gen X and Gen Y professionals ready and willing to replace them.

This presentation explored the integrated coaching programme designed to.
• Accelerate the development of aspiring managers already in the local government pipeline; and
• Attract young people into the Local Government Pipeline.

Cal-ICMA (the California affiliate of the International City/County Management Association) provides an international coaching program that targets emerging leaders in local governments throughout California.

The various coaching program events (webinars and call-ins) have attracted as many as 200 participants. The more intensive workshops attract 15 to 25 participants.

This presentation provided an outline of an initiative of the California ICMA Coaching Programme, which provided delegates with information on the approach to the coaching programme, its effectiveness and impact and a ‘how to’ in terms of development and implementation of the project. This innovative approach is a model that could be replicated with modification in other jurisdictions.

For a copy of the United State's case study, please select Attachment 5 below.

CASE STUDY 6

New Zealand:
Smart Growth, A Management Strategy for Sustainable Future of the Western Bay and Tauranga Sub-Region.
Presenters Phillip Martelli, Manager Resource Management and Annika Lane, Group Manager Policy and Planning, Western Bay of Plenty District Council.

The New Zealand Local Government reform in 1989, closely followed by the introduction of the Resource Management Act (RMA) in 1991, dramatically changed the planning regulatory framework. Whilst the RMA gave developers considerably more flexibility to get their proposals approved, it also meant that Councils could be far more involved in determining, regulating and enforcing the impacts of developments on their respective districts.

During the 1990s, in the Western Bay and Tauranga sub region, population increase, coastal ribbon development, sprawling ad hoc rural subdivision and rocketing urban expansion had crept up on Region ill-prepared for the pressures that uncontrolled growth brings. The growth explosion forced an unprecedented level of collaboration between the three local authorities, Tauranga City Council, Western Bay of Plenty District Council and Environment Bay of Plenty Regional Council.

The collaborative effort, which began in 2001 as an informal working party between the three Couancils, was launched as SmartGrowth in 2004 and is now New Zealand’s most successful sub-regional growth management plan. SmartGrowth’s success depends on partnership and collaboration involving the Councils, Tangata Whenua, and community groups. It is a voluntary, cooperative approach to sustainable development built on understanding, agreement and commitment, in preference to a mandatory model built on compliance and coercion.

The presentation provided an outline of the approach taken in New Zealand for managing growth. The planning of the community to achieve a lifestyle balance centred on work, play and a co-operative arrangement between various local governments within the region collaboration rather than competition amongst the local governments. A governance arrangement allowed interaction between local governments.

For a copy of New Zealand's case study, please click here

I encourage delegates to review the various case studies presented and determine ways to apply the learnings within their local jurisdictions.