An organizational review of Westlock County, while now somewhat outdated, still has a lot of relevance to county operations, interim CAO Rick McDonald says.
Council passed a motion at its May 13 council meeting, following an in camera discussion, to make the report available to the public. It was provided to the Westlock News June 6.
The review was conducted by consultants Russell Farmer & Associates, and covers the period of spring to fall 2013. It identifies several areas of concern within the county’s administration, most notably morale.
“Sometimes organizations get so focused on doing the work that the people doing it are taken for granted,” McDonald said in an e-mail.
He said since he arrived he and the senior management team have taken steps to address those concerns.
Reeve Bud Massey said he has read the 100-page document several times, and notes several important findings: the need for better communication, the need to create a better team concept and work together, and the need to honour and respect employees.
“It’s a snapshot in time, but some of it is still relevant today and is being worked on,” he said.
The timeline of the report precedes the recent loss of several senior mangement-level staff, including former CAO Edward LeBlanc, but Massey said he couldn’t say for sure if the issues identified in the report were the reason for those departures.
“I believe it would likely have had some impact,” he said. “It’s difficult to assess that, because as the fact our CAO is our only employee, and is the only one who gives information, we don’t have access to the exit interviews.”
With respect to communication, one of the problems identified in the report is the tendency for councillors to take the concerns they hear from ratepayers directly to county staff rather than through the CAO, as is prescribed by the Municipal Government Act.
McDonald said councillors elected to divisions within rural municipalities like Westlock County are often expected to serve as a link between residents and county services, rather than simply setting policy direction.
While this may traditionally have been the case, in its current version the MGA is clear that this is not correct.
“Council and administration must work together to ensure that proper protocols and procedures are followed to get the work done,” he said. “Following such protocols will help to improve on many of the issues found in the Farmer Report.”
Massey said he and other councillors sometimes feels their hands are tied by this arrangement, as it can make it more difficult for council and staff to understand each others’ concerns.
“As an effective team, we should have communication that goes in all directions, so as council we should be aware of the issues faced by employees of the county, and they should be aware of decisions made by council,” he said.
The report highlighted a very specific concern about the use of in camera, the practice of closing the meeting’s doors and excluding the public. The report notes at one meeting, the consultant told the previous council the reason they were in camera wasn’t valid under the MGA, but council still chose not to return to an open meeting. It also noted council was giving direction to administration in camera, which is also prohibited under the MGA.
Massey said this council has been elected on openness and transparency, so they are very careful about when they choose to go in camera. McDonald said since he’s been at the helm of administration, the MGA has been adhered to with respect to in camera meetings.
In the report, the need for more recreation staff was highlighted as well. It suggested the recreation coordinator position should be a senior management position, with more recreation staff hired.
Council seemingly didn’t heed this suggestion, as the recreation coordinator position was cut in this year’s budget.
The previous council had put a big focus on recreation, Massey said, while this council heard on the campaign trail that residents were more concerned with infrastructure.
“We made a decision to refocus on infrastructure, rather than recreation,” he said.
“It’s wonderful to have facilities, but you need good roads to get there first. It’s just a different priority.”
McDonald said other staff are “going the extra mile” to handle the added workload with that position remaining vacant.
“As I work through my assessment of the functional needs of the county administration, I will be considering what needs to be done and how to get it done,” he said.
“The county is still committed to meet its service obligations.”
While the report highlights a lot of the problems in the county, not unexpected for a critical analysis, both McDonald and Massey noted there are many positive things in the county as well — including hard-working volunteers, grader operators who go the extra mile, a lot of roads in good condition and a commitment to fix the ones that aren’t, plenty of recreational services, an airport and good collaboration with neighbours.
