Back again…blog update # 2!

My 1^st blog was completed after 16 days on the job.  I have now been on site for 25 days since day 1 on February 9.  At the same time, I feel I am very connected and involved with the day to day activities and issues as a result of the technology I have access to. Not a day goes by without some thought or activity associated with the City of Kawartha Lakes.  As I update this blog it is Sunday evening….see what I mean!

I have continued to meet with many employees throughout the organization. This has proven to be a great opportunity for me to listen and learn. I will continue to wander around all our offices, with and without a purpose, so don’t be surprised to see me.

At the outset let me say congratulations to all who made our United Way campaign a success and helped to push it over the goal. I can’t think of a more worthwhile cause, although I realize there are many needs throughout the community. Special thanks to the Campaign organizers and those who supported this cause. Frankly, we can and should do better through the involvement of more employees for an organization our size.

We recently had an internal chili competition. Up until this event, my chili recipe, which I am very proud of, had never finished lower than 2^nd in a competition. When the results were in let’s just say this proved to be a very humbling and somewhat humiliating experience for me. They tell me my entry tied for 3^rd! I understand the finals are set for later this week. Good luck to all entrants.

I continue to learn a great deal every day.  I also continue to be impressed by many in the organization. Unfortunately, most of my time is dealing with past issues that need to be addressed and resolved. Frankly, I would rather be dealing with matters that deal with the future and with change.

We are making progress with the CAO recruitment. An organization has been selected to assist us and this group is moving ahead very nicely behind the scenes. They have interviewed most, if not all of Council on a one on one basis and have begun external advertising for this position. People ask me when will a new candidate be on site and the answer is I don’t know the date. I am willing to assist in the interim and we remain committed to recruit a very capable and competent leader in this role. Perhaps a decision will be made by sometime in June.

I am excited about the pending approval by Council of the North West Trunk initiative. Staff has done an excellent job in moving this project along of late. There are significant economic benefits to the CKL from this development over time. I am told there are around 6,000 lots in this future development area. Make no mistake about it; this community will grow in the days ahead I have no doubt it will look quite different 20-25 years out from today.

We should all be very concerned about the overall unemployment in this area. I can’t think of anything more important than economic development and I intend to make this a priority internally. We, the municipality, our MP and our MPP need to make positive things happen and the sooner the better. I believe the results of the pending Provincial and Federal elections will be more important than ever for this community.

Our internal budget process is in need of help. The fact is our staff and our Council would like to see improvements to the effectiveness and efficiency of this process. I have considerable experience in this area and I am looking forward to seeing what we can do, collectively, to make everyone feel better about this activity. Meetings are scheduled in this regard during the coming month. This is the sort of thing I want to spend my time on, namely the future and not the past.

Another agenda item I have in the near future is the Employee Suggestion Program. There has been quite a bit of activity done on this but it has yet to be implemented. This too will be addressed and moved ahead, one way or the other.

I remain more convinced than ever there are many opportunities for both challenge and change within this organization. I also believe we, as in all levels and areas in the organization need to develop a greater sense of urgency and commitment to make positive change happen. There are many reasons why change faces resistance but this is another topic.  I remain open to talking with anyone at anytime about your ideas for positive change. I find this exciting and I welcome your feedback.

Until the next time, stay positive and make something happen!

Dave

Interim CAO Dave Paterson opens the lines of communication

I have seen this method of communication used effectively elsewhere and during my time here I will provide monthly updates of my activities and comments for those interested. The comments will be brief and hopefully this forum will give readers some additional insight into the activities of your CAO. I will provide an update every 3 – 4 weeks going forward.

To begin with, it is indeed a pleasure to be a part of this organization, if only on an interim basis. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever anticipate I would have such an opportunity. At the outset, let me say I am honoured to serve the citizens of the City of Kawartha Lakes and I do not take this responsibility lightly.

Success for me during my time here will be measured by the thoughts and comments of others, not myself. Specifically, I have every intention of making a positive difference in the eyes of our employees, our Council and our taxpayers.

Many of you know I live in the Peterborough area and am very involved and committed in a number of activities, most of which are volunteer in nature. I am doing my best to fulfill the CAO role during the 3 days a week that I am at City Hall. In reality I am actually very connected to the daily CAO role 7 days a week thanks to technology and the very nature of this position.

I firmly believe your next CAO should live within the geographic boundaries of the City of Kawartha Lakes. I would also expect the next CAO to be very involved in your community in leadership positions. This person needs to be visible in the community and develop a well respected profile with taxpayers. I will be assisting the Mayor and Council members in getting you an outstanding leader going forward.

So, what have I been doing to-date? Well, during my 16 days on site so far I have made a point of getting to meet and know as many people as possible. These meetings have been one on one and in groups. I have been meeting with employees, at all levels and in multiple locations, not only in the Lindsay area but also at the five Service Centres throughout the area. You can’t do this job if you don’t know the people, their issues or concerns, and dialogue about opportunities. I have also met directly with a number of Councillors in an effort to understand their perspective on issues and the role of the CAO.

Although my background has been in the private sector I see many similarities between my past life and my new responsibilities. At the end of the day I believe there are more similarities than differences. It all comes down to people and processes.

I am entirely committed to working very closely with both staff and Council. We are one organization with one plan. We clearly must work together in the best interests of all taxpayers. Mayor Ric McGee and I are working very closely together as we have much to gain and a lot to learn by working in a collaborative manner.

Jack Welch is GE’s former Chairman and I love one of his quotes… "If you’re stagnant, you’re dead". I could not agree more. I view myself as a catalyst for change. We need to embrace change throughout this organization. My job is to help others get rid of bottlenecks and roadblocks. In this regard, I see lots of opportunities and these will be pursued.

Feel free to drop me a line or give me a call with your thoughts. We need to work together!

Until mid April….

Dave