The current deep recession has states scrabbling for ways to meet their budgets resulting from falling revenues. It is only in times like this that the failure of states to manage its resources becomes visible. Unlike private industry state funds are allocated without knowing what the actual cost of a service should be. State governments assume that all services are managed equally well. No private industry would make this incredibly false assumption. Witness the across the board furloughing of state personnel, yes it does help the public to know what days certain state offices are closed. The assumption is that the pain should be shared equally when the reality is that some services may be significantly over staffed while others are struggling to maintain a decent level of service to the public. Only when essential services are maintained such police and fire protection is there some sanity in across the board furloughs.

The bottom line is that states do not do Work Measurement as performed in responsible private businesses. In my experience as a Management Consultant most functions both private and government are overstaffed by as much as 10% if they do not use Work Measurement as a part of their management policy.

Some states are laying-off employees. Cutting bureaucratic personnel will help fix the current budget shortfall but it will not be a permanent change because bureaucracies will simply replace the personnel when there is a budget surplus. A second problem becomes apparent when staff is cut. The tendency is to cut the most recently hired first, the people actually doing the function’s work and not supervisory personnel. This threatens the capability to meet current workloads.

The key to the successful reduction of state government is in establishing a staffing base something rarely done in government. In industry the establishment of a staffing base through Work Measurement is a necessary part of operations and of staff reductions. The staffing base establishes a staffing floor insuring that the essential service being provided by the function will not be impaired or reduced. The staffing base may be used for measuring the effectiveness and the efficiency of the organization in accomplishing its tasks. Without a reporting mechanism the remaining staff employees may simply cease doing their jobs jeopardizing the service provided.

I recommend that reforms begin with the implementation of Lean Teams. This reform brings a positive cultural change to the organization. Employees become members of Teams and are motivated by empowering them to improve their jobs through innovation. By bringing innovation and continuous improvement to the government’s processes the state will save $ millions through increased efficiency in the future. The reform amounts to a win win situation for government union employees as well as the tax payers of the state by employee empowerment and by ending bureaucratic waste. I have further recommended that after implementing Lean Teams that a staffing base be developed using Process Flow Charts. This is followed by replacing the current organization with a two tier form of government based on Steering Management and Functional management.

See the following articles on my website: http://managementconsultant.blogsome.com Article 103. Reforming Bureaucratic Government the Subtle way by Bringing Innovation to Government.
Article 104. Down Sizing State Government the Easy and Safe Way
Article 106. Where do the Government Reform Savings Come From?
Article 112. Using Surplus Government Employees to Take Back Privatized Contracts
Article 113. Private Versus Public Budgeting Practices
Article 116. Private Industry Example of Lean Teams
Article 117. Overcoming Bureaucratic Resistance to Government Reform
Article 128. Using Private Industry techniques to Privatize (Reform) State Government