Ask the Mayor for Help
Readers Respond
Ask the Mayor for Help
As a former mayor, I think that the mid-level manager might be on precarious ground trying to build a political consensus by him- or herself. I would suggest that the mid-level manager contact the city manager and that they both ask the mayor for assistance.
The distribution of the second payment is clearly an administrative function. By contacting the mid-level manager directly and promoting the second payment, the council member is outside policy-making boundaries and guilty of administrative interference. Many CM communities have (or should have) administrative non-interference ordinances.
The mayor would be able to enlist the support of the rest of the city council and caution the offending council member about this type of behavior.
Fred Kimble
Legislative Liaison
Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs
Springfield
Get Some Answers
The solution was the correct one, but to the wrong person(s). He should have used the same arguments on Donna Sadler while she was still on the phone. Then he should have asked her if she could find out why DCD had not met the milestones. I assume he tried himself and was unable to find out. Did they do no work at all? I find it hard to believe that Donna would press for spending more without any visible results if she is as concerned about producing results as the article claimed. Did they do work, but not the kind specified in the milestones? Can and should the milestones be changed? But make the case to Donna first. Then inform your boss. Then do like the article suggests.
Harry Owen
Engineering Services Manager
Public Works Department
Omaha, Nebraska
Don't Be Condescending
As someone who has been in a similar situation, let me offer the following advice:
First, politics are a fact of life if you work in either state or local government, and sooner or later if you're a manager--especially a good one--you are going to come up against someone who is politically connected who may ask you to do something that is procedurally wrong as well as unethical. In your case study of this month, you have presented such a situation.
My advice to your mid-level manager is, first of all, do not say anything to offend Donna Sadler; that is, don't dare suggest that she is asking you to break the law or violate a government statute. Also, don't be condescending by trying to impress by giving her a reading of your knowledge of the rules, which at this juncture she could care less about. After all, Donna is a mover and a shaker, and you don't want her to view you as just another bean counter who is trying to block something important that she wants done. Remember, some politicians can have long memories.
I would point out to Sadler that as a manager in this instance your hands are tied, and that under the present guidelines, there is nothing further you can do. However, point out that the present guidelines were formulated by the city council and that perhaps she should put this particular matter before the entire council for their review. Maybe the council will grant an exception in this case and allow the second payment to be made to Daubach. In addition, point out that, as manager, that can only make payments to Daubach as authorized by your reporting head(s), and as of this date, you have received no such authorization. Point out to Sadler who your reporting head(s) are and where they can be found. By following this approach, you take the onus off both yourself and your department. After all, you don't want leave Sadler empty handed and, worse, have her perceive you as the bad guy who prevented her prized project from being built.
In closing, promise Sadler your full cooperation in expediting payment to Daubach once you have received proper approval from your reporting head(s). This still may not completely satisfy Sadler, but it should serve to deflect any unwarranted criticism that you did something improper or illegal as a result of political pressure being applied on your office.
Perstein R. Cave
Fiscal Manager
Connecticut Department of Banking
Hartford
Hand Off the Decision
If I were the manager, I would be very wary of going over the head of an elected official to get Sadler's constituents to put pressure on her. She might like that even less than bureaucratic obstruction. Harry Owen's suggestion of enlisting her to get the contractor moving is very good. Apart from that, this seems to be a problem that is over the manager's pay grade. Sadler wants him to do something forbidden by the rules. He needs to hand this decision over to the mayor or city council, which will properly take the heat off the manager and put it where it belongs, on the elected officials.
John Gilmour
Department of Government & Public Policy Program
College of William and Mary
Williamsburg, Virginia
Strength in Numbers
There are two basic ways of dealing with survival problems facing professionals in government: political tactics and bureaucratic protection. To the public at large, both of these have negative connotations, but both are legitimate means for dealing with extreme pressures from high-powered developers and powerful politicians, like those described in the West Side Park situation. Public administrators and managers face similar situations on a daily basis on both major and minor levels.
Once city engineers, planners, managers, accountants and lawyers have put their professional and legal stamp on projects, and contractors have fallen over backwards to ensure elected officials that the project will be completed under budget and sooner than the contract deadline, it's not long before requests for change orders, contract extensions and pay advances start flowing. As with the West End Community Park situation, where efforts to bully an administrator have failed, these may be accompanied by the typical attack from at least one elected official that "bureaucratic delays" are holding up the project.
While support from the community may be a way to cope with this sort of pressure, organized strength among fellow managers with a common stake in ensuring that a project is completed in accordance with approved plans, specifications, and other contract documents is essential. This should be an established support group committed to not only reviewing and approving a project ahead of time, but also to standing up to unwarranted political attack. In the West End Park case, the administrator should be able to call on the city's finance officer and legal staff to back up his decision that the second payment was inappropriate and illegal.
While this may take a great deal of courage on the part of these department heads, in many cases it's difficult for even the most powerful politician to face up against a united front of professionals determined to do things properly, consistently and legally. Although use of the media is usually a last resort, indirect contact through community leaders may be a viable option if the administrator is being forced to commit an illegal action.
Fred Peterson
City Planner
City of Arab
Arab, Alabama
Get Her to Help
After reading the suggested solution and the various alternatives, I would take a different tack. I would try to engage the council member's help to find out why the park isn't being built. Try to make it her idea or at least her project not only to get the contractor paid, but to get the project on the ground.
After some delay, call the council member back and tell her that the payment isn't being made because of no action and that we need something concrete to show (manager, community, etc.) to make a payment. See if she can find the solution to the "no action" problem.
If she responds that she already knows that they have a cash flow problem and need to tide over for payroll, etc., have her try to find out if anything has been purchased or bills paid.
Try to put her in the uncomfortable position of having to admit that the company is getting city funds for nothing.
Pete Wells
City Attorney
Pendleton, Oregon
Essential Support
Basically I would disagree with the proposed solution. The person contacted by the "influential" elected official is mid-management. That implies that there is top management above him. To organize a community campaign to oppose such an official without informing his superiors could be considered as a negative action. The support of his superiors is essential if such a campaign is to be conducted. If his superiors are contacted first by others, they credibility will be questioned. The mid-level manager was fullfilling his responsibilities to enforce contract rules. If the city administration is going to conduct a campaign to gather local support, it should be organized by others than the mid-level manager.
Richard E. Koerth
Assistant Secretary for Administration
Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks
Topeka
Thrash It Out
In a situation such as this, there is usually an "institutional memory" of similar problems and the way they were or were not dealt with appropriately. As such, this scenario is a little unreal as we cannot fall on this memory in our assistance to the middle manager, nor are we privy to the regulations governing the conduct of middle managers, councilors et al in this local council.
But let's assume I am this middle manager's barber and he has walked in for a short back and sides, and unloaded his problems while he was at it. Let's also assume I am a very bad barber and actually give him some advice instead of acting as a mute sounding board.
I would get all concerned persons together for a meeting to thrash out the issue. I would advise the middle manager to invite people such as the mayor (useful not only because of his authority but also because his budget might pick up the tab for any refreshments), the local newspaper editor, Donna Sadler, other community leaders, the builders, etc. I would also attempt to be the chair of the meeting so that I was neutral rather than a combatant.
How I would proceed after the meeting would depend on what arose from the meeting. This is not a 100 percent surefire solution, but I have never met a surefire solution outside of a military dictatorship.
Jeffrey Meikle
St. Vincent's Hospital
Sydney, Australia
Leave Politics to the Politicians
As a newcomer to Governing.com, I have spent a good bit of time reading through the practical problems and solutions posted on the site. I found this one particularly interesting and very realistic.
I have been in both the middle-manager position and a member of a town council. My suggestion would be to immediately side with Sadler, stating that I am appalled by the lack of progress on the project, both from a service-to-citizens standpoint and a contract-administrator standpoint. I would point out that under the contract, the development company should have made significant progress and that the situation definitely needs the attention of City Council. I would then immediately shift the burden to her and to my superiors by making the same kinds of suggestions others have posted, such as asking for her help in determining why no progress has been made and suggesting that the issue be brought before Council. If pressed, I would retierate, as previously suggested, that my hands were tied as to any additional payment unless such was authorized by my superiors or council.
Sadler is doing her job for the constituents, but in an unethical manner. Of course, I would never point that out to her. I would simply agree with her cause (not her method) and empower her by asking for her assistance in getting what she wants. I would also report the call, formally but unemotionally, to my superiors, using as my format a request for assistance in helping the council member solve the problem. This would allow me to make my superiors aware of the political mess that is about to explode without being accusatory towards Sadler.
I would be very wary of attempting to gather my own political forces. As has already been pointed out, there are signifcant differences between legislative and administrative functions. Just as Sadler should not try to meddle in administrative functions, the manager should not dabble in political processes. The manager’s functions are implementation, reporting and new program development. Leave the politics to the politicians, while remaining aware that good communication and relationships with legislators are important and can make or destroy your career.
Elizabeth L. Cook, J.D., M.P.A.
Owner, Palmetto Law Enforcement Research Consultants
Chapin, South Carolina
Agree or disagree? If you think you have a better way to deal with this month's Manager's Choice dilemma or would like to expand on the approaches presented here, share your thoughts with other readers. Send your solution to mailbox@governing.com. Please include your name, location, government or business title or job description, and a daytime phone number (for verification purposes).
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