Introductory E-Mail from Commissioner Ed Rothstein

As you may have heard, Management and Budget Director Ted Zaleski recently gave a presentation to the Board of County Commissioners expressing the county’s concern for the recruitment, engagement and retention of county employees and how recent challenges put significant strain on staff and staff’s efforts to maintain our high level of services. I suggest you watch Ted’s presentation here for more details, but I am sending this email to briefly share information about a newly approved study that we believe will have positive and lasting impacts on our organization.

In an effort to address these ongoing concerns, we have commissioned a comprehensive study to first evaluate the organizational design of Carroll County Government and then analyze the compensation and classification systems currently in place. Organizational design is the process of aligning the structure of an organization with its objectives, with the ultimate aim of improving efficiency and effectiveness. A compensation and classification study examines our current systems and delivers recommendations to improve the county’s competitive position in the market. We expect this two-pronged process to:

• strengthen our organization
• modernize our people operations
• augment our ability to provide the high-level services expected in the county

This assessment is intended to be a positive, inclusive, and collaborative effort to shape our future structures, services, practices, and plans. While this may challenge us to think about different ways of operating and delivering services and support to our community, it is not intended to reduce our current staff or workforce. 

Carroll County Government provides services to our residents, businesses and visitors and we know you work hard to do this professionally in an effective and efficient manner.   For many years we have faced eroding resources and increasing budget pressure on our ability to provide those services but managed to absorb these challenges without compromising or diminishing our services.  However, we know these factors and current labor market pressures will continue to place stress on our operations and workforce and understand we must position the county to secure a competitive advantage in recruiting and retaining talent.  This assessment initiative will:

• help us understand the county’s organizational and workforce needs and opportunities
• identify strategies to ensure we are an employer of choice to attract and retain quality workers

Said another way, this effort will look at the services we provide, how we are set up to provide them, the positions necessary to provide the services and how we compensate the people in those positions.

We are partnering with Segal Consulting to help support this initiative. Segal is a nationally recognized consulting firm distinguished for its expertise in the public sector and experience conducting independent and highly collaborative assessment and planning initiatives. A critical piece of the process will involve:

• a wide range of interviews
• focus group discussions, and
• other information gathering approaches.

Although ideally all employees would be interviewed, time constraints come into play, so staff representing multiple areas and a variety of different roles across the county will participate. If you are interviewed, it is important you share your thoughts and perspectives; be forthright and candid. Segal will collect broad-based input, perspectives and ideas from our employees examining how to enhance our current strategies, structures, services, staffing, programs, and culture. After collecting this information, we will receive recommendations identifying our greatest opportunities for success and for devising a plan consistent with best practices.

As part of our commitment to the success of this effort, we will keep you engaged and informed of the project’s progress as it moves through what we anticipate will be a 8-month assessment process. We will also provide regular updates and opportunities to engage in this process as we move forward. A link to a dedicated webpage will be provided to you in the near future. This site will evolve and eventually communicate many details of the project including the timeline, process and updates and eventually deliverables, data and results.   

This is a tremendous and critically important opportunity for the county and the results have the potential to significantly impact both our organization as a whole as well as each employee. Let us be clear:

• our intent is to act on the study’s results
• we are not investing in this effort to stick a report on the shelf
• we realize its importance and are committed to action

We just can’t tell you what those actions might look like, and we can’t make promises, but we are committed to carefully consider what we learn and use it to strengthen our organization. And ultimately, we view this as a very positive step that will improve our organization for years to come.

The success of this effort will depend on the collective support and engagement of you and the Carroll County Government community. Your participation in this process is essential and greatly appreciated.