2006_0109_Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

When City Councils succeed in establishing goals it can make City government more effi- cient and effective. Through goal setting, staff and Councilmembers and community mem- bers understand City Council priorities better. The City's budget can then be aligned with those Council priorities making accomplishment of those priorities more likely because re- sources are dedicated toward their accomplishment. Finally, individual City Council deci- sions throughout the year can be made more intelligently if Councilmembers understand the bigger picture of City goals and priorities that the Council as a body is trying to achieve. On the other hand, when a City Council fails to set goals and priorities, Council direction is more likely to be helter-skelter. Council tends to zig and zag from issue to issue with no consistent sense of direction or purpose. And the absence of Council goals makes it hard to create a feeling of accomplishment. Not having set any goals, it is harder to demonstrate the Council has achieved what it set out to achieve. Finally, without strategic planning and goal setting, there is a higher probability that the City budget, too, may be a hodge-podge of expenditures with no over-arching themes, objectives, or sense of direction. In order to make strategic planning as productive as possible, it is often helpful for Coun- cilmembers to understand one another's work style better. After all, the Council acts and gives direction as a body, not as individuals. Normal business interaction may not enable you to gain much insight into a colleague's preferred style in gathering information and making group decisions. Different people have different communication styles, different learning styles, and different information needs. Deliberately studying these styles and needs enables Councilmembers to understand and perhaps appreciate differences. III. OPTIONS 1. Do Nothing. Under this option, there would be no special City Council effort outside of the normal Council meeting and agenda schedule to talk about overall City goals and objectives. Par- ticular policy issues could still be addressed in study/work sessions or in resolving par- ticular issues or cases. a. Pro. No extra investment of anyone's time or money. b. Con. When handling regular Council business there is little opportunity for the Council to provide overall City policy direction or to build skills in group decision making. 2. Staff-Facilitated Process. Under this option, staff inembers would help the Council go through a team-building, goal-setting, or visioning process. a. Pro. No extra expenditure of money. b. Con. Can be time-consuming to attend special sessions in addition to regular City Council meetings. Since we don't do these activities as often as consultants, staff skills in these areas are not likely to be as sharp as those of consultants. �