Over the past six years, the Alliance for Innovation and the Arizona State University have studied the characteristics that distinguish innovative, high-performing local governments. A key question has been: How can we promote these qualities to local governments that want to enhance their organizational culture and sustain innovation over the long term?

Six key qualities have been identified and curriculum has been developed to help organizations develop these qualities in local government organizations (http://transformgov.org/wiki/six_qualities_linked_to_innovation). The most frequently asked question by local government professionals has been: “If we can only focus on one characteristic or element that is within our control, what should that be?”

Focus on Internal Collaboration

Without a doubt, the answer is to increase internal collaboration within a manager’s staff team. This small step can take many paths and many forms, but almost always will produce effective results that a manager wouldn’t otherwise be able to achieve following the old school “silo” mentality of problem solving.

Around the globe, Alliance staff sees cross-functional teams, solution-based teams, and process-improvement teams continuing to enhance organizational cultures that inspire employees. These work groups create a more holistic and engaged environment throughout the organization and community.

Here are examples of these teams and some of the results they have achieved.

PALM COAST, FL

In Palm Coast, Florida, City Manager Jim Landon started a cross-disciplinary initiative during a time of budget constraints. The Leadership Intern Training Experience (LITE) provided front-line employees with an opportunity to work with the city manager and other city leaders. During the course of a single year, seven LITE teams were created.

They were challenged to develop skills beyond their primary roles through a mentoring approach and to work on citywide topics outside the area of their job-related expertise, including 1) high-performance culture, 2) employee academy and training, and 3) city hall feasibility.

Palm Coast teams focused on the talent model where employees experienced skill development by undertaking and even embracing challenges outside their normal realm of knowledge and expertise. The Florida City and County Management Association recognized the positive and significant impacts of these teams by awarding a Career Excellence Award.

DURHAM, NC

In Durham, North Carolina, City Manager Tom Bonfield wanted to see deeper employee engagement and an organizational renewal. Toward this end, he and his staff developed an overarching program called Culture of Service, which fosters innovation and creativity by focusing on the city’s core values: service to self, service to coworkers, and service to the community.

For the service-to-self component, Durham created the Culture of Service Values Certification Program as a training program for employees to promote discussions and interactive activities that foster self-awareness and organizational values. For service to coworkers, 24 department strategy teams initiated a walking program, ropes course, and health and wellness activities.

Their collective mission made it possible to respect and celebrate their coworkers through team building, roundtable discussions, and department leadership. Away from the workplace, the service-to-community activities encourage staff to volunteer with such nonprofits as Durham United for Habitat.

Durham now provides 48 hours of volunteer leave to all employees to work on a designated Habitat for Humanity house. The cooperation between the city, county, Habitat, and the citizens is an excellent example of shared service and direct cooperation.

OLATHE, KS

In Olathe, Kansas, the staff of City Manager J. Michael Wilkes uses tools, assessments, and behavior-based interviews to ensure new hires are “the right people on the bus” in the organization. The Balanced Leadership Development Program (BLDP) seeks to develop and grow employees’ workplace skills by engaging them in monthly competency discussions.

Olathe uses numerous methods to achieve role management during an employee’s career. A prime example is the “Employee Sandbox,” which is an online forum that employees use to contribute new ideas or to expand on already existing ideas. This forum fosters an innovative culture where ideas can be freely shared throughout the organization.

Once these ideas have been implemented, it is important to recognize employees for their hard work and dedication. Awards and celebrations emphasize values of customer service, teamwork, and leadership through service. Motivation is a powerful tool, and it is being used in positive ways to build organizational culture.

NAVAJO COUNTY, AZ

A cross-functional team in Navaho County, Arizona, began as a group appointed by County Manager Jimmy Jayne to work on the county’s strategic planning team. The team enrolled in the Alliance’s Innovation Academy, which provided team members with new and innovative tools to move the county toward its goals.

Members were selected across departments and functions, including elected officials, thereby bringing a range of skills and experience to the table, although no hierarchy exists within the group. Team accomplishments include development of a leadership academy, an employee recognition program, strategic plan implementation, and other projects.

ALBERT LEA, MN

“PIT” crews in local government? Why not, especially the crews developed by the city of Albert Lea, Minnesota, under the direction of City Manager Chad Adams. PIT is the acronym for process improvement team. In an effort to provide improved customer service to residents, teams were created to enhance efficiency, reduce waste, and avoid duplication.

The city relied on citizen surveys and LEAN (Six Sigma) process improvement to help identify possible service improvements. The city’s leadership also engaged a broad cross-section of employees to help decide which actions to take. Empowering employees in this manner made them feel like they truly had a voice and that they helped create and own the process. Their sense of pride motivates even more innovation and creativity.

Albert Lea’s achievements include improved customer service, development review, and employee recognition; fewer insurance claims filed against the city; better records retention; improved city hall maintenance, and enhanced police department internal processes.

Lessons Learned

Here is what can be learned from the five examples.

1. Any local government can do this. Every organization has employees, but only a few deliberately organize their staff across stovepipe departments to take on projects outside of the domain to which they were assigned.
2. While anyone can do it, these examples show that strong leadership and support from the top empowers teams in a way that results in real changes for the organization.
3. Providing some structure and resources will help teams move forward more quickly. Having facilitators, a place to meet, background or ongoing training, for example, helps team members focus and increase their cohesion.
4. Early team projects often focus on internal processes rather than external issues. Each of our five example communities began with trying to improve a process inside the organization but as the team process matured, they were able to also focus on broader community concerns.
5. Measure success. Even though the work feels really good, the results need to prove its worth.

Successful cross-functional teams benefit from the diverse ideas that people from different disciplines bring to a group. They leverage that diversity to invent new ways of undertaking routine tasks and to motivate other employees to get involved.

These teams need the freedom to make mistakes and the encouragement to try again, which is at the root of innovation. Through this innovation, we see our local governments evolving toward more enhanced levels of service for residents.

Is not being good stewards of community resources what public service is all about? ICMA Executive Director Bob O’Neill has said that “citizen trust is the working capital of innovation.” When service providers see the end result is the trust of the public, local governments are empowered to find even more paths of innovation.