City of Lynchburg Employee Newsletter
October 2018
A total of 116 City employees and members of their families enjoyed a fun morning at the Virginia 4 and 10 Miler on Saturday, September 29. Colleagues, Earlier this week, the City Manager sent an email wishing everyone a happy Customer Service Week. In her email, Bonnie reminded us that we don’t need a natural disaster to show our excellence in customer service – that we should be focused on customer service every day of the week, regardless of what is going on. When I read her email, it Message from the Deputy City reminded me of a former colleague who had a Manager, Reid Wodicka. really simple, but meaningful, way of talking about providing really great service to members of our community. I want to share some reflection on that and how it influences my practice. Over the last decade or so, I’ve had the opportunity to work in a few different communities, all of different sizes and complexities. In each of those organizations, there have been different cultures, different expectations for services from the community and very different types of people serving in local government. However, I always felt lucky that I found, in each of those organizations, examples of exceptional leaders. In some cases, those leaders were refined and highly educated individuals. In other cases, the exceptional leaders barely finished high school, and perhaps were a little rougher around the edges. As I look back on some of the folks who I’ve served with who have made lasting impacts on their communities and colleagues, there is a lot of diversity. But the one commonality in all of those individuals is they never lost focus on the primary reason that our organization and roles even exist – to serve the people who live in the community. One particularly salty former colleague, Timmy, had a saying that he often repeated and that I still think about quite frequently. Whenever someone on Timmy’s team complained about having to stay late or do a little extra work that might be outside of the norm, that old timer would repeat, “Without them, there is no us.” In the simplest of terms, I think this speaks to what our customer and public service philosophy should be – we are here, and our organization exists to serve the people of Lynchburg. It’s pretty simple, but if we go about our work with that perspective, our results and the outcomes for the community will be so much better.
Often, in large organizations like ours, and even in smaller organizations like Timmy’s, it’s easy to lose track of the real reason we are here. Well intentioned (but perhaps thoughtlessly applied) rules, coupled with excessive workloads and a frustration with people who just aren’t nice to deal with can sometimes lead us to slip into an attitude in which we think that doing the minimum is good enough. Rather than looking for a way to be helpful, it is easy to look for reasons to not be. If we think about the services we provide from a perspective that “Without them, there is no us,” it reminds us that it is incumbent upon us to go the extra mile for the people of Lynchburg when they need it, helping them make their way through problems even if it’s a bit outside of our typical standard practices. I know everyone in our organization is busy and there are often demands that seem to only multiply. However, if you ever find yourself thinking, “Hey, this really isn’t our problem,” and are tempted to not address the person’s need, try to also think about what Timmy would say, “Without them, there is no us.” Yes, technically, there are often issues that people present to us that are really not the City’s responsibility. I’m certainly not saying that we have to solve all problems for all people. However, if you can find a way to connect that person in need with a way to solve their problem, you will have provided an immeasurable public service to that individual and will likely save another department from a phone call asking for their help. Instead of looking for reasons that we can’t help people who need it, let’s look for simple ways that we can be helpful. We provide such excellent service in so many ways, but let’s be honest – there is a lot of work to do, and it’s easy for things to slip through the cracks. While those things do happen, we absolutely have to strive for no mistakes. While we have to balance the needs of the community with the personnel resources that we have to contribute, at all times, we have to go about our work in a way that errs on the side of service to the people of Lynchburg. And we should all always remember, “Without them, there is no us.” My best,
OUR VALUES: Open Communication • Customer Focus • Personal Responsibility • Integrity