CLIENT RESULTS
450 Leaders, One City
City of Philadelphia · Public sector
City of Philadelphia improves project management capabilities. Private-sector best practices boost leadership skills city-wide.
450
participants rated it excellent
5
months of Friday-afternoon sessions
City-wide
supervisors across departments
2011
Customer Service Leadership Academy created
THE SITUATION
A new Managing Director bet that business best practices could make city government work better.
In support of one of Mayor Michael A. Nutter’s key Strategic Plan Goals, to “make the government work more efficiently and effectively, with integrity and responsiveness,” the City of Philadelphia created the Customer Service Leadership Academy in 2011.
It was the new Managing Director’s first experience working in the public sector. He felt that introducing best practices from business into government could be a way to meet the Mayor’s goal. The stakes were high. Done well, city government gets transformed. Executed poorly, the initiative would be an embarrassment and lower morale.
WHAT WE DID
Practical Steps, Applied to the Real Work
01
Partnered with the Managing Director to evaluate and improve the City’s internal project management capabilities.
02
Conducted an organizational assessment and led several training workshops.
03
At the request of Deputy Managing Director Rosetta Carrington Lue, extended project management training to supervisors across the city.
04
Delivered bite-sized, focused mini-courses on Friday afternoons over five months, built for immediate use on the job.
WHAT WE DID
What Changed
Immediate application
Mini-courses delivered focused topics participants could put to work on the job right away.
Consistency
A consistent approach to project management across city departments.
Team building
Stronger working relationships across city departments.
Business practices in government
Private-sector best practices successfully introduced into government.
Rated excellent
450 supervisor-level and above participants rated the program excellent in every evaluation area.
IN THEIR WORDS
What Leaders Said
The level of enthusiastic participation on Friday afternoons by diverse departments throughout the entire 5-month period demonstrates the importance of project management talent development in all aspects of the city.
Rich Negrin
City Managing Director and Deputy Mayor
YOUR TURN