Municipal Monitor Q2 2015 | Page 23

ORGANIZATIONAL DESIGN

Study finds municipal organizational systems built around preparing for and coping with shifting priorities

By Ian Smith, HDSIK Management Consultants

It has been suggested,“ Strategy cannot be successfully executed without the right organization design.” Experience also suggests that organization design helps improve performance by focusing on the key elements in the organizational system as illustrated at right.

Organizational design is particularly important to municipalities since it has a direct impact on the quality of services they offer. And it is the quality of service that determines what people think of their municipal government.
The purpose of this article is to summarize the observations and key findings from interviews of over 20 municipal leaders regarding the design of municipal organizations.
Environmental & Operating Context
Strategy
Processes
Culture
Human Capital
Leadership
Structure
Outcomes / Results
• Organization
• Unit
• Individual
MUNICIPAL MONITOR 21