Using EUM to Drive the Management Process – Central Arkansas Water Experience

In 2001, the water utilities of North Little Rock and Little Rock merged to form Central Arkansas Water (CAW). This was the result of a two-year study performed by the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and was supported by both cities' Chamber of Commerce. It was strongly felt by the region's business community that a regional water utility would operate more efficiently and be critical for continued economic growth in the Central Arkansas area.Since the completion of the merger, CAW has operated under a separate, autonomous commission with a set of governing principles that was jointly agreed upon by both cities at the time of the merger. The document was aptly named the “Consolidation Agreement” and governed certain strategic initiatives for the next seven years. In 2007, the CAW Commission hired a new Chief Executive Officer and gave him a strong mandate to develop the organizations first Comprehensive Strategic Plan.CAW's strategic planning process coincided with the publication of the Effective Utility Management (EUM) Primer, which provided CAW the opportunity to direct its strategic planning process towards the ten attributes of effective managed utilities (Attributes).