Moving Your Utility in the Right Direction to Meet the Challenges of Today and Tomorrow

In 2012, the Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) found itself at an interesting crossroads. As MMSD looked to maintain the level of service it was providing to its customers, it was also seeking to evolve in very specific service areas to sustain it into the future. These areas of evolution were ambitious and forward-thinking and included:• Expanding pollution prevention and source reduction efforts• Embarking on adaptive resource management initiatives with the community• Increasing resource recovery of phosphorus from the waste stream• Reducing energy consumption and increasing energy recovery, working toward a goal of total energy independence• Developing an advanced asset management program• Diversifying a mature solids management program with a Class A productIn keeping with its forward focus, MMSD investigated industry trends. MMSD used the study entitled, “The Water Resources Utility of the Future: A Blueprint for Action”, produced by the National Association of Clean Water Agencies, the Water Environment Research Foundation, and the Water Environment Federation, as a point of reference as it moved forward in a manner that was both mindful of the potential impact of these trends, and recognized the need for flexibility to adapt as needed in the industry’s ever-changing business landscape.Staff planning and development was a critical issue for MMSD. Unlike many utilities that are presently in the process of significantly reducing their workforces, MMSD had traditionally operated in a lean manner. In light of the many significant initiatives already in progress at MMSD, as well as the likelihood of more rigorous regulations to come, the demands on current MMSD staff were predicted to continue to increase. This was occurring at the same time as the utility was losing a significant number of experienced staff to retirement. For these reasons, MMSD recognized the need to identify the staffing levels and the skills needed to ensure its future success.MMSD worked with management and technology consulting and services firm EMA, Inc. to develop a Staffing Study that would identify organizational needs and provide recommended steps to build capacity in an efficient and effective manner. The Staffing Study found that MMSD was in the midst of a significant project-related peak workload. Considering all of the potential future work cataloged during the study, MMSD could face an increase of up to 10 positions, or just over 10 percent of its workforce, during the next few years. The structured planning process helped MMSD to identify opportunities to sequence and stage future projects and optimize the work in its core service areas to achieve its goals, while minimizing future staff increases.MMSD recognized that the Staffing Study provided a roadmap that would enable the utility explore their options – optimizing what they have, considering opportunities to build capacity to support new programs and practices, and leveraging existing infrastructure to save money over the long term. MMSD developed short term priorities from among the Staffing Study recommendations. They committed to several key hires that would give them more management/leadership capacity to analyze and optimize their work. Additionally, they initiated several specific work practice changes to increase efficiency of core service work.MMSD asked a number of critical questions and made a number of critical decisions surrounding its practices, processes, and staffing levels as it developed its plan to expand its organizational scope. These questions and decisions are illustrated, and insights into the longer term change management aspects, as well as quick wins and lessons learned are presented.