WHERE IS YOUR UTILITY HEADED, AND HOW WILL YOU KNOW YOU'RE THERE? : STRATEGIC PLANNING FOR MUNICIPAL UTILITIES

Customers, and ratepayers, are demanding a higher level of service, however few are willing to pay more for those services. The challenge facing utility managers today is how to do more with less. Nearly every utility manager has heard the refrain: “Failing to plan is planning to fail.” Most utility leaders would agree with that statement, and, in fact, most utility managers have robust capital plans. A common trait of the managers of forward-thinking utility organizations is recognizing the benefit of comprehensively incorporating best business practices with capital planning. The resulting strategic business plan enables the utilities to focus limited resources in the most effective and efficient manner to provide the highest return on the public investment. An understanding of the elements of strategic planning, and the application of performance measurement as a management tool, is critical for utility managers to successfully meet today's customer service challenges.