FEATURE ARTICLE             


      "TURNING THE SHIP AROUND"
       - Changing Times at the Housing Authorities- 


Housing authorities throughout the nation are experiencing dramatic change. With new and ever changing H.U.D. and state regulations, decreasing resources, increasing workload and fast advancing technology, the public housing industry continues to struggle with the evolution from transactional to strategic process improvement. As we talk to Housing Authority executives in every area of the country we continue to hear the same story. Everywhere in public housing the stresses of managing this change process can be seen.  How can we keep up with the increased demands while we continue to experience cut-backs? How can we maintain acceptable levels of client service retain our best employees and maintain a motivated workforce? How can we decrease the stresses of the present environment?

The answers to these questions are not simple. However, they can be overcome when a Housing Authority takes some valuable lessons from their corporate neighbors. Corporate American has spent the last twenty years struggling with these very same issues. For years corporations fought these same battles. In fact, many corporations today still do. The successful companies overcame the obstacles by understanding and perfecting the process of CHANGE MANAGEMENT. Change management is not a phase used to explain changing the way we do our jobs. It is a philosophy through which we develop a common mindset and internally drive to a common goal. It engages not simply what we do in our jobs, but how we view them. The process of change can not be ignored, denied, or resisted. The simple fact is that change will occur, with or without us. To quote a well known television series, “Resistance is futile”. As soon as Housing Authorities and there leadership grasp this concept, significant improvements will begin to take place.

Our experience and research has uncovered five major areas which must be addressed in order for public housing agencies to succeed in the present and future:

• Set the procedural house in order
Most housing authorities are attempting to create a new house on an old foundation. They are still following the same internal guidelines and procedures which reinforced a transactional environment while attempting to evolve beyond transactional thinking. Any positive change will always be hard pressed when the borders within which we operate do not encourage creative thought. Review, assess and when necessary change policies and procedures to encourage creative thinking

• Appropriately staff and re-training
In many of the authorities we have worked with, they quite simply do not have the right people doing the right job, the expectations are not clearly defined and there is little accountability when an employee doesn’t perform. Many managers are not trained to manage, many being promoted to manager simply because they did the actual job well as employees. The fact is that the skills one needs to be a boiler operator are drastically different than the skills needed to manage boiler operators. Teach managers to manage people not fix boilers.

• Utilize technology
Today’s technology allows us to do more with less. The speed, accuracy and abilities of the computer age must be used to create a more productive workforce. This means not just encouraging employees to use the technology but requiring it. Make sure employees learn how technology should be used to make their jobs easier. Granted, the beginning of this process will present some issues, but the end result will be less manual labor and more efficiency within the environment. Most times this will not involve re-inventing the wheel, just learning how to drive the car. Find and utilize technology, decrease manual processes when possible and expect increased productivity.

• Eliminate the entitlement mentality
Although there is great value in experience, no one should feel entitled to a job. Employees must understand that their continued employment will not be based on the fact that they have been in the position. Our continued employment must be conditional upon our continued value to the organization. Thus the need for a well defined and enforced performance based evaluation system. There must be clearly defined goals, expectations and accountabilities. Hold all levels of the organization accountable for that which they expected to do. Systems which pay employees and reward them with pay raises simply because they lived another year discourage creative thinking and encourage apathy. In other words, if a machine is not making some noise it may not be because it is running perfectly, it just may not be running. Work toward a performance based system.

• Focus considerable effort on client focus and employee respect
Prior to working with Housing Authorities our staff spent time sitting in the waiting rooms of a number of public housing entities. What we observed in many cases was an appauling lack of respect for the clients. Ignoring clients, unreasonable waiting, lack of preparation and a sever case of “I don’t really care how long you’ve been here”. This statement, by no means, indicates that every authority functions that way. However, our personal experiences reinforced the thought that the focus was on transactions and not people.  At times, we have tended to forget that if not for the clients and their needs, we wouldn’t have a job. Authority leadership must constantly reinforce the philosophy that every person who walks through our doors is a human being, with hopes and dreams and visions of a clean, safe and secure home. Although many need our services to survive, it does not make them any less a person. Successful housing authorities work together with the populations they service. They solicit and respect the opinions of the clients; they seek them out for input and suggestions and improve accordingly. Treat every client and co-worker with respect and dignity.

Housing authorities continue to be faced with immense challenges, now and in the future. Those who will overcome them will do so because they have embraced the changes that are inevitable. They have common goals, commitment to improving, willingness to change and most importantly, respect for themselves, their co-workers and the clients they serve.

This article was written by, Ricardo H. Correia, President of Centaur Consulting. Centaur Consulting is a business consulting firm working with housing authorities, public agencies and private corporations on improving workplace productivity. For more information on our services contact :
    Ricardo Correia -201-923-1428 
            Ted Williams-609-799-3272                        Al Horton 410-800-5674
Or visit our website at: www.centaurconsultinginc.com

Mr. Al Horton has joined Centaur Consulting as the Director of Business Development. Mr. Horton brings over  15 years of Human Resources and Employee Relations experience having worked for Time Warner, Cablevision and APGF Credit Union. Mr. Horton will operate out of Baltimore, MD and will be responsible for business expansion,  program development and client service throughout the Northeast region of the Unites States. 

CENTAUR EXECUTIVES FEATURED AT 2009 AAHRA ANNUAL CONFERENCE AT BEAU RIVAGE, BILOXI, MS.

Ricardo (Rico) Correia and Theodore (Ted) Williams, executives  of  Centaur Consulting were featured speakers at the 2009 Alabama Association of Housing and Redevelopment Authorities Annual  Conference. The conference was being held at the Beau Rivage Hotel and Casino on August 23-26. The conference theme was "Staying Alive" and the Centaur staff  addressed issues of “Managing For Productivity “ and  “Coaching and Counseling “  in difficult times The conference  attracted between 500 –1000 participants.