Gwinnett County's Department of Financial Services embraces Lean.

• Author: Reagan, Richard

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Gwinnett County, Georgia, began its continuous improvement journey at the county-wide level in 2007, and over the past two years the county has concentrated on deploying Lean within the Department of Financial Services. Lean is often used in operational departments to great benefit, but the county was also interested in improving the services provided by support departments, which also have a significant impact on the quality of services all the county departments provide. (For more information about Lean, see "The 8 Sources of Waste: Eliminating Them with Lean Management Techniques" in this issue of Government Finance Review.)

All underlying administrative processes must be continually improved to deliver and sustain superior service to the county's internal customers, and ultimately the county's most important customers--its citizens. Gwinnett County has established a reputation of delivering positive outcomes, and it is committed to having the most effective and efficient processes to support its employees.

THE FUNDAMENTALS

The Department of Financial Services' continuous improvement program has four pillars: educate, standardize, measure, and act.

Educate. Educate personnel to equip them with the technical skills and continuous improvement knowledge they need to enhance their work product and the county's services. Some organizations invest in the technical training, but overlook valuable continuous improvement training. Gwinnett County believes that continuous improvement training is a key ingredient in personnel development.

Standardize. Solid policies and procedures standardize the work process, and standardization is critical to continuous improvement. An organization that doesn't sufficiently document its policies and procedures relies on institutional knowledge as a means of accomplishing tasks. Instructions are passed from one generation to the next by something akin to folklore, and when one generation retires, the hope is that the knowledge has been transferred to the next generation in a comprehensive and accurate manner. Like whispering a statement from person to person in a circle, the original content can unfortunately become distorted by the time it reaches the last person. The Department of Financial Services does not rely on this approach, and instead works aggressively to strengthen its policies and procedures through a development strategy that conforms to the International Standards Organization (ISO) best practices and GFOA guidance.

Measure. Measure performance to improve outcomes, transparency, and accountability. "You can't improve what you don't measure" is an old adage, but it is unconditionally true. The finance department focuses on measuring outcomes to make sure it is supporting its vision and strategy. Every service outcome has a supporting process beneath it, so understanding how much we are improving over time is critical. Four years ago, the county began to deploy the balanced scorecard performance measurement system, and this program became the standard performance reporting mechanism for all departments reporting to the county administrator. Financial Services developed a balanced scorecard for the department, each division within the department, and all department leaders.

Act. Financial Services deploys Lean in every part of its business and is relentless about pursuing perfection. Simply completing a project is not enough, as mere completion does not ensure that the department is enhancing the way it gets things accomplished. The need to simply get the job done doesn't distract us from pursuing the objective of improving the ways in which we get our jobs accomplished.

THE COUNTY'S PROGRAM

After considerable research and development, Gwinnett County deployed its own Lean program four years ago. The county engaged local universities and other consultants for guidance but decided to develop...