When Growth Fuels Change: The Finance Department initiates transformation in the Town of Nolensville, Tennessee.

• Author: Merle, Christina

The Finance Department for the Town of Nolensville, Tennessee, was under significant public scrutiny for not providing sufficient information to residents.

To address this concern, the department committed to implementing new financial practices that provided transparency and accountability, along with a focus on overall excellence.

MAKING CHANGES

The town's finance team, which started out as part of a combined finance and human resources department, recognized the limitations of this organizational structure, in which the staff was continuously juggling too many priorities with too few staff members--with only two employees to manage all the functions of both disciplines. This structure also limited the segregation of duties and the need and ability to satisfy internal control procedures. It was clear that the town was experiencing significant growth and the finance department needed to implement long-term changes to keep up with ever-expanding service demands. As a result, the finance and human resources functions were separated into distinct municipal departments.

The new organizational structure for the Finance Department put in place in FY2021 included the hiring of a finance director and finance assistant, initially a part-time position that would later evolve into a full-time position supporting departmental functions, while also providing necessary segregation of duties. The following fiscal year, the town created a human resources department that included the hiring of a full-time human resources director to manage personnel matters.

The new organizational structure has proven more responsive and sustainable for the town's continued growth and ongoing needs, and citizens have provided support and positive feedback. For example, when the town's first budget book was produced, one resident wrote: "Breaking news! I have never been more proud of my government than I am right now. I got involved in town government because of financial transparency issues I saw when I first moved here.... Municipal government starts and ends with budgets. We barely notice it when we argue about density and visions, but it's by far the most important process. And we finally have a strong foundation."

Recognizing the need for human resource functions to keep up with the employee growth in the organization, a standalone human resources department was created. Public safety is the town's biggest focus area for recruiting and retaining, so it's important to have a competitive benefits package to keep up with neighboring municipalities. HR undertook several initiatives to improve employee recruitment and retention, including hiring a benefits broker to change the town's healthcare plans and providers to improve the level of service and coverage for employees. The town was now able to offer full family coverage and to provide contributions toward health savings accounts, while also saving almost $90,000 a year in premium expenses. A consultant also reviewed compensation, allowing the town to adopt a new pay scale in FY 2023 that will keep Nolensville aligned with market rates.

The new organizational structure also complements the new counoil-manager form of government that was recently enacted, following a city wide referendum on changing the form of government. Department heads serve often in multiple roles in Nolensville, which is a common situation in smaller municipalities. Citizens viewed the town's previous form of government [mayor-aldermanic] as inadequate to keep up with the many challenges of a growing...