Is Bill going to put the boot into Revs & Bens?

coming sooon to a Business Park near you?

Mr Mustard likes to keep you up to date. He was off air for 24 hours thanks to a new pre-configured router which was only 95% configured and stopped him receiving email but that is now history. Here is Bill's message to the people:

From:

Murphy, Bill Sent: 29 March 2012 17:59

Revenues & Benefits - update on customer services transformation programme

 

Dear Colleagues,

 

As indicated in previous communications I said that I would keep you updated on developments in the proposals for how the Revenues and Benefits service will look going forward. I am pleased to be able to tell you that the future operational design has now been approved by the Project Board and the Customer Services Programme Board and we now have a plan on which we wish to consult with you (and no matter how vehemently you disagree it is unlikely to change?)

 

To that end I have set up a number of presentations next Wednesday, 4 April to start the consultation process.

 

These will be held in Conference Room 1, NLBP, as follows:

Session 1: 9:00am: Managers and Team Managers

Session 2: 10:00: First session for staff

Session 3: 11:00: Second session for staff

We have divided the session into these groups so we can provide more targeted presentations. These will be followed up by one-to-one sessions as fast as these can be arranged.

 

Please consult with your line manager on whether you should attend Session 2 or Session 3 so they can ensure the service is covered as far as is possible

.

This is an important session and I encourage everyone to attend if at all possible. I know that some of you may be on holiday next week and I will arrange a 'mop-up' session after the Easter period for those who can't make it this time.

 

I look forward to seeing you on Wednesday.

 

Bill Murphy

Assistant Director, Customer Services

 

Mr Mustard has borrowed Mrs Angry's crystal ball, which has been remarkably accurate so far, and sadly it predicts a management bloodbath with 20 or more senior posts going. Now Mr Mustard is all for cutting out excess management but what would stop him changing Revs & Bens too quickly is the money at stake. The recovery rate of 98% of council tax is very hard to improve upon with only a 2% improvement possible so follow the "it ain't broke don't fix it" maxim, if only Mr Mustard hadn't swapped the working router out for a more modern one which his ISP had provided he wouldn't have had a slightly broker mail server, doh. The downside is 98% or £200m and it looks like with the experienced boss Dave Sharpe already up the road he is going to be joined by lots more of his team. Much of what makes a department tick isn't easily replaced; the way that a team works together for a start and the knowledge that is in their brains.

 

Any wholesale change risks bringing the department to its knees and handing it over to an external supplier in a right state which is not a good plan.

Mr Mustard does hope he is wrong.

Yours frugally (but only in the right places)

Mr Mustard