03-19-1990 WS - Laserfiche WebLink

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• (F/ TO: Mayor & Council FROM: Don Brager, Finance Director - Treasurer DATE: March 8, 1990 SUBJECT: Proposal for Finance Department Team Building Submitted by Government Training Service It is my understanding that the Council, at the March 5, 1990 Agenda Session, discussed the proposal from Government Training Service for a follow-up to the City's Management Audit. That proposal included team building with the Finance Department at a cost of $2,850 plus travel expenses. At the March 6, 1990 Department Head meeting I was informed that the Council was somewhat skeptical of the value of the team building proposal for the Finance Department. My initial reaction was surprise as I had the impression that the Council was committed to a team building effort for the Department.- The Mayor was present at the Department Head meeting and I advised her that I felt that a team building effort for the Department was a very worthwhile endeavor and that all members of the Finance Department were in favor of undertaking a team building effort. The Mayor stated that • she was not aware of the committment of members of the Finance Department to the proposed team building sessions and that, perhaps, other members of the Council were also unaware of it. I was directed to talk with members of the Department to determine their committment to the team building sessions. If they were still committed I should make this fact known to the Council and request reconsideration of the team building proposal. My basis for stating that members of the Finance Department were committed to team building sessions for the Department was a meeting that all members of the Finance Department had with Barb Arney and John Vinton of GTS on February 2 to discuss the results of the Management Audit. At that meeting Barb Arney and John Vinton proposed that team building sessions would be beneficial to the Department. The team building process was described in detail. All members of the Department were individually asked if they felt a team building session would be worth undertaking and if they were committed to it. All members of the Department answered affirmatively to both questions At a Finance Department Staff meeting, held on March 6, 1990, I informed staff of my discussion with the Mayor at the Department Head meeting. I stated my willingness to proceed with team building sessions and my belief that they were worthwhile and would be beneficial to the Department. I advised that if they were still committed to team building I would request Council to • approve the team building proposal submitted by GTS. Evidently Finance Department Staff's enthusiasm for the team building process has waned as, when polled individually, they were of the opinion that I should not request Council to approve the team building proposal submitted by GTS. To paraphrase the comments