Village Audit Points Out Problems, Potential in Fleet Services Division

An audit of the village's fleet services department revealed "major" disciplinary and authority problems, as well as departmental inefficiencies according to a presentation given to the council Wednesday night. By contrast, the 105-page report also revealed the village's garage has talented mechanics and there remains potential for the village to sell the division's service to other towns, turning grease into gold.

Hired by the previous village council in January of 2009, auditors Bob Crandall and Don Aull of Commercial Vehicle Consultants systematically examined the division, which had eight employees at the time and is responsible for repairs on all village and school board vehicles, as well as making records and reports available to the department manager.

But that's not quite how it worked out in the several months in 2009 spent observing the department, Crandall reported.

Discipline, management issues

"What we feel is a priority concern is the loss of authority and discipline at the office. There is a major problem in the fact that . . . the manager of the fleet services is often gone around to get work done. It's just not right," he said.

Village employees needing vehicle repairs would simply go directly to the mechanics in many cases, Crandall said when asked by Mayor Keith Killion.

Crandall suggested evaluation forms and discipline standards be followed so a supervisor can maintain records to track employee performance and efficiency.

"Discipline is something that goes both ways," Crandall said, estimating that 90 percent of the staff "want to do a good job" while about 10 percent "push back" and create 90 percent of the supervisor's work.

While Crandall recommended an evaluation system, Mayor Killion said he felt the village would need to do that across the board for all employees in the interest of fairness.

Director of Public Works Frank Moritz said fixing this aspect is the top priority among the audit recommendations.

"The first step is getting the heirarchy organized to see who will organize what," he said Friday. With attrition in the division and the logistics of managing sick time, vacation time, and the amount of work with limited bodies, implementing many recommendations at first was not feasible, Moritz said. He also said Friday that the audit overlooked the fact that the division fixes more than just cars and trucks.

"Four mechanics are working on over 250 different piece of equipment. You need to look at all the areas," he said.

"There have been several exceptional situations [that] have impacted the department," Village Manager Ken Gabbert said at the council meeting, adding that progress has been "limited".

The council should also bear some responsibility for the division's deficiencies, said Killion.

"When leaders need to step up, that means all of us. We can't expect a department to function at 100 percent when we're not giving them the money to buy the equipment . . . Yes, management is important, but just as important is a budget with the items they need. There are some things they are unable to do" as a result, Killion said.

The mayor recommended the department do an additional report, assessing if they have the proper amount of resources needed.

Lack of technology, other assorted issues

While the apparent lack of discipline and heirarchy was of great concern, Crandall noted the total lack of computer software prevented the garage from efficiently determining the average life-cycle of vehicles, when vehicles can be relinquished and part procurement.

Crandall said the mechanics are "doing a good job" staying up to date on technology as best they can given limited resources, but computer software would prove a marked step up.

"All that information could be done with a button press. We recommended a program that has a modular format," Crandall said. The council appeared to endorse that initiative Wednesday night.

Moritz said Friday afternoon that while it will take a little time for the mechanics–whom he said are staff "veterans"–to adjust, there's definitely a plan to computerize everything.

Crandall also said that the audit noted the breakdown of some of the vehicles could be caused by shoddy fuel. Aull added it's becoming a big problem "industry wide," while also stating that Ridgewood should have more bidders, as single bids can dock Ridgewood dollars.

Selling service to neighboring towns?

If and when the division gets its house in order, the auditors said Ridgewood could even market its division to other towns and bring in some revenue.

While the division is currently better than some and worse than others, Crandall said the mechanics certainly have the talent to pull it off. The transformation could even be completed in as little as six-to-eight months, he said.

"You should get the house in order first, and then you can present a Class-A organization for sale to anybody," Crandall said.

As for why the report took so long to reach the council, which was criticized by resident Boyd Loving and not disagreed with by the council, Moriz said "many of the recommendations were not doable in the beginning."

Still, the public works director said he believes the staff is "already an asset" and the department is going to "follow the plan."