Although the 68th General Assembly may be stealing center stage today, Denver Mayor Michael Hancock is rolling out some public policy initiatives of his own.
Dear Neighbor:
As we anticipate another fiscally tough year, now is the time to reassess, recalibrate and fundamentally rethink the way City government serves every neighborhood, resident and business in Denver.
Over the past six months, my administration has begun the process of making Denver better, faster and stronger, and providing the highest level of customer service while maximizing every taxpayer dollar is essential to achieving this goal.
Today, I'm proud to announce we are moving to the next major milestone of my Peak Performance initiative: a common sense, data driven approach to running government more like a business.
Wasted resources are disrespectful to our citizens and to our employees. They abuse your trust as a taxpayer and they squander our time and hard work.
There are so many good uses for every dollar. My administration and our City are working to show you how responsible and innovative we can be with every single dollar we receive.
Since taking office in July, my administration has prepared all City agencies to undertake perhaps the most extensive strategic planning effort in the history of Denver.
Peak Performance will fundamentally alter the way the City operates. It will help us create a unified team rowing in the same direction. It will make us more efficient and more effective.
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Peak Performance will create a new level of coordination that enables more capacity within all departments. It will align resources and all aspects of city government around a shared goal of focusing our resources on kids, jobs, public safety and human services.
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We are dedicated and committed to providing excellent customer
service, to creating a sustainable City regardless of economic pressures, and to delivering a world-class city where everyone matters.
Obviously, there's something very admirable in what Hancock is trying to do with this "Peak Performance" initiative - Denver is mired in economic challenges and will likely stay that way until the economy really starts to improve. The harsh reality of governing in 2012, then, is that cuts have to be made across the board, and with this initiative, Hancock is demonstrating that he's all too willing to make those cuts.
Still, we can't help but question a lot of the messaging that Hancock's office is using to roll out this new economic strategy. "Running government like a business," long a staple of both the Tea Party and now Mitt Romney, doesn't sound that good anymore. "Running a business like a business" hasn't really worked out lately, has it?
Hancock also throws around a lot of language that seems ripped from a Fortune 500 company's quarterly report: "a common sense, data driven approach," "It will help us create a unified team rowing in the same direction, "We are dedicated and committed to providing excellent customer service." We're just happy Hancock didn't throw in buzzwords like "synergy" or "scalable."
Regardless, Hancock's smart in throwing his weight and focus behind more efficient Denver government. He might not be framing it perfectly, but "eliminating government waste" is still a buzzword to which citizens respond.
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