Sunday, May 08, 2011

Managing a Town Council

One of the duties of the elected MP is to manage a town council. Many people probably worry about the lack of experience of opposition MPs i nmanaging a town council, although Low Thia Khiang and Chiam See Tong appeared to do this job quite well - but it could be an exception. The other opposition MPs, if elected, might not have the same calibre and dedication - and this uncertainty might have deterred the voters from voting for them.

I like to write a paper on what a new elected team of MPs should do to manage a town council well. They do not need to do the day to day work, as they can appoint professionals to do the job, but the town council needs to have a system of managing the expectations of the residents and responding to a crisis or emergency.

Can I have contributions to this topic, from people who have managed a town council before. What are the key strategies and "to-do" list? Please post your comments here, or send them to kinlian@gmail.com.

Tan Kin Lian

2 comments:

DavidL said...

Perhaps you could speak to either Chiam See Tong or Low Thia Khiang on their opinions?

william said...

Dear Mr Tan,

I don't think any of the MPs are doing the day-to-day running of a TC. They hired full time staff to manage the TC but serves as advisors or council members similar to a management council in a private condo.

Hiring professionals to manage TC is also not new, as several GRCs are managed by comapny like Esmaco. It is like condo hiring a managing agent (MA) to take care of the day-to-day operations. Most of the works such as cleaning, repairs, maintenance, landscaping are contracted out.

My experience serving as a council member in a large condo shows that it is not always smooth sailing even with a MA. Most council members in a condo are volunteer and hence spend little time in the day-to-day operation. If you rely entirely on the MA the outcome depends on who you hire and what role they play. My personal opinion for condo is to use the MA to take care of the statutory requirement only, but hire your own operation staff including the condo manager and supervisors to oversee the works of the contractors, as then you have direct control over the quality and accountability of works performance as the staff are employed by the TC and not the MA.

Similarly the TC can employ qualified staff to manage the operations which can also be more cost effective and ensure continuity of management rather than appointing MA, as their contract are generally subject to renewal or review on a yearly basis. To ensure transparency the TC would have to call for tenders and justify appointing a particular MA which may compromise the quality of works if the decision is based on the lowest cost. If you keep changing MA every year then you have a problem of continuity.

I agree with DavidL that Mr Chiam and Low would be able to tap on their years of experience in managing the SMC and extend it to the larger GRC. If necessary they can always retain the services of the existing TC's staff to ensure smooth transition. Ultimately they are the one to bear the consequences if they cannot deliver the promises they make, so why tie their hands to a set of "to-do" list?

Just my 2cents worth.

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