The client need

Kaukauna Utilities needed to prepare for upcoming retirements in critical positions and ensure the organizational structure aligns with the utility's strategic goals. The project’s primary objective was to ensure that Kaukauna Utilities had the insight necessary to make process improvement and organizational redesign decisions that would positively impact their ability to achieve their mission.

The Baker Tilly approach

Baker Tilly’s public sector advisory specialists conducted an entity-wide operational and organizational assessment of the utility, placing special emphasis on information technology (IT) and human resources (HR) services, both high-performing functions that serve the City of Kaukauna, Wisconsin.

Our team determined that the first step in achieving Kaukauna’s goal was to deepen our understanding of the organization itself. The Baker Tilly project team:

• Reviewed strategic plans, job descriptions, succession plans and policies and procedures
• Facilitated more than 20 focus group sessions and one-on-one interviews with staff and stakeholders
• Conducted a benchmarking study of peer organizations and aspirational organizations
• Completed a skills gap assessment to determine areas within the organization that were at risk of institutional knowledge loss upon key retirements

Once these activities were complete, the project team created a set of initial findings outlining opportunities for change and points of pride for the organization. The initial findings were discussed with the utility’s project steering committee and a priority level was assigned to each based on feedback.

Following, Baker Tilly developed detailed recommendations for each initial finding as well as an implementation time frame. Organizational structure changes were accompanied by updated organizational charts and key considerations for critical positions with the potential for imminent retirement. Once combined, these findings and recommendations provided a resourceful roadmap for the utility to begin strategic hiring and making key process improvements and organizational change decisions.

Results achieved

The final report contained 19 observations and recommendations centered around the following broad themes:

• Changes to the organizational structure to strategically align job duties with departmental mission and prepare the utility to adapt to industry trends
• Enhancing IT policies and procedures to better meet customer needs and expectations
• Other key process improvements, including work order processing

Many of the recommendations represented a significant change for Kaukauna Utilities. As such, we prioritized the recommended changes to the organizational structure so that the utility could implement these changes in alignment with respected retirements.

The success of this project was rooted in the long and trusted relationship between Kaukauna Utilities and Baker Tilly.

For more information or to learn how Baker Tilly's public sector advisory specialists can help your organization, contact our team.