The time is now for public works succession planning

“We are at a crisis point,” explained Keith Reester, as he discussed the looming shortage of experienced public works management talent. Reester, who is director of public works for the city of Loveland, Colo., spoke on the topic “Dynamic Succession-United States and Australian Examples” during the recent 2008 American Public Works Association (APWA) International Public Works Congress and Exposition in New Orleans.

Reester cited a 2007 APWA survey on succession planning that showed 60 percent of the public works professionals who responded identified themselves as being within 10 years of retirement.

Many of the cities where those public works directors work have no succession plan in place, Reester added.

“City officials say they have bigger priorities,” Reester told GovPro.com following his presentation.

He added, “Developing a succession plan is a time commitment, not a financial commitment.”

‘Recycling’ baby boomers
Reester outlined four prongs for an effective succession plan, noting that the prongs are “critical to an organization’s future success.” The prongs are:

• Find and hire talent.
• Retain and develop talent.
• Knowledge transfer.
• Recycle baby boomers into encore careers.

On the last point, Reester suggested that public works departments use boomers on a part-time or project basis. A potential task for boomers, Reester said, is to mentor less-seasoned public works staffers.

Boomers, by definition, were born in the years between 1945 and 1964.

“Boomers currently fill a majority of leadership positions in public works agencies throughout the western world,” Reester noted. “Private firms serving the public works industry have similar trends.”

Engaging Generations X and Y
Reester urged attendees of the 2008 APWA Congress to “make public works an employer of choice for Generations X and Y.” He also urged attendees to “engage the Generation X and Y work force by understanding their concerns, priorities and work styles.”

Generation X refers to the generation following the post–World War II baby boom, especially people born in the United States and Canada from the early 1960s to the late 1970s. Generation Y is defined as the generation that followed Generation X, especially people born in the United States and Canada from the early 1980s to the late 1990s.

Public works managers need to become Web-savvy when recruiting the next generation of public works staffers, Reester said. The reason: Both Generation X and Y rely on the Web when looking for work. Reester cited recent research that shows anywhere from 65 to 90 percent of Generation X or Y individuals start and complete their job search on the Internet.

A ‘buyer’s market’
Reester offered this final thought-provoking statistic to GovPro.com: “It’s going to be a buyer’s market from an employee’s standpoint in the years ahead.”

“In the U.S., the gap between the number of baby boomers and Generation X is 9.7 million workers, regardless of industry,” Reester said.

A contributing factor is the coming shortage of engineering talent.

“As a percentage of all university students, fewer young people are entering the engineering professions than at any time in recent history,” Reester said.