It's the little things that can make or break a career—and it often comes down to risk management, or the lack of it.
Who would have thought that a snow storm could cast such a shadow over the career of Washington , D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty? But when a storm dumps 22 inches on a city—the nation's capital no less—that is not accustomed to such numbers, a good snow removal plan is critical. It appears, however, that the mayor didn't adequately check into that aspect of D.C.'s preparedness before the snowfall.
As risk managers know, it's the simple, most obvious things that are the easiest to overlook. For example, are there enough trucks? Are those trucks equipped to handle 22 inches of show? Are there enough drivers lined up to work around the clock—for days if necessary? Is there enough salt and salting equipment? Are the streets cordoned off so that they all get plowed?
“Well, it was such a heavy snow, why should the mayor be blamed?” you might ask. From media reports, snow plows repeatedly cleared some streets and not others. And at one point, 25 percent of the trucks were broken down, unable to handle the heavy snow. Scads of people still have their cars buried under snow—mountains of it. Yes, it was a record snowstorm, but not the first to ever hit the area and there was time to prepare.
The mayor made an appearance on “The Early Show” on CBS and from what I've read seemed to be making light of the situation. He promised the roads would be cleared over the long weekend, but this is little consolation to people who couldn't get to work, or wherever they needed to go. And once all the streets are plowed, people will still have to dig out their cars from not only the snow piled around them, but also what the snowplows push to the side.
Like many in the “C-suite” in the private sector, perhaps some public sector bosses would also do well to pay attention to the recently aired reality series, “Undercover Boss.” In this show, a company's leader works undercover in several lower level jobs within their organization to find out what is really going on, how workers are treated, how the public is treated and how they can make their organization stronger.
As for Mayor Fenty, people will forget any number of a candidate's shortcomings when they vote. But memories like those from this snowstorm—that is still affecting so many on a personal level—will be difficult to overcome on election day.
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