HomeMy WebLinkAboutC35650 - Apprv the 2017 Annual Prfrmnce Eval Criteria CITY OF PALM DESERT
CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE
STAFF REPORT
REQUEST: APPROVE THE 2017 ANNUAL PERFORMANCE EVALUATION
CRITERIA FOR CITY MANAGER LAURI AYLAIAN (C35650)
SUBMITTED BY: Lauri Aylaian, City Manager
DATE: March 9, 2017
CONTENTS: 2017 Annual Performance Evaluation for City Manager Lauri
Aylaian
Recommendation
That the City Council approve a City Manager Workplan for 2017, establishing goals for
work to be accomplished by City staff during the calendar year 2017, and the criteria
upon which the City Manager's performance will be evaluated at the end of that period.
Background
In April 2016, the City Council retained Ralph Andersen & Associates to conduct
recruitment activities for a new City Manager. During the performance of these
recruitment services, the consultant reviewed the City Council's past practices for
evaluating the performance of the City Manager and suggested that the Council's
expectations could be better met if a more rigorous, structured approach were
implemented. The City Council then engaged the consultant in the development of
criteria by which the City Manager's work and accomplishments could be evaluated.
The resulting framework for performance evaluation has three parts: evaluation based
on broad, general performance dimensions; specific goals for the review period; and
measurement of overall success.
In order to define the specific goals for the 2017 evaluation period, the City Manager
and executive staff worked to identify City goals from the 2013-2033 Strategic Plan and
from informal guidance and formal directives received from the City Council since the
Strategic Plan was adopted. Staff focused on providing a workplan that is ambitious but
achievable, provided that efforts are not diluted by assignment of new priorities or
additional projects over the course of the year.
In a half-day study session held on February 17th, the members of the City Council
performed a detailed review of the draft 2017 goals. They considered each proposed
task in the context of the overall program, added several work items to better reflect
Staff Report
City Manager Annual Performance Evaluation Criteria
March 9, 2017
Page 2
their overall goals. They also identified key tasks that, in addition to being important for
the year, have special urgency.
The resulting 2017 City Manager Workplan is attached to this staff report and is hereby
submitted for approval by the City Council. Accomplishment of some of the goals will
require appropriation of additional funding or augmentation of staff resources; most of
these allocations will be contained in the budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2017/18,
which will be presented to the City Council over the next two months.
Palm Desert has achieved great success over the years by delivering on creative long
range planning. Adoption of this plan, followed by careful execution of the tasks within
it, will continue the tradition of well-conceived, deliberate, and strategic progress that
delivers a premier quality of life for Palm Desert residents and visitors alike.
Prepared By/Approval:
auri Aylaian
City Manager
2017 ANNUAL PERFORMANCE EVALUATION
CITY MANAGER LAURI AYLAIAN
INTRODUCTION
SUMMARY:
The City Council and City Manager entered into an Employment Agreement that
includes reference to conducting an annual performance evaluation every 12 months. In
response to that provision, an evaluation form has been prepared for use by the City
Council.
The primary objective of the evaluation session is to exchange information that is
constructive and useful in communicating the concerns as well as the praises of the
employer to the employee. Moreover, it is an opportunity to set forth the expectations of
both the employer and employee for the coming year.
EVALUATION CRITERIA:
The following is a combination of two evaluation tools to assist the City Council with
evaluating performance. Some of the criteria are intended to be broad-ranging and
general enough to allow for and, in fact, encourage more discussion as opposed to a
simple rating. Others are more specifically related to identified performance measures
or questions that can simply be checked as a ranking from either excellent to poor or
strongly agree to strongly disagree. Also included at the end of the forms is an
opportunity to provide an overall assessment of performance. This was done to allow
the Council Members to individually rate performance.
PART I
PERFORMANCE EVALUATION BASED ON BROAD, GENERAL
PERFORMANCE DIMENSIONS
1. During the past year, I thought the City Manager generally kept me well informed
regarding City business and agenda matters.
Strongly Agree No Opinion Disagree Strongly
Agree Disagree
COMMENTS:
2. I have found the City Manager to be:
Strongly Agree No Opinion Disagree Strongly
Agree Disagree
Knowledgeable
Effective
Available
Responsive
Helpful
COMMENTS:
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3. Please rate the City Manager's achievement in the following performance
dimensions:
Excellent Good Fair Poor No Opinion
Decision Making
Communications
Regional Leadership
Community Relationships I
Interpersonal Skills
Dependability
Initiative
Relationship with Neighboring Cities
Teamwork
Staff Development
COMMENTS:
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PART II
CITY MANAGER PERFORMANCE EVALUATION GOALS
2017
The City Manager's Performance Measurements, as adopted by the City Council,
are listed here. Following each Goal Statement is a set of specific related
objectives. Also provided are comments from the City Manager regarding her
assessment of her accomplishment of each of these. Councilmembers are asked
to individually rate the City Manager's accomplishment of the stated goal and
objectives and add any related comments thereto.
Financial Performance Goals
1. Develop a policy for General Fund reserve levels. x
2. Incorporate the Strategic / General Plan objectives and goals into the
2017/18 Capital Improvement Plan budget.
3. Develop a schedule for public safety equipment refurbishment /
replacement.
4. Develop for Council consideration a program for cost recovery of EMS
services provided to transport patients, similar to that of neighboring
cities.*
5. Review/revise purchasing ordinances and policies to improve efficiency
and accountability, with authorization levels reflecting best practices for
municipal governments.
x Urgent
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Economic Development Goals
1. Update the 2012 Economic Development Strategic Plan for the City of
Palm Desert, including an assessment of, and strategies for, the future
viability of high-end retail development on El Paseo. *
2. Identify and assess key (target) underperforming sites for
investment/development opportunity, whether retail, hospitality, or
commercial.
3. Identify "Top 5" retail business categories to pursue by using a gap
analysis; identify specific retail targets within each category. *
4. Develop potential incentive programs for underperforming areas of the
city:
a. San Pablo Avenue and Highway 111 General Plan Nodes
b. Top 5 retail targets
c. Hotels
d. Redevelopment of vacant, blighted, and underperforming
properties.
5. Assess strategy for resuming business retention services. *
* Urgent
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Tourism and Marketing Goals
1. Leverage Hotel Co-op Program funding to incentivize and maximize group
business travel focusing on low demand periods for first-time events that
have a reasonable likelihood of repeating.
2. Enhance use of social media and technology in marketing and public
outreach, including introduction of a smartphone friendly e-newsletter, a
public art app, and a responsive website to augment the printed Palm
Desert Visitor Guide. x
3. Examine new ways to leverage Community Partner Co-op program to
better promote Palm Desert as a tourism destination.
x Urgent
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Land Use, Housing & Open Space Goals
1. Develop cannabis regulations for implementation in concert with new
State law and permitting schema (Prop 64). x
2. Study and revise, as necessary, short-term rental regulations to protect
both residential neighborhoods and rights of property owners. x
3. Develop strategy and tools for dealing with private golf course financial
failures and closures.
4. Explore mechanisms that would assist funding for housing for low-income
residents.
x Urgent
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Education Goals
1. Create a community-based education coalition in which education-related
organizations convene to focus their joint efforts on improving measures of
student success. Involve K-12, vocational, and higher education
organizations. x
x Urgent
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Transportation Goals
1. Complete design of, and schedule for, San Pablo Avenue street
improvements. Solicit and consider input from area business owners as
part of the process.
2. Work cooperatively with CVAG to complete feasibilities studies and, if
appropriate, initial planning and design for CV Link within Palm Desert city
limits.
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Infrastructure Goals
1. Select and retain a consultant and prepare a master plan for
undergrounding of distribution utility lines in Palm Desert.
2. Identify and make recommendation on alternative approaches to
rehabilitating existing parking or developing new parking structure at the
Presidents' Plaza Parking Lot.
3. Assess cost and time impact on Alessandro West project if the scope is
increased to include utility undergrounding. Present findings to City
Council for direction.
4. Investigate potential renovations of the Parkview Building and its position in
the marketplace.
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Service Related Goals
1. Enable the use of credit cards for customers conducting business with
the City. x
2. Evaluate fiscal impact and delivery of Fire Department services if a
fourth fire station were to be constructed now, rather than when
demand is fully warranted by development.
3. Identify and evaluate opportunities to leverage Childcare Facility
Impact Mitigation Fee Funds for provision of additional childcare
services in partnership with a qualified provider.
4. Assess effectiveness of Police Department community engagement
programs: Neighborhood Watch; Family Safety Fair; Crime Free Multi-
Housing; BANS (Business Alert Network System / Nextdoor); School
Resource Officers; and Coffee with a Cop. Enhance community
policing through revitalizing, replacing, and/or expanding upon these
community engagement programs.
5. Monitor, control, and process financial transactions, and produce
complete financial records and subsequent annual reports with minimal
audit comments.
6. Maintain all City-owned facilities, landscaping, parks, and infrastructure
in exemplary condition.
7. Provide prompt, professional code compliance services to maintain the
quality of Palm Desert residential neighborhoods and business
districts.
8. Provide excellent support to advisory committees and commissions by
dispensing professional advice in technical areas and in the Ralph M.
Brown Act, Public Records Act, and Political Reform Act.
9. Provide excellent customer service at the City Hall reception counters
for both telephone and in-person callers, and direct both to their
destinations efficiently and accurately.
10.Respond to routine Public Records Requests in three business days or
less.
11.Produce action notices from public meetings within five business days
of the meeting date and draft minutes of public meetings within one
week of the meeting date.
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12.Issue action notices from public meetings within five business days of
meetings.
13.Maintain 15 business day turnaround for plans when initially submitted
for permitting.
14.Maintain next-day response to requests for inspection.
15.Develop and begin implementation of electronic plan checking for
customers who prefer electronic submittals. x
x Urgent
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Ensure Innovation and Best Practices Goals
1. Fully implement One Solution software system, including Trak-It in the
Development Services departments.
2. Accelerate scanning and archiving of departmental records as part of a
multi-year goal for improving efficiency, information retrieval, and
transparency.
3. Complete IT Master Plan and begin implementation of highest priority
recommendations. x
4. Develop a comprehensive storm water quality management program to
provide developers with predictable time and cost impact information.
5. Consolidate and enhance inventory systems for facilities equipment,
capital replacement items, landscaping, and paving.
x Urgent
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Succession Planning and Organizational Development Goals
1. Develop a strategy for future hiring and internal advancement, commencing
with performing a comprehensive study of classifications, salary, and benefits
relative to existing compensation levels in other governmental employers. x
2. Expand internship program to college-level students.
3. Plan for additional staff development including cross-departmental growth of
technical staff and mid-level managers.
4. Review and, as appropriate, recommend organizational restructuring as
necessary to achieve:
a) Improved reporting relationships and span of control, utilizing existing
positions more effectively;
b) Allocate staffing resources in support of Council-directed goals and
operational needs;
c) Improve service delivery in priority areas by streamlining operations and
reconfiguring the reporting structure of divisions/functions when beneficial.
5. Better integrate Police and Fire personnel into City staff, encouraging
participation in both formal and informal occasions to solidify teamwork,
allegiance, dedication, and sense of community.
x Urgent
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Special Event Attraction and Development Goals
1. Evaluate and quantify current investment in, and returns on, special
events.
2. Develop and implement a system to measure the success of special
events, and to prioritize events in which to invest.
3. Plan a special demonstration project modeling changes designed to
revitalize El Paseo.
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Redevelopment Agency Dissolution Goals
1. Complete refinancing of bond issues.
2. Complete disposition of parcel at Washington and Avenue of the
States, 128-acre parcel on Shepard Lane, and 8.4-acre parcel on
Country Club Drive.
3. Develop a strategy for and commence disposition of 170-acre parcel.
4. Identify backup disposition strategy for Desert Willow parcels in the
event that Quiksilver plan does not proceed.
5. Issue Request for Proposals for disposition the four remaining
residential parcels at San Antonio and San Clemente Circles.
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PART III
OVERALL SUCCESS
Comment: Nothing speaks louder than the end results. There must be
achievement. To that degree, it is appropriate for the Council to provide an
overall assessment of the extent to which they believe the City Manager has
been successful in accomplishing the Council's objectives.
Question: Given the preceding parameters and any others you might
attribute to this performance evaluation, how does the Council
Member rate the City Manager's overall success in the job
during this period?
No
Excellent Good Fair Poor Opinion
COMMENTS:
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GOALS FOR NEXT YEAR
What current or future issues / projects would you like to see become part of the
City Manager's primary goals for next year?
Please indicate any helpful suggestions that we may utilize to improve this review
process.
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