The high cost of incompetence (Jack Bog's Blog)

I see that the folks at the O are up in arms about the hiring of outside "management coaches" to help out the top brass at the Oregon state human services department. The outrage is justified. If you need a coach, you shouldn't be managing.

Of course, management coaches are commonplace at the City of Portland. Remember the wild times they had with coaches at the Portland Development Commission toward the end of The Don's reign? Too funny. As I recall, the people who run Fireman Randy's permit bureau have also had coaches, and even Transportation Sue got into the act with one of her mid-level people getting a coach after some kind of trouble or other.

I love that the state's consultants are using the "Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument." I wonder how many times they put that on a state bureaucrat and get a flat-line reading.

Anyway, if government is as broke as it claims to be, then all the management coaches need to be let go, as in yesterday. And if their charges can't handle life without a coach, they need to be shown the door as well.

Comments (11)

How about scrapping all the Hush Money Coaches or retired bureaucrats given juicy consultant contracts keeping them quiet until what they know about skeletons becomes out of date and worthless.

Posted by Abe | July 7, 2010 8:35 PM

"Anyway, if government is as broke as it claims to be"

The state's not broke, Ted just has an opportunity now to relieve us of those bothersome senior citizens. Besides we don't really need schools either, so those get cut.

Thank god, the bike bridges and streetcars can continue.

Posted by Steve | July 7, 2010 8:39 PM

This would be funny if it were not so pathetic.

Those deciding to hire the coaches, picking the coaches and then deciding if the coaches were effective are themselves incompetent.

And this editorial board is the same one who when the 1/2 billion state deficit was reported said,
"Oregon suddenly arrives at the edge of the cliff".

This State is saturated with nitwits in positions they should not hold while perfectly rational and competent people are available to replace them.

Unfortunatley there are so many nitiwits in these many postions they defeat replacement.

Posted by Ben | July 7, 2010 10:43 PM

In the future, management coaches will become a workplace right for government employees. A government manager must be afforded the opportunity to prove themselves competent to perform their six-figure job under the guidance of a coach. This entitlement will become enshrined in State law.

Posted by Frank | July 8, 2010 5:39 AM

We start down the wrong path when we assume that public sector employees work in the service of the taxpayer. In fact, it's the other way around: taxpayers serve the public sector. In this context, it's easy to see that management coaching is a nice enhancement to the range of opportunities a public sector position offers for personal lifetime development, capped off with a generous retirement.

Posted by Allan L. | July 8, 2010 7:20 AM

Rah! Rah! Rah!
Zip! Boom! Bah!!!
Spend! Spend! Spend!
We don't care if it's the end!

Posted by portland native | July 8, 2010 7:42 AM

At the City, those that can't get promoted into management. Worst supervisors I have ever experienced.

Posted by Mary Volm | July 8, 2010 7:56 AM

Come on Mary.... it's not that different than a lot of private enterprise (the only kinds of employment I've had as an adult) where the saying has long been.... "it's not what you know, it's who you blow".....

At PDX kiddie hall, that may be more apt than some businesses but that saying has been around for decades with good reason

Go by favoritism....

Posted by LucsAdvo | July 8, 2010 10:50 AM

Actually, I need to ammend one thing... go by quid pro quo

Posted by LucsAdvo | July 8, 2010 10:51 AM

Incompetence is certainly not sector-specific, although in the private sector it eventually gets weeded out by the market whereas in the public sector politics and unions institutionalize it.

Posted by Eric | July 8, 2010 12:08 PM

"Incompetence is certainly not sector-specific, although in the private sector it eventually gets weeded out by the market whereas in the public sector politics and unions institutionalize it."

Evidence for this culling of the incompetents in the private sector, please?

Posted by George Anonymuncule Seldes | July 8, 2010 11:12 PM

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Wednesday, July 7, 2010

The high cost of incompetence

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