FEATURE LOCAL AUTHORITY FOCUS
A justifiable expense
EVEN AS LOCAL AUTHORITIES TIGHTEN THEIR BELTS, NETWORKING STILL OFFERS OPPORTUNITIES. MIKE MACEY EXPLAINS WHY THESE OCCASIONS ARE WORTH THE COST
in People (IiP). Tere are requirements for external training/development inputs, and there is provision for monitoring the benefits and cascading the information to others. Within IiP, the objectives and justification for the event must be clearly set out before the event. Te feedback by the delegate should report on whether the objectives were met, and the benefit of the information obtained. In realistic terms it may only be necessary to get
one new idea, or share one process improvement, to justify the cost of attendance – apart from any additional improved awareness, managerial capacity or staff development. Expressed in terms of a number of PCNs or days
Meeting place... there are many benefits to networking events.
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here has been an increased level of complaint about attendance at BPA meetings: that absence from the office, travel time and expense are increasingly difficult to justify – whether for regional
meetings, seminars or conferences. Tis could be seen as a clear warning about the
adverse impacts of reduced government funding for local councils and may point to a reduction in support of such events. Te impact, for many councils, is to reduce the budgets available to fund training and external meetings or seminars. Te purpose of this article is to provide some
perspective and perhaps a different way of looking at the problem. I do not deny drawing from some private sector experience but, essentially, the arguments are still appropriate.
Investment in the workforce
Tere can be significant benefits from such occasions and the key issue is how these are quantified, justified or monitored. Te onus is on the providers of the events to guarantee or illustrate that benefits will be tangible and available to delegates attending the meetings. Experience of previous events is the key to the confidence with which one can ‘make the case’. Many councils will have signed up to Investors
APRIL 2010
of parking charge income, this may not be a difficult equation. Tis is one way to prove the benefits of such events and to ensure that the delegate achieves the objectives that have been set.
Visible costs, invisible benefit
One of the key problems is the way in which council budgets are expressed – and one of the big learning points from increased financial pressures might be that it is essential to look at the overall impact of additional expense, if it brings overall improvements. Often, if there is no cost budget available, it
It may only be necessary to get one new idea, or share one process improvement, to justify the cost of attendance
is difficult – or even impossible – to justify the expense in terms of the positive impact on service delivery, quality or effectiveness. Tis makes no financial sense whatsoever but is, unfortunately, a typical but unsupportable response from budget holders or monitors. If councils are genuinely trying to improve ‘the
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Mike Macey is an independent parking consultant. He can be contacted on: mike@
mfm-associates.co.uk
bottom line’ then it makes sense to spend money if there is an overall improvement in service delivery. In time, continuous professional development
(CPD) should be a normal part of the parking experience. It should be the aim of the BPA to enable CPD points to be obtained via workshops, seminars, and even regional meetings.
www.britishparking.co.uk
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