Services have been reduced, highlighting pressure points and issues ... but we have Highways that are good to OK, Housing for most, an education system that is hanging in and a public health system that is still something to be proud of .... but can that be the case in the near future?
In the near future, cuts in funding, pay & jobs are going to be more severe, more sustained and nearer 'Impossible' to address than ever before.
One council we've been dealing with was preparing for up to 30% cuts in its whole workforce, another has started a 10% redundancy led reduction, following 2,000 people leaving last year. Another is facing at least a 7% reduction in funding for the next three years.
Via the traditional lens of 'management' such pressures must equate to redundancies, restructures, outsourcing and reductions in services. This is often approached under the banner of 'Lean' (often not very well thought through) which purports efficiency improvements. It isn't uncommon for such 'improvement' activities to precede reductions in resource (lost jobs) and a reduction in the quantity and quality of services delivered.
Visualising Transformatoin from SSD offers many other dimensions... What if you can do more for less? What happens if you invest your freed up capacity to do more work ... value adding work? Can you continuously reduce costs and retain employment?
Well .... the simple answer is ... yes you can!
So please, let's restore sense and hope!
As can be seen from our own track record and related case studies, in many cases it is possible to improve without the losses; and often, in our experience, reduce capital and budgets while maintaining / increasing jobs and service delivery.
If you're looking for development support that leads to a more sustainable future, even in the face of cuts, Contact us.