Ed Carter, TWRA Executive Director
Employees of the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) are buzzing after Executive Director Ed Carter announced a major restructuring plan of the Agency on Tuesday. He says the plan means eight employees could lose their jobs, most from the Central Office, although two of those would probably be placed with other agencies. TWRA currently has a total of about 700 full-time and part-time employees.
The plan however would mean a significant restructuring of TWRA's current "chain of command" in many areas.
Carter will present his plan to the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Commission (TWRC), the governing body over TWRA, on Thursday. On Tuesday he shared the highlights of his plan with all TWRA employees via an Internet broadcast.
The Tennessee Game and Fish Commission was created in 1949; it was reorganized 1974 and renamed the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. At that time the Agency was broken into four major Regions and the Central Office (Nashville) staff. There have been no major reorganizations since that time.
Long before Carter took over for former Ex. Director Gary Myers about ten months ago, the Wildlife Management Institute (WMI) had been asked to come in and do an independent evaluation of TWRA to see if, or how, the Agency could be made more efficient. Carter says the WMI report came back not long after he took the top job and it included 56 different points of ways to improve TWRA's operation.
Carter said that WMI suggested three major issues:
-- That TWRA needed to seek longterm funding solutions. Carter admits that's nothing new since the Agency has been trying to do that for decades.
-- They also said that communications need to improve within Agency, and with the public
-- And WMI pointed out a lack of uniformity of programs and operations between the four TWRA Regions... that basically the four Regions and Central Office staff "do their own thing," sometimes acting as five independent bodies.
Several specific criticism's offered in the WMI report:
-- "WMI received some complaints from regional personnel that HQ staff had, on occasion, not coordinated with regional chains of command. Conversely, some HQ staff expressed frustration concerning their lack of control over regional activities and accomplishments, even through HQ staff were ultimately held responsible for the success of their programs…”
-- "WMI received input from staff who felt quality and delivery of products and services from regional Information and Education staff was inconsistent between regions.”
-- “Agency leadership must improve communication with field staff and maintain a routine and visible presence both at the HQ and throughout each of the regions.”
-- “Establish clear channels of responsibility and accountability for program managers and regional staff with respect to administration and implementation of statewide research and management programs. Hold both parties accountable for their performance.”
-- “As with many wildlife agencies, there was a perception at the regional and field level that HQ was top heavy. It should be noted that some Commissioners shared this view."
Carter said his restructuring plan is intended to address many, if not all, of those concerns.
"I have taken all that information and have tempered it with suggestions from many (employees), the Regional and Nashville staff, professionals in the field of organizational structure, and other groups who work often with our Agency," he said.
Carter's plan will have relatively little impact that will be obvious to the sporting public. It is likely to have significant impact on many TWRA employees, including eight people who might lose their current jobs. TWRA currently has about 700 employees, full-time and part-time. Carter says the restructuring plan will save $440,000, mostly in personnel costs. That combined with $1 million in other budget cuts he plans to present to the TWRC will result in a $1.4 million in savings... and follows previous major budget cuts during tough economic times.
Some of the highlights of the plan include:
-- Elimination of four Assistant Regional Manager positions, instead establishing three key managers to support each Regional Manager including a Regional Fisheries Manager, Regional Enforcement Manager and a Regional Wildlife Manager. These Regional Managers will work directly in concert with Central Office staff to develop programs and budgets on a statewide basis rather than a Regional basis. Carter says this will create more uniformity of programs across the Regions and streamline budgeting.
-- Each Region will be broken into two Law Enforcement Areas rather than the current three Areas in each Region.
-- TWRA's Real Estate Division would be eliminated with responsibilities rolled into other existing divisions
-- Habitat Protection Biologists that now work in each Region would move to Central Office supervision under the Environmental Division Chief
-- While it hasn't been clearly determined, fish hatchery management could come under Central Office supervision rather than the Regional offices. Carter says that will be determined as the restructuring process goes forward.
Carter says he hopes the restructuring will open lines of communications across all disciplines within TWRA, alleviate lack of communication, coordination, and cooperation between Regions, and between Headquarters and the Regions.
"I want to blur the administrative lines as possible," he said. "There have to be some lines, but I don't want those lines to be walls."
Carter obviously expects there to be considerable "jockeying for position" as TWRA employees seek new job opportunities due to the restructuring. He said there will be some additional restrictions for employees applying for new or different positions, and there will be a loosening of current residency requirements, but only for the restructuring. In other words restructured employees might be allowed to live farther away from their new offices than current rules allow.
TWRA employees (like most state employees) have gone without raises for two years. Carter says there is little or no hope of raises this year and admits that the restructuring may mean even greater workloads for some employees initially. In addition to the retirement of longtime Director Gary Myers, Carter says four out of seven top-level TWRA managers have also retired this year.
In other words, it is a time of major transition for TWRA, unlike any we have seen since 1974. Chances are it will not be an easy process, but Carter believes it is necessary to "make a great Agency even better."
Click HERE if you would like to watch the 30-minute web-based presentation Carter made to employees Tuesday.
Highlights of the Restructuring Carter provided at a recent Staff meeting:
INTENDED GOALS
-- Alleviate lack of communication, coordination, and cooperation between Regions, and between Headquarters and the Regions
-- Establish clear channels of responsibility and accountability for program managers
-- Establish uniformity and implementation of programs statewide
-- Create open communication and dialogue between all employees and all disciplines
-- Where possible, decrease the span of control by individual supervisors
-- Blur all lines of established administrative boundaries
-- Offer expanded avenues of advancement for employees
REORGANIZATION PARAMETERS
-- Change for the sake of change is not a priority
-- Any changes must occur with the existing number of positions
-- Overall changes must result in a savings
-- All changes must follow DOHR guidelines and rules
INTITIAL IMPLEMENTATION
-- Suspend normal avenues of promotion
-- Waive residency requirements
-- Personnel may initially carry extra workloads