TGB Says Tribal-Wide Assessment Will Lead to Division Directors

By Joe Morey News Editor

According to a recent memo sent out by the LCO Tribal Governing Board (TGB) to all employees and directors, as part of the strategic planning process, the TGB will be conducting an organizational wide departmental assessment. The departmental assessments will examine functionality and efficiency of Tribal Member services.

“This will help us achieve our goals more efficiently and provide employees the opportunity to provide ideas, suggestions, and feedback regarding Tribal Member services,” the memo read.

LCO Secretary-Treasurer Bill Trepanier said the, “Tribe is a system of interconnected functions that if organized properly, can achieve its vision, mission and purpose, which is all rooted in providing the best possible services to our Membership. It is through our employees that we will achieve this. The overall plan is to have Division Directors oversee and manage the current directors."

Trepanier continued, "Right now the Tribal Governing Board has to act like managers but with the incorporation of Division Directors, they will deal with the direct operations of each program that we currently have to deal with."

According to Trepanier, the Division Directors will help streamline tribal programs.

"We believe we’ll run more efficiently,” Trepanier noted. “It will cost more, but it will be covered by Indirect Costs. At the same time, it will save us a lot because many programs have lost a lot of their grant money without proper oversight and direction. For example, there was a program just recently lost over $500,000 because the money for the program wasn’t able to be drawn down and an extension was not requested on time.”

Trepanier said it is important to approach the assessment not as an isolated and separate process, but rather as a process aiming to improve the overall system for our Tribal Membership and employees.

KOSO Strategies will be conducting the assessment. They are an organization with over 50 years of Tribal government experience. Their team has extensive experience in Tribal Administration, Human Resources, Accounting, Health Care Administration, Tribal Enterprises and Tribal Services Development and Implementation.

“We put out surveys to all the employees and to the directors, each taking a different one. They have been completed and turned in and KOSO Strategies is reviewing the surveys and will have a report for us very soon,” Trepanier said.

“Initially, everyone was nervous about this plan, worried that we may be eliminating jobs, but that’s not the intention. We may actually be adding a additional positions but if we can save money by consolidating a few departments, then we’ll make that happen,” Trepanier explained.

The memo explained that the data will be organized and presented in a comprehensive report that covers all facets of the information gathered. The report will include recommendations and resources available to support each department and to honor the

confidentiality of the Tribe and its employees, the report will only be made available to Tribal Leadership.

He said the goal of the assessment is to support each department in their contribution to the Tribe’s success. KOSO will use the survey results and assessment of each department to come up with a strategic plan that aligns with the Tribe’s vision and mission. They will focus on effectiveness and efficiency of current services provided that are vital to the Tribe.

Trepanier went on to say the TGB is moving along with this and hopes to have the new Divisions in place within a couple of months.

He said there will be up to five new Division Directors under the plan, and it’s important that the Tribe finds the right people.

“These are sizable jobs, and this could be a really great thing for the Tribe,” Trepanier added.

The Division Directors would handle tribal administration and Tribal programs while a business committee would be established to oversee the tribal enterprises, according to Trepanier. Either way, Trepanier said the ultimate goal is to separate the TGB from micromanaging all arms of the Tribe and provide an infrastructure that allows us to build our Nation and support the growth of our people.