A stalwart of the Hamilton City Council is helping make a real difference to the governance of the city.
And judging by the time he’s spent with the council – 20 years - Gulab Bilimoria is determined to make the council’s procedures a world class effort.
The Council began taking a keen interest in improving its performance in the mid-1990s, and this focus has only increased over time.
This has been under the management of Bilimoria, who has managed the Planning Guidance Unit at HCC for 20 years. The Unit provides planning advice, processes consent applications, and monitors compliance with consent conditions. It is divided into land-use and subdivision specialists, each with its own team leader. There are also three administrative staff.
Gulab says the Unit is always, “striving to initiate systems that will meet and exceed the customer’s expectations of quality and timeliness. The money back guarantee programme is part of the Council’s journey to becoming a world-class organisation.”
The story began in 1994, when HCC achieved ISO9000 certification. Later that decade, when it seemed possible that resource consenting functions might be privatised, HCC took stock of its business and the Council decided to regard consent applicants as customers and treat them accordingly.
The Council saw that, to most applicants, time is a precious resource and that a money-back programme was a simple but effective way of acknowledging that reality.
The pressure is always on, and meeting expectations only raises them. Initially, HCC offered a refund of 50 per cent of fees for applications processed out of time; this was increased to 100 per cent in 2002.
Gulab says, “customers expect quicker service now than they received a few years ago. By offering refunds as a guarantee of timeliness of service, we are responding to these increasing expectations, and exceeding them.”
HCC hasn’t rested on its laurels. Gulab is still interested in continuous improvement, and ongoing monitoring plays a key role in this.
The Solution
HCC watches its own work like a hawk and therefore knows the impact its initiatives to improve delivery are having.
Front-footing and front-loading
HCC has developed information checklists and guides for potential applicants, leading them through the basic requirements and the consent process. Gulab regularly talks to groups about consenting matters, such as local surveyors, property investors, and service clubs. This engagement with prospective customers helps sell the Council ethic of service and builds contacts for the future.
HCC also fosters early engagement by encouraging attendance at pre-application meetings and lodgement meetings. These meetings are provided free of charge. The Council is willing to fund such encounters because it thinks that good quality applications benefit applicants, council staff and the community. It also knows that a high standard of applications helps the Council meet its own statutory timelines and avoids it having to offer discounts for non-compliance.
For projects with an urban design component, meetings with developers at the pre-design stage are encouraged to foster greater collaboration and promote principles of good urban design and sustainability. With this role in mind, Gulab’s Unit includes a resident urban designer.
Systems fit for purpose
In recognition that one size does not fit all, HCC has developed two specific processing tracks that differ from the norm. The Quick Consent track is intended to serve applications for controlled or restricted discretionary activities that:
›› are of very low risk to the Council
›› have no complex requirements, such as stormwater or flooding considerations
›› do not need input from other Council specialists
›› do not need written approvals (or these have already been provided)
›› have effects that are less than minor
›› are accompanied by high quality plans.
The Council aims to process such applications to a decision within five working days.
The Fast Track Consent is available to applicants prepared to pay additional costs over and above standard fees and charges to have applications processed faster. The additional costs enable HCC to either contract a consultant to process the application, or pay overtime to a HCC planner to process it outside normal working hours. This arrangement means that other applications are not held up by those on a faster track.
Monitoring and reporting
Gulab produces graphs and pie charts for every aspect of HCC’s consent processing function. Monthly reports are forwarded to the General Manager setting out application volumes, summarising key applications, listing major consents granted, consents monitored, and enforcement action taken. Every aspect of the Unit’s performance is reported on, including the workload allocated to each officer, and the working days taken for each application by that staff member.
After every hearing, all hearing panel members are asked to give feedback on the performance of reporting officers.
Yearly performance statistics are assembled for the Council’s Annual Report, and compared with the targets set out in its Annual Plan for that year.