tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post6590122247281123616..comments2024-03-28T23:38:22.511-07:00Comments on Seattle Schools Community Forum: Consultants and a Plan; So What Else is New?Melissa Westbrookhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17179994245880629080noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-90761784034913105762007-11-16T16:30:00.000-08:002007-11-16T16:30:00.000-08:00Hey wait a minute, when do we get results from the...Hey wait a minute, when do we get results from the audit that MJG had done for about $125,000 in September?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-16226770607897954302007-11-16T16:26:00.000-08:002007-11-16T16:26:00.000-08:00The above comment on MGJ and Charlestown made me t...The above comment on MGJ and Charlestown made me think of Wednesday night's board meeting.<BR/><BR/>In the extensive amount of time that the board members were patting each other on the back there was mention about the wonderful Supt. hire.<BR/>I am still waiting for the evidence that this is going to prove to be a wonderful hire.<BR/><BR/>Thus far I see an emphasis on uniformity, which has accomplished very little in other urban situations. <BR/>---------------------<BR/><BR/>Attorney's are often hired to be held accountable or hold someone accountable if some one screws up.<BR/><BR/>Two Rules:<BR/><BR/>1) Deliver the bad news on Friday afternoon.<BR/><BR/>2) Hire consultants to deliver anything that might be objectionable and should it fail blame them.<BR/><BR/>Wow!!! Consultants let us all leap for joy.<BR/><BR/>Read the Witch Doctor's by editors of the Economist for truth on consultants.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-72308884571938958302007-11-15T16:07:00.000-08:002007-11-15T16:07:00.000-08:00IMO Charleston County School District (your Superi...IMO Charleston County School District (your Superintendent's last job) was not left in a better position by her tenure. She did the same things with consultants and bringing in the Edison folks to turn around a few very low performing schools. Now, those folks are gone and the schools they were suppose to improve are still the pits.<BR/><BR/>Sorry you all will have to deal with her, but I am glad she isn't here anymore. Her "Plan for Excellence" didn't produce near enough of it imo. Though, I am sure she'll take credit for the Academic Magnet School that always does well on national surveys.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-48142006840673957962007-11-14T21:12:00.000-08:002007-11-14T21:12:00.000-08:00hiring consultants is a boss rite of passage. whe...hiring consultants is a boss rite of passage. when someone gets to a certain level in the public or private sector, they can hire consultants and they do, because they can. It shows everyone how powerful the old / new boss is.<BR/><BR/>charlie's point - if the suggestions are obvious, then why are they being done - sounds good, but<BR/><BR/>from what i've seen the bosses who like consultants are bosses because being a boss has a lot more bells and whistles than being a nobody, therefore they want to be a boss. it isn't about the best managers rise the highest - we want to be or we'd like it to be, but it rarely is. <BR/><BR/>asleep.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-22654858906507765312007-11-14T16:55:00.000-08:002007-11-14T16:55:00.000-08:00There was this from the Wiki article:"A top civil ...There was this from the Wiki article:<BR/><BR/>"<I>A top civil servant described McKinsey as "people who come in and use PowerPoint to state the bleeding obvious."</I>"<BR/><BR/>But I think that those things which are obvious to someone working within a system are not always obvious to those who are running the system.<BR/><BR/>The value of a consultant sometimes isn't in what they say, but in the credibility that the perspective gains because the consultants said it.<BR/><BR/>Look, for example, at the new energy behind revamping Special Education now that the consultants have said what a lot of other people have been saying for a while.<BR/><BR/>At the end of this month we will see the report from the consultants on APP. I don't know what they are going to say, but I expect that their perspective will obliterate the stalemated scrum around every issue and push them all forward in the direction the consultants indicate.<BR/><BR/>There are barriers to change which are easier to overcome when you have a recommendation from a consultant in your hand.<BR/><BR/>Does it allow the decision-makers to deflect criticism? Maybe it just helps them diffuse it. They can show that other experts share their perspective.<BR/><BR/>The main benefit that comes from consultants like this isn't their product so much as their process. When they are good - and they aren't always good - they open conversation on topics that have been taboo to discuss, they ask for evidence of effectiveness, they make people in authority explain their decisions, and they give voice to the people on the front line about what they need to do their jobs.<BR/><BR/>In the end, their conclusions and advice generally do seem obvious - but if it was so obvious, then why hadn't the organization done it?Charlie Mashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17173903762962067277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-57776101240660180242007-11-14T16:30:00.000-08:002007-11-14T16:30:00.000-08:00I had a look at the wiki site, many red flags here...I had a look at the wiki site, many red flags here. Will this just become one of those instances where the districts pays enormous $ for someone to come in and state the what many already know. I think it might be a way for the super to deflict any critizism of a plan when she can point to the consultants for anything that doesnt go as planned. Guess we can wait and see what they come up with.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-21487236927665412272007-11-14T15:44:00.000-08:002007-11-14T15:44:00.000-08:00It was an email sent out to district employees las...It was an email sent out to district employees last week.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com