Context
The city of Weiden in the Upper Palatinate offers a diverse range of events, including the Max Reger Days, Literature Days, folk festivals, and the Christmas market. The organization of these events is currently spread across various departments within the city administration, which presents coordination challenges but also offers opportunities for synergy.
actori’s task was to identify areas for optimization and develop concrete recommendations for improving the structure, the allocation of human resources, and collaboration. Ultimately, the goal was to identify opportunities for synergy in order to derive concrete measures from them. actori’s task was to identify areas for improvement and develop specific recommendations for enhancing the organization’s structure, the allocation of human resources, and collaboration. Ultimately, the goal was to identify opportunities for synergy in order to derive concrete actions from them.
Approach
The project was divided into two sequential modules. The status quo analysis in Module 1 involved assessing the existing organizational structure, the allocation of human and financial resources, work processes and interfaces, as well as a comparative evaluation against industry benchmarks. The results of the status quo analysis included quick wins that could be implemented in the short term as well as long-term optimization measures in the areas of structural setup, work processes, internal collaboration, and external communication. In Module 2, the long-term measures were prioritized in a preliminary discussion with representatives from the Cultural Affairs Office and the Organizational Department and subsequently explored in greater depth during an on-site workshop. In the workshop, participants discussed and refined selected measures in terms of potential, obstacles, dependencies, responsibilities, and effort. actori translated the workshop results into an implementation plan. Key project outcomes include four detailed measures: pooling of resources by consolidating event organization into a single office, creation of a staff pool with robust substitution arrangements, consolidation of office spaces, and expansion of cooperation with city marketing.
Impact
- The measures developed are characterized by a strong focus on implementation and feasibility, and they enable, among other things, short-term improvements to workflows as well as a robust system for covering absences while maintaining current staffing levels.
- A benchmark analysis comparing the city with similar cities revealed that there is no significant overstaffing or understaffing, and that optimizations can be achieved through structural adjustments.
- The detailed implementation plan, with defined steps, clear responsibilities, and a timeline, creates a solid foundation for implementation.
- The recommended early involvement of all affected employees promotes acceptance and ensures the necessary knowledge transfer.
The project was implemented by Rhea Schwering, consulting and Marietta Schoenberg, project lead.