Luzerne County Manager Randy Robertson meets with workers

Luzerne County Manager Randy Robertson is holding sessions with employees to introduce himself and convey his expectations and goals.

Speaking at the 1 p.m. Thursday session at the county Emergency Management Agency building on Water Street in Wilkes-Barre, Robertson said getting to know the approximately 1,500 employees is important to him yet challenging because they are dispersed to different locations on varying shifts.

“I will try to get around to meet you much better than this, but it’s a start,” said Robertson, who began the top management position June 13.

Public servants sometimes “get a bum rap,” he said, challenging workers to “change that mindset” by always striving to perform at their highest level for county citizens.

Accountability is big with him, he said. He wants workers to take ownership of their jobs and perform conscientiously rather than simply checking off duties stated in job descriptions.

He gave an example of a worker at an eatery telling customers it was a pleasure to serve them and asking if there is anything else that can be done for the customer. Robertson said he’d like 1,500 workers with a “pleasure to serve you” approach.

The manager asked employees to help change the image of county employment, saying he’d like to see stories about the county as an employer of choice instead of current ones dwelling on the abundance of vacancies.

He acknowledged challenges in compensation and said he will work to ensure the county has a quality workforce with competitive pay, but he said employees must do their part by demonstrating excellence.

Many citizens are unaware of the essential work performed by county employees, he told them.

He highlighted some employees in the audience with decades of experience, saying their work “changing lives in Luzerne County” is an asset.

“We need to market ourselves better,” he said.

Somebody is always watching employees and their work, whether they are patching a road or handling a case in human services, he said. These constituents sometimes have a perception workers are not performing work as required or not earning their paycheck, he said.

Robertson said he has no problem with scrutiny because the public pays workers.

He challenged workers to take “wise prudent risk” developing solutions to make county operations cheaper and more effective, responsive and efficient.

Robertson said he is aware of obstacles workers are facing but asked them to dwell on what they can change to improve their departments and county government as a whole.

He said he has an open-door policy.

While noting he can’t change the past, Robertson said he does not want a culture where employees are “scared or intimidated” to point out concerns. His only request is that workers first present issues to their boss before coming to him — unless the issue is their boss.

“We can’t have toxic environments. We have to have environments where you feel empowered,” he said, adding that “bad news doesn’t get better with age.”

He said he welcomes both positive and negative feedback — including appraisals of his own performance — although criticism should always come with suggestions for improvement.

Robertson said he already had a fulfilling career in the military and city management and didn’t have to take the county oversight position but came here to share his expertise and make improvements.

“That’s what I like to do, but I can’t do it without you,” Robertson told the group.

His presentation included a video of retired U.S. Navy four-star admiral William H. McRaven’s highly publicized 2014 commencement address at the University of Texas at Austin about life lessons. Applying some of these lessons can both help workers personally and strengthen the county government operation, he said.