Morrisville Water and Light

A Department of the Village of Morrisville, Vermont

              Five –Year Strategic Plan

               2005 – 2010

             DRAFT

“To provide reliable services to local communities and manage resources in a manner that benefits the local economy.”

                     - Mission Statement

ABOUT MORRISVILLE WATER AND LIGHT

Morrisville Water and Light is a department of the Village of Morrisville and is directly accountable to a five-member board of trustees.  Trustees are elected at the Village Meeting for five-year terms.  In accordance with the village charter, trustees are responsible for the general supervision of village affairs, which includes establishing policy for the water and light department.  All board of trustees meetings are open to the public and conducted in a forum that maximizes local input into our policy decisions. 

The Department currently provides customers with three core services: electricity, water, and sewer.  Customers are primarily located in the village, though service areas are increasingly expanding beyond the village boundaries.  Water and sewer rates are set by the village trustees and electric rates are set by the village trustees and approved by the Vermont Public Service Board.  The Public Service Board is a statewide, quasi-judicial board that regulates Vermont’s public utilities. 

Established in 1895, Morrisville Water and Light is one of 2,200 not-for-profit public power electric utilities in the United States.  As a not-for-profit public utility, we measure success in light of our mission and not by our ability to maximize profit.

ABOUT THIS PLAN

There are four components of strategic planning: an analysis of current conditions facing the organization; an exploration of the vision held by the organization’s leadership and management; a review and, if necessary, revision of the mission and values of the organization; and the adoption of specific goals and objectives in light of the above. 

Throughout the summer and fall of 2004, trustees and senior staff members participated in half a dozen strategic planning sessions with a facilitator from the Vermont League of Cities and Towns.  We conducted our analysis using a S.W.O.T. framework, which analyzed the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats facing the organization as a whole. 

After conducting the strategic analysis, we refined our mission statement and clarified the values of the organization.  Finally, we developed specific goals and objectives for the organization to pursue over the next five years that are directly linked to the strategic analysis, mission statement, and values of the organization.

We now present this draft plan to the public for their comments.  After receiving comments from the public, we hope to adopt the plan early in 2005. 

Once adopted, the strategic plan (along with the village charter) will be the primary document that guides the decision making of the trustees and general manager.  It is our hope that the creation of the plan will encourage both consistency and innovation in the establishment of policy for the department.

Finally, this plan focuses exclusively on the water and light department and not the village as a whole.  In the event any of the initiatives proposed in this document achieve a scope that is beyond the authority or ability of the water and light department, the trustees will develop a revised organizational structure to achieve those objectives.

MISSION, VISION AND VALUES

The mission of Morrisville, Water, and Light is to provide reliable services to local communities and manage resources in a manner that benefits the local economy.

Our vision for the organization, both as employers and community members, is to be regarded as:

      -      Providers of efficient and reliable services;

      -     Who create economic opportunity and exhibit a spirit of innovation;

      -     Who offer fair, and reasonable rates, and provide a safe and rewarding workplace;

      -     Who serve as good stewards of property, and consider the environmental impact of

            decisions; and

      -     Whose decisions maintain public support for the organization.

We are committed to the following values:

      -     We believe in conducting business in a socially and financially responsible manner.
-     We are committed to the overall health and vitality of the Village of Morrisville.

      -     We believe in maintaining or increasing the value of our assets.

      -     We strive to be good stewards and neighbors.

      -     We strive to create a work environment that is rewarding, professionally challenging, and contributes to staff retention.  

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES FOR 2005 – 2010

The following goals and objectives will be pursued over the next five years and will be reflected in our policy decisions including, but not limited to, the annual budget for the water and light department, establishment of rates and fees, and reaction to proposals from staff.

We have utilized the following working definitions in this document.  Goals are broad, long-term directives that establish the overall direction of the organization; goals establish what we will pursue.  However, goals are not listed in any priority or with deference to one goal over another.  Objectives are the specific and measurable strategies we will use to implement our goals; objectives establish how we will achieve our goals.

Goal 1:    Minimize the impact of rate increases on consumers.

                Objective:

                              -  Develop new services that utilize electrical infrastructure and are likely to achieve economies of scale, which would produce lower electric rates.  Possible services include surge protection, broadband Internet access, fiber optics, and other technologies that rely on our existing electrical infrastructure.

                              -   Explore developing new services and products that utilize non – electrical infrastructure and assets and would help spread fixed costs over a larger customer base.    Possible services include receiving trucked septage at sewer plant, and partnering with private sector entities in order to distribute water from Bugbee Springs or develop a gravel operation on MWL lands.   

Goal 2:    Continually upgrade the infrastructure of all systems in order to maintain the value of our assets and ensure the safety of the public and employees. 

Objectives:

                -        Develop and implement three, five, and ten-year capital plan documents.

                -        Utilize capital plans in annual budgeting process.

                -        Develop infrastructure database(s) containing mapping and outage data.

Goal 3:    Form strategic partnerships that allow MWL to more effectively achieve its mission.

                Objectives:

                -       Strengthen relationship with Morristown selectboard.

                -       Investigate opportunities for co-generation with large users.

                -       Explore opportunities to share services, personnel, and equipment with nearby municipal utilities.

                -       Inquire whether nearby municipal utilities have an interest in discussing a regional public utility district.

Goal 4:    Retain and expand customer base. 

                Objectives:

                -       Offer superior customer service.

                -       Retain large users who have ability to self generate within customer base.

                -       Maintain adequate staffing levels.

                -       Develop mechanisms for retaining institutional knowledge, such as manuals, cross – training, and information management systems. 

                -       Conduct cost / benefit and other analysis to evaluate if specific expansion opportunities are viable.

Goal 5:    Protect the water quality of the aquifer. 

                Objective:

                -       Investigate purchase of easements, land swaps, or other strategies to limit the development of properties near the wellhead protection area.

                -       Participate in local, regional, and state regulatory and planning processes affecting land use in the wellhead protection area.

Goal 6:    Ensure that annual priorities remain consistent with the strategic plan.

                Objectives:

                 -      Hold at least one “retreat” for trustees and senior staff to review organizational goals for the year.

                -       Conduct annual evaluation of the general manager to review progress towards achieving annual goals.

                -       As necessary, amend strategic plan to reflect changing conditions or new developments.

Goal 7:    Communicate well with employees, village residents, customers, town officials, and other stakeholders.

                Objectives:

                -        Broadly distribute annual priorities and meeting minutes.

                -        Proactively meet with the selectboard on areas of mutual concern.

                -       Invite affected stakeholders to meet with the board as part of decision-making process.

                -       Maintain an accurate, current website and utilize local paper to apprise customers of upcoming maintenance efforts and outage situations.

CONCLUSION

As mentioned above, the trustees hope to adopt this strategic plan early in 2005.  Comments regarding the plan may be sent to Scott Corse, General Manager, Morrisville Water and Light
P.O. Box 460, Morrisville, VT 05661.  After adoption, the plan will become an important source of information that guides future decision-making.  The plan may be amended at any time by affirmative vote of a majority of the trustees.   We look forward to your comments.