by Toni A. Smith
Before leaders can truly take their organizations where they envision, they have got to have the right talent. That's what I know.
After I read the December 23, Washington Post article about the recent talent changes the Prince George's County Public School's (PGCPS) chief, Dr. Kevin Maxwell, have made, I wondered if some of the people who commented have ever tried to contact anyone working in the PGCPS system's administrative offices, ever. If so, they would completely understand why Dr. Maxwell, CEO of five months, is hiring additional staff. Some call it "top heavy" moving in the direction of the former leader. I disagree. With the right "top" staff and plan, I believe that the PGCPS system could be and do so much more.
We absolutely need more executive level talent, those with experience and a positive work ethic. Management and certainly frontline staff, need to be engaged in their work and inspired and reminded how important they are to making the whole entity work and, usually, executive "top" staff sets this tone. And we absolutely need a diversity officer, because we have lots of diversity issues that need to be understood and addressed.I am sure there are a few positions that could be eliminated but, honestly, from my experiences dealing with the school system, it has suffered from a shortage of "top" staff, albeit the right staff, to get the job done on all levels. Now, perhaps, with these new positions, real progress can be made.
We absolutely need more executive level talent, those with experience and a positive work ethic. Management and certainly frontline staff, need to be engaged in their work and inspired and reminded how important they are to making the whole entity work and, usually, executive "top" staff sets this tone. And we absolutely need a diversity officer, because we have lots of diversity issues that need to be understood and addressed.I am sure there are a few positions that could be eliminated but, honestly, from my experiences dealing with the school system, it has suffered from a shortage of "top" staff, albeit the right staff, to get the job done on all levels. Now, perhaps, with these new positions, real progress can be made.
