On an on going basis, the Iowa Business Council will seek to identify and understand inefficiencies of government that inhibit the ability of commerce to operate and compete effectively in Iowa, i.e., tax or incentive matters, regulatory burdens, employment policy mandates. Council Members are committed to implementing the most efficient processes and solutions that are in the best interest of both public and private sector entities in the state.

Increased domestic and foreign competition, coupled with burdensome regulatory growth, have forced IBC Member companies and institutions to look for new ways to do more with less while improving quality and service to their customers. They have found that by eliminating waste in operational processes, whether on the production floor or in administrative offices, precious human and financial resources can be effectively redeployed to more value-added functions. Those same tools of efficiency are transferable to any process in any organization, be it in business, industry, government, health care, or education.

In addition to the elimination of waste in business, Council Members are committed to the continued efforts to streamline government through the work of the Lean Government Collaborative, administered by the Iowa Department of Management.

LEAN GOVERNMENT COLLABORATIVE

The Iowa Business Council will maintain representation on the Lean Government Collaborative in order to provide support, advice, and vision as needed. IBC fully endorses continuous process improvement across all segments of government in Iowa.

Iowa Partners in Efficiency Award
This annual award was established to recognize the employees or the work units in any political subdivision of local, county, or state government that, through the use of Lean tools and techniques, significantly and measurably increases productivity and promotes innovation that improves the delivery of public services to benefit the citizens of Iowa and the private sector. The purpose for creating this award is:

• to publicly acknowledge and highlight outstanding efforts at efficiency, productivity, cost avoidance, and waste elimination in government;
• to improve regulatory processes and performance targets;
• to drive economic competitiveness;
• to foster better work environments; and,
• to develop leaders and innovators with a bias for action.

Office of Lean Enterprise - Performance Results Division, Iowa Department of Management
IBC strongly supports full staffing of the Office of Lean Enterprise. Having a dedicated advocate for continuous process improvement within the executive branch has produced an enormous return-on-investment for Iowa since 2003, when the Council collaborated with the Department of Natural Resources to conduct the first Lean event in state government. Over 100 Lean events later, significant long-term benefits are accruing to state departments and agencies and the Iowa constituencies they serve.

GOVERNMENT REORGANIZATION

The Iowa Business Council will, to the best of its ability, make available continuous process improvement experts upon request of state government officials when their review is focused on achieving long-term systematic reorganization, administrative improvement, and operating efficiencies. There are limited resources available for public services and economic development. It is critical that the viewpoint of Iowa business is clearly expressed so that regulatory and statutory barriers to economic growth and development embedded within government can be identified, addressed, and removed. Conversely, there are also opportunities to identify incentives that would encourage regional collaboration for delivery of public services.