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PWI committee hears operational assessment update; 266 county recommendations, many stalled for funding
Summary
Momentum firm told DeKalb County commissioners the Malden & Jenkins operational assessment produced 266 recommendations across 18 departments; 59 are reported met, 11 are blocked and more than 123 require additional resources. Commissioners asked for line-by-line follow-ups and KPI-based performance reporting.
Commissioner Robert Patrick convened the Public Works & Infrastructure committee on a quarterly operational assessment update, during which the county’s implementer outlined progress and barriers on 266 recommendations from the Malden & Jenkins study.
"We got 266 recommendations total," said Lisha, managing principal of the Momentum firm, who presented the update. "To this date there are 59 reported as being met. Eleven are blocked and over 123 require additional resources." She said the program aims for 100% of departments reporting key performance indicators this year.
The update framed three recurring challenges across PWI departments: weak strategic planning and alignment, governance and structure ambiguities, and technology limitations. The presenter described a prioritization matrix focused on high-impact/low-effort "quick wins" while also tracking higher-effort capital projects that require cross-department coordination.
Commissioners pressed staff for more than dashboard-level metrics. "Don't just read the dashboard and say great — dive into the details," Commissioner Ted Terry said, asking that committees receive the specific recommendations and implementation status rather than summary counts. Commissioners also flagged operational issues raised repeatedly in constituent emails, such as sanitation staffing and a long-standing inventory issue for metal plates used in road repairs.
Staff clarified two status labels that have caused confusion: items labeled "blocked" have a known barrier that prevents any progress (for example, a funding request denied in FY26), while items marked "requiring additional resources" are in progress but cannot be completed without more staff, funding or interdepartmental support. Presenters said qualitative feedback from departments accompanies those status tags in the monthly survey used to update the dashboard.
The committee asked for a follow-up briefing that provides line-by-line statuses and measurable key results tied to the dashboard, plus a deeper look at sanitation route staffing and fleet-fit issues. Presenters said they will return next quarter with more detailed action plans and KPI visualizations.
