Why Are We Afraid Of Change?

A couple weeks ago I read with some interest and unease the negative comments made concerning the appointment of Mrs. Chanelle Petty-Barrett to the post of Permanent Secretary of Education, Library Services, Sports, Youth and Culture. The thrust of criticism appears to be based on the flawed notion that experience in a particular field should be determinative in the selection process.

While I would readily agree that there is much to be concerned about with regard to the human resource policy of the Government, this particular criticism is misplaced. I submit that leadership abilities and qualities are far more important when decisions on a head of department are to be made. To argue that specific knowledge should prevail over leadership suggests that the status quo, rather than change, will continue to dominate the process of selecting able persons to lead our government departments in this millennium.

The state of our education demands change. The status quo has produced for the most part, persons who function far below what you expect of graduates. I speak as one who was educated by persons with far less education than our teachers have today. Yet, they produced a class of students who excelled wherever they went. Shouldn’t we expect or even demand that today’s students who have access to better resources and better trained teachers produce concomitant results? I say YES! It would therefore appear to me that the real problem is the system and the status quo will only perpetuate more of the same. We need change and change can only take place with leadership. We need persons to assume the mantle of leadership who have a vision and a plan of where we need to go and take us there. The status quo will not.

Public servants with the qualities of Mrs. Petty-Barrett need to be identified and brought to the forefront. This article is not a defence of Mrs. Petty-Barrett as her experience, education and ability speak for themselves. I was privileged that some years ago she chose to work with our firm. At the time I questioned whether she could successfully transition to the private practice of law. She swiftly allayed my concerns by her dedication, quality of work and commitment. More importantly, she earned the respect of the clients. Mrs. Petty-Barrett demonstrated that she was prepared to face daunting challenges with a determination to overcome them in exemplary fashion. I expect no less of her in this position.
While some knowledge of a particular discipline is useful in leading a department, the desire and ability to face challenges is far more critical. It is the anvil on which effective leadership skills are placed to be hammered into the pursuit of excellence. The status quo encourages persons to accept what is not, what could be or what should be. There is no will or desire to critically question how to get the ship moving on the path of excellence. Instead, avoid that path because it may be controversial, or worse, ruffle a few sacred feathers. This will not produce an education system that must prepare our students to face the ever demanding challenges of this new world. It will only produce more of the same which will not bode well for our children or society as a whole. That is a luxury we cannot afford.

However, there is a need to be critical of the human resource policy of the Government. Someone described it to me as a “robbing Peter to pay Paul” philosophy. The point is that so little has been done over the years to cultivate and prepare bright minds for leadership, that certain departments are losing critical talent because of the woeful lack of talent in others.

I have always taken the position that I never criticize anything unless I am prepared to offer some helpful solutions. I suggest firstly, that a culture needs to be fostered with government that risk-taking will be rewarded. People will, under such an environment, be prepared and encouraged to take initiatives and accept more responsibility. These are the essential building blocks of effective leadership. Too many persons in government hide behind committees and readily blame others for making particular decisions. Secondly, we need to tap into the talent of the Anguillian Diaspora. Policies need to be established that make it attractive for our own to come back home and utilize the skills honed abroad. This must be completed with a concerted effort to defuse the culture within our society that is dedicated to sabotage ideas that they are not accustomed to no matter the merits of those ideas. This is yet another example of how the status quo obstructs the path to excellence. To do otherwise is to allow the inmates to run the asylum. Finally, change should become a constant. Employees should be taught that they will be rewarded for promoting better ways of doing things. Our leadership will have to accept that yesterday’s policies do not necessarily mean that they will work for today’s problems. We have to constantly question how we do things in hope that a better idea will spring forth. After all, where would we be today without the automobile, the airplane, the computer and yes the internet? Remember, it was said that if God intended man to fly he would have given us wings. That thinking is the STATUS QUO.

I therefore applaud the Public Service Commission for their recent efforts to think outside the box in selecting persons for leadership positions. This is the only way to achieve the improvements in government that are critical to our continued success as people. At the same time I urge them to embrace policies that will promote the ideals and qualities so essential to the development of effective leadership. This will insure that leadership succession will cease to be problematic and controversial.
- Keithley F. T. Lake