Archives: October 2015
Survey on rail and freight issues open until Nov. 11
October 28, 2015
The Iowa Department of Transportation is in the process of developing rail and freight plans designed to improve the safety and efficiency of Iowa’s transportation system and make the state a better place to live, work, and travel. All citizens are owners of Iowa’s transportation system. As an owner, we need your input to identify and evaluate Iowa’s existing systems, as well as plan for rail and freight needs over the next 25 years.
The rail and freight plans are closely related and have several intertwining activities In developing the plans, there is a natural overlap of information, data, and analysis and developing the two plans in tandem saves taxpayer dollars.
If you are interested in the future of freight and rail transportation, please participate in a brief survey. Your anonymous answers will help us as we continue developing both the state rail and freight plans. Please share the survey link with others who are interested in the future of rail and freight movement in Iowa.
Follow up from last week's Leadership Development Conference
October 28, 2015
Just a week ago, more than 445 Iowa DOT managers, supervisors, and other informal leaders came together for a day-long event focused on developing leadership skills. During the Leadership Development Conference attendees had the opportunity to roll up their sleeves and identify issues and barriers related to leadership, strategic planning, performance management, culture, and communication. After identifying barriers, attendees worked together to propose possible solutions to overcome barriers and become more successful as an organization in each of these five areas.
If you attended the session, you have received an email with a link to a survey about the event and a link to documentation on a SharePoint site. If you haven’t completed it already, the survey closes Oct. 30.
But attendees of the conference are not the only ones responsible for improving our agency. Everyone has the ability to make improvements that help the Iowa DOT become smarter, simpler, and customer driven. Even small changes in how you approach your day-to-day work can make a big impact on the way we operate as a team.
Message Monday - Oct. 26, 2015 - Halloween is near - don't be a crash dummy
October 26, 2015
How many of you remember Vince and Larry? These two hardworking crash test dummies first appeared in a series of public service announcement in 1985. In the commercials, Vince and Larry actively demonstrated what could happen when a person did not wear a seat belt. Reportedly, by 1994, seat belt usage had increased from 21 percent to 73 percent, saving an estimated 75,000 lives and preventing more than 1.5 million moderate to critical injuries. Last year, Iowa’s seat belt usage was at 93 percent.
Over the years, Vince and Larry costumes have been popular with adults at Halloween. But no matter how you’re dressed, if you’re going out haunting this weekend, make sure you’re buckled up so you don’t become a crash test dummy.
Communication - you have a role
October 19, 2015
On Oct. 21 managers, supervisors, and other informal leaders at the Iowa DOT will come together for a day-long event focused on developing their leadership skills. During the Leadership Development Conference attendees will have the opportunity to roll up their sleeves and identify issues and barriers related to leadership, strategic planning, performance management, culture, and communication and propose possible solutions to overcome barriers and become more successful as an organization in each of these five areas.
But attendees of the conference are not the only ones responsible for improving our agency. Everyone has the ability to make improvements that help the Iowa DOT become smarter, simpler and customer driven. Even small changes in how you approach your day-to-day work can make a big impact on the way we operate as a team. The purpose of this blog is to give an introduction to each of these focus areas and suggest ways you can work to make improvements. So far we’ve explored the topics of leadership, strategic planning, performance management, and culture.
Today is our final topic, communication.
Message Monday - Oct. 19, 2015 - Crashes don't kill teens - bad choices do
October 19, 2015
This week is National Teen Driver Safety Week, established by Congress in 2007 with a goal of focusing the country’s attention, raising awareness and seeking solutions to teen deaths on the road.
Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for 14- to18-year-olds in the U.S. as a whole and specifically in Iowa. Iowa lost 33 teens last year. Nationally, in 2013, there were 2,614 teen (15- to 19-year-old) drivers involved in fatal crashes.
Yet, a recent survey shows that only 25 percent of parents have had a serious talk with their kids about the key components of safe driving. Dangers come in many forms, including driving after drinking alcohol or taking drugs, not wearing seat belts, texting behind the wheel, speeding, and the distraction that comes from having passengers in the car. Research indicates inexperience and immaturity, when combined with the dangerous behaviors already discussed, aggravate the problem.
Iowa DOT culture - you have a role
October 16, 2015
On Oct. 21 managers, supervisors, and other informal leaders at the Iowa DOT will come together for a day-long event focused on developing their leadership skills. During the Leadership Development Conference attendees will have the opportunity to roll up their sleeves and identify issues and barriers related to leadership, strategic planning, performance management, culture, and communication and propose possible solutions to overcome barriers and become more successful as an organization in each of these five areas.
But attendees of the conference are not the only ones responsible for improving our agency. Everyone has the ability to make improvements that help the Iowa DOT become smarter, simpler and customer driven. Even small changes in how you approach your day-to-day work can make a big impact on the way we operate as a team. The purpose of this blog is to give an introduction to each of these focus areas and suggest ways you can work to make improvements. So far we’ve explored the topics of leadership, strategic planning, and performance management.
Today’s topic is culture.
Are you ready for winter?
October 16, 2015
Chances are you have started swapping out your summer clothing for winter wear. At the Iowa Department of Transportation, we’re doing the same, only with some very large pieces of equipment. While you’re pulling out jackets and scarves, we’re busy pulling out the plows and brine tanks in an attempt to get you where you need to go safely, efficiently, and conveniently throughout the winter months.
“Balancing our equipment needs this time of year can get a little tricky,” said Shawn Havick, highway maintenance supervisor in the Atlantic and Avoca Iowa DOT garages. “Once we pull a truck off summer maintenance work to get it ready for winter, it is difficult to use it for other activities until the snow flies.”
Doin' what you do - can it be done better?
October 15, 2015
Is there an element of your job that you are you still doing the same way it’s been done for years? Part of the challenge for each of us to make the Iowa DOT smarter, simpler, and customer driven is to look at what we do, why we do it, and how we can do it better.
For the folks in the District 4 materials lab in Atlantic, looking at updating the lab layout to improve safety and efficiency has been in the works for the last couple of years. The materials crew knew that testing procedures had changed. Their challenge was to reconfigure the lab in a way that made sense for the work they were doing.
Personnel updates for Sept. 25 to Oct. 8, 2015
October 15, 2015
Information provided by the Office of Employee Services
Performance management - you have a role
October 14, 2015
On Oct. 21 managers, supervisors, and other informal leaders at the Iowa DOT will come together for a day-long event focused on developing their leadership skills. During the Leadership Development Conference attendees will have the opportunity to roll up their sleeves and identify issues and barriers related to leadership, strategic planning, performance management, culture, and communication and propose possible solutions to overcome barriers and become more successful as an organization in each of these five areas.
But attendees of the conference are not the only ones responsible for improving our agency. Everyone has the ability to make improvements that help the Iowa DOT become smarter, simpler and customer driven. Even small changes in how you approach your day-to-day work can make a big impact on the way we operate as a team. The purpose of this blog is to give an introduction to each of these focus areas and suggest ways you can work to make improvements. So far we’ve explored the topics of leadership and strategic planning.
Today’s topic is performance management.