Ron Higgins

Oct 02, 2014

Mayor

Ron Higgins – Consulting to leading

Ron Higgins and his wife Wendy became seasonal residents of North Frontenac 10 years go, and have been full-time residents for the past four years.

“A year after the last election, I decided I would run in this year's election, and I have increased the level of my community involvement since then,” he said.

He has been a board member, and board chair of the Frontenac Community Futures Development Corporation; president of the Malcolm and Ardoch Lake Association; a member of the township's economic development task force; and he formed the Alliance of North Frontenac Lake Associations as well.

Higgins took early retirement from Nortel in 2003 and began a management consulting business, the Wren Group, at that time.

The Wren Group, which Higgins runs with his wife, specializes in improving the performance and outcomes of private and public sector institutions using a “high degree of discipline to results-based planning, process management and performance measurement systems”, in the words of the company’s website.

He said that when he looks at an organization as a consultant he starts by doing a complete assessment of the operation “from top to bottom.” He also said, “I offered my services to the township free of charge a couple of years ago, but did not receive a response.”

He said that some elements of the township's operations are open for study, but if elected he would not lead any kind of assessment of operations.

“That would be inappropriate for a Council to lead, but I would seek the expertise elsewhere to do an assessment, using consultants that have an understanding of the challenges the township faces,” he said.

One thing that he would like a consultant to look at is staffing at the township office.

“Looking at it from an outsider's viewpoint I don't understand the rationale for some of the positions there. It

looks like we should be sharing resources with other townships and Frontenac County,” he said.

One new position Higgins said he might advocate for is an economic development officer for the township because his platform stresses economic development.

He is encouraged by some of the measures the township has taken, such as adopting a strategic plan, but said, “The strategic plan is a good thing but it needs to be improved upon. It requires some performance measures in order to be effective, otherwise it will not accomplish its objectives.”

One of his priorities, if elected, would be communications.

“Communications could be done better,” he said, “with more face to face interactions between council and the public. I would like to introduce quarterly meetings to let the public know what is being done and how it is being paid for,” he said.

A case in point is the Dark Skies initiative that has come under fire recently over its location and cost.

“I support the Dark Skies, and when I look at the opposition it has faced I look at its root cause, which in this case is a lack of communications with the public. The fact that no local tax dollars were spent on the project, how the project came about, all of that wasn't communicated very well.”

He does not think it wise for the township to be contemplating building a new township office, unless it turns out the current office is not workable, and he also said he does not like the ward system for electing councilors because it has kept the township divided.

As far as being successful as a mayor when he is a newcomer to council, he said, “My biggest challenge will be to create an atmosphere in which council can accept the leadership I offer. That will take a while.”