Birmingham Water Works Board consultant recommends significant changes to leadership structure

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) — A retired Army General and Auburn University’s former Chief Operating Officer is recommending significant changes to the management structure at the Birmingham Water Works Board after spending months studying the organization from the inside.

“The organization has strong, established processes, but has historically struggled to follow them. In the past, the General Manager of the organization has had to be too involved in the resolution of customer service issues,” the report from Gen. Ronald Burgess found.

To address that concern, Burgess is recommending the BWWB hire a Deputy GM and a new (fourth) Assistant General Manager of Customer Care Services to focus on customer needs. He also recommends the utility create a Customer Care Advocate Office that focuses on faster investigations of customer billing issues and resolving those problems.

Burgess also recommends a comprehensive review of the BWWB’s cybersecurity and physical security, saying there is one particular computer system the utility uses that is dependent upon the coding knowledge of two individuals.

“When reviewing the age of the individuals (particularly one of them) and the concern of a single point of failure for the system this is an area that the Board and leadership of the Birmingham Water Works needs to pay particular attention to,” Burgess said in his report.

He also noted the utility has already taken steps to address this concern, but needs a wider look at its security posture.

The Burgess report also recommends the utility take another hard look at separating its billing operations from the Jefferson County Sewer system: “While I understand the rationale for having the Birmingham Water Works provide the service and the bill for the fees paid by the county; I strongly believe that the cost associated with executing a separate bill (done by the Birmingham Water Works) for Jefferson County is well worth the investment of time and money. The driving factor behind this recommendation is because I think the damage done by the combined bill on the Public Relations front is worth the investment of resources.”

Gen. Burgess says he is encouraged by the moves made by the interim leadership team that began in June 2024, and the leadership of new permanent GM Mac Underwood.

“It is clear the current BWW leadership team is committed to immediate improvement in operations across the organization,” Burgess said. “Addressing key operational, financial and infrastructure priorities has become a focal point for the Board, executive team and staff going forward.”

Of note, Gen. Burgess says he found the former GM and at least two Assistant General Managers “influenced, directed and controlled the recommendations and outcomes of the studies,” done by other consultants about how the utility was organized and operated.

The BWWB did adopt a new public records policy on Wednesday, April 9, outlining how you can request records from the utility, and a new policy on customers who want to address the board during their meetings.

You can view the report and new policies below:

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