Mayor Mike's rightsizing prerogative

When you are the mayor of a major city like Cebu, and you have a vision to make your city like Singapore, you really have to make draconian changes that may cause fear and apprehension among personnel. The leader has the right to introduce innovations even as he might rock the boat and lose some votes.

We should always remember he was an outstanding HR manager of an Aboitiz company. At a very young age, before politics pirated him, he was a jewel in the business world who managed business organizations and led people excellently. In fact, this writer, as national president of the premier HR organization in the country, PMAP, bestowed upon him the prestigious Personnel Manager of the Year Award. He was the first and only mayor in the whole country who got that award. I didn’t choose him. There was a distinguished board of judges who screened and selected him. No other mayor qualified, not even a former mayor of Davao City who became president, or another former mayor of that city who’s now vice president. Only Rama, none other.

And so, why shouldn’t we trust Mike Rama with his rightsizing initiative? He isn’t just a mayor; he’s an outstanding HR professional who knows all the facets of leading people from hiring to firing and retiring. That’s his distinct advantage over all his rivals. They are just plain politicians. Mike is an HR expert. He knows people, he understands feelings. He knows how to gauge the real intentions of people. He knows there are sycophants and pretenders who have treacherous intentions. He knows some people in City Hall who smile like Mona Lisa but carry a stiletto. Mike is a genius about people. And the best thing about Mike is that he has a pure heart, without malice, without bad faith.

He knows City Hall is a microcosm of the real world. People wear masks. So, how does he determine who’s true and who’s fake? He purposely jolts people. In fact, rocking the boat is a leadership strategy to cause discomfort. There’s a principle in HR that when employees are too sure about their security of tenure, most of them will no longer perform well, They just coast along, content with status quo. A dynamic leader won’t hesitate to make changes that shall unnerve people out of their comfort zones. And Mike is dynamic, full of ideas, always inspired by a vision of a world-class city with disciplined and law-abiding people.

He is just using the HR mantra of "rightsizing" to embellish his radical innovations with a semblance of serene HR interventions. But he’s actually removing deadwood and bringing in new talents who can add value to the organization. Deadwood are people who seek protection under the mantle of civil service security of tenure, or political backing of certain councilors, but aren’t aligned with the mayor in the pursuit of excellence. Deadwood just sit there, counting the hours and the minutes doing Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and TikTok while taxpayers line up to transact official business. Deadwood are the worst enemies of good governance. They are paid highly and contribute too little, if at all. And Mike is going to remove them.

At least, we have a mayor who isn’t afraid to lose votes. Doing what’s right will result in losing some friends. Here’s a mayor who, to borrow the line in “The Impossible Dream” is "willing to march into hell for a heavenly cause." He’s willing to be crucified to save the city from stagnation and decay. It isn’t easy to be a leader. It’s easy to criticize. But to lead a city with too many suverbios and badlongons. Mike is making a big sacrifice. Had he stayed in the private sector, he could well be the CEO of a global conglomerate or a big boss of a global company. The least that he would have earned is $2 million a month plus perks. But here he is sticking it out in the City Hall. He’s making a big sacrifice.

Do you think he is happy? He dies a thousand deaths each day when he sees his beloved city being killed slowly by those who don’t know how to love a potential paradise like Cebu. So, why don't we help Mike, or at least pray for his success? He’s a good man with a beautiful dream. Our children's children will thank us for helping this good guy make this city a real queen.