Articles

    Reconsiderations - A First Hand Account

    Brian_Redlein

    For the last few months, we’ve brought up the changes to the reconsideration process. Now, we’ve experienced first hand how this change in process impacts projects and timelines.

    The new process requires us to put together a more thorough project package than before. Make no mistake, this is a good step as it actually forces the team to understand details up front and truly comprehend what’s being requested. To give a sense of scale, we recently submitted a package of documents, drawings and a thorough explanation of the request that exceeded 50 pages.

    We learned that the request was denied. Surprisingly, the response was unrelated to our request. Considering the preparation of the package, we’re certain that everything was clear. So how could there be such a miscommunication?

    It seems that now, decisions are made not by individual Commissioners, but by committee. And this committee has an overwhelming trend to find fault in submissions and respond with a denial.

    It appears that this denial actually may have another motive. Since these larger reconsideration packages arrive every day, there’s now a backlog of requests. The pressure has shifted to the Commissioners to move through the packages quickly, rather than thoroughly.

    If the end result is a Denial, the only next step is to go to Technical Affairs. This seems like an unnecessary escalation.

    A recent, relatively simple package we submitted has been delayed for over 10 weeks. Last year, this may have been a week or two, tops. It’s clear that there’s room for improvement here.

    Posted By Brian Redlein

    « Previous Entry Next Entry »