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When state administrative bodies are operating at peak efficiency, it’s as if they’re invisible. This bittersweet reality makes employees of the state unsung heroes in the day-to-day lives of residents.
In the state of Missouri in the United States, the Office of Administration (OA) is tasked with holding vital divisions such as facilities management, IT services, accounting and planning together, as well as the oil that keeps them running smoothly.
If it sounds impossible to be a bonding agent and a lubricant all at once, that’s a credit to just how easy Missouri OA Commissioner Ken Zellers makes it look. A Missouri native, born in St Louis, he is a dedicated family man and enjoyed a long career at brewer Anheuser-Busch before joining the OA.
“Like just about everybody else in St Louis, I’d always wanted to work for Anheuser-Busch,” he tells The CEO Magazine.
“I feel like I’ve dedicated my whole life to making things better and improving processes, and my time at Anheuser-Busch was a good foundation for me to look at things not for what they are, but for what they could be.”
“I’ve dedicated my whole life to making things better and improving processes.”
After 30 years with the brewery, Zellers called it a day. He was in the domestic bliss of retirement when he got an unexpected call.
“It was someone I’d worked with a long time ago who was now working for the State of Missouri,” he recalls. “They’d heard I’d retired and asked me if I was interested in some public service work that would suit my skill set and experience. I said, ‘Absolutely.’”
After early success in various roles, Missouri’s Governor offered him the Commissioner position.
“That was four years ago, and while it’s probably the hardest job I’ve ever had, it’s also the most rewarding,” he reveals.
Zellers’ role involves making sure the OA’s seven divisions run efficiently and effectively. He and his team are constantly looking for ways to enhance the overall customer experience through state-of-the-art technology.
“The public service was always something that interested me, but I originally told the Governor I’d stay a year or two, just to get him started,” he says.
“Here I am eight years later, and I still love coming to work every day. They’re long days, they’re tough days, but when I see that capitol, I think about how fortunate I am to be in a position where I can actually make things better for the people of Missouri.”
On a personal level, he adds, he feels honored to improve the quality of work life of his team.
“I always ask myself, ‘Do my people want to come to work?’ And I think the majority of them would say yes, which is why we have a turnover rate that’s 10 percent less than the statewide average. For me, that’s success,” he says.
In partnership with Missouri’s current Governor, Mike Kehoe, Zellers and his team work tirelessly to improve the lives of the state’s residents. That involves anything from operations and logistics to performance and procurement.
“There’s a lot of frustration around procurement in the public sector since there are so many rules and regulations that can slow the process,” he explains.
“I felt that frustration when I first arrived, so I’ve implemented metrics and measurements to improve the process. We divide procurement among the team based on skill levels.”
Zellers approaches his role as Commissioner with a formula he developed throughout his career.
“I call it my CDR. You need to be customer-centric, data-driven and able to reward superior performance,” he says. “No matter what job I’ve had, I’ve tried to make sure I was focused on that CDR.”
“You need to be customer-centric, data-driven and able to reward superior performance.”
And that’s all in service of realizing the vision of the state governor, whom Zellers likens to a CEO.
“They’re effectively the CEO of the state. They have a vision, and it’s my job and duty to make sure everyone on my team understands that vision clearly – and how to achieve it,” he explains.
There’s a simple question that acts as an effective litmus test in this situation, he adds.
“Ask anyone on your team, ‘How does what you do contribute to the overall success of the organization?’ If they can’t answer, then as a leader you’re not doing your job and you have not shared that vision,” he points out.
That’s not a problem for Zellers, however; through effective communication and a personal touch, he has the full backing of his team.
“I like to understand my people, so I’ll frequently go on walks through the departments and find out what makes them tick,” he says.
Zellers believes that too often, people join government departments with ‘good enough’ as their standard.
“I’m here to tell you right now, good enough is not good enough for me. It’s not good enough for the Governor and it’s definitely not good enough for the people of Missouri,” he says.
“We owe them nothing but the best in customer satisfaction.”
“It’s a challenge and a privilege to serve.”
The goalposts surrounding ‘the best’ have changed in recent years, and Zellers and his team have to stay on top of those developments. This is why they’ve partnered with the AI-powered, cloud-native Google Public Sector platform and other innovative IT initiatives to improve Missouri’s digital presence.
“We have a project we call our digital government transformation,” he says. “Part of my vision is that Missouri will have access to a completely digital government; it needs to be easy for them to get a driver’s license, start a business or pay their taxes or contact elected officials. That’s a big part of our job.”
Missouri can breathe easy: despite having lived in the comfortable lap of retirement before, Zellers says he doesn’t plan to return anytime soon.
“To me, this job is so special. I’m so thankful to have it, and I don’t even look at it as a job. Instead, it’s a challenge and a privilege to serve,” he concludes.
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