Inside Out | Result-oriented John Lee must beware of procrastination traps
- Mega projects like the Northern Metropolis eat up money and recources while taking years to be realised – hardly a recipe for delivering results
- Lee should instead focus on less grand, but more practical and pressing, needs such as affordable healthcare, adequate housing and improved energy efficiency
The consultant told Liao that one of the best things her staff could do was put stickers in large print at the top of each computer screen: “Our mission is to bring Quality to Life”. Not only must they bring the concept of quality to life, but deliver initiatives that brought quality to the lives of Hong Kong citizens.
The recommendation was ignored. Liao procrastinated. But I think Donald Tsang Yam-kuen, then chief executive, may have taken note. In his 2007-08 policy address, he unveiled plans to deliver 10 mega-infrastructure projects. There was much derision. There were protests about grandiose “white elephants”. There was alarm about the taxpayer cost and the impact on reserves.
Last week, I looked back on those projects. They provided glimpses into persistent bureaucratic procrastination but, on balance, Tsang earned a passing grade as a “result-oriented” leader.
