To the editor:
As decision time approaches for selecting a new city councilor to serve you, I’d like to share more information to help you make the best informed decision.
I committed last November to offer myself and my skills to serve you as Ward 1 councilor, and I was the first candidate to take out nomination papers. I began 100%, and still am. I never waited to see the field. I never waited for the incumbent to decide not to run for reelection. I saw your need for my skills and leadership and I stepped up first — willing to face the long haul of challenges.
I am a very effective change agent — very effective because I respect, and value, all people. I am not afraid to say that you may have a better idea than me. With that approach, we always move forward together with the best possible plan.
While at GE, I was sent to the Czech Republic to help our division there with low-performing engines. I had never been to the Czech Republic and never had direct experience with their engines before. I immediately formed and led a task force with the Czech engineers, mechanics, and testers, and over the course of one summer we found root causes and implemented corrective actions. I was crushed to learn that the Czech team considered me a legend after I left.
Two more instances locally that clearly show my skills: the GE factory has a very large auditorium on the second floor of a building, the first floor of which is the main cafeteria. Planning a celebration of the 15,000th engine delivered, we wanted to have an actual engine on display front and center in the auditorium, but there was no elevator to the second floor. I saw the solution, coordinated with leadership, hired ironworkers to lift not one but three engines onto the cafeteria roof, and when they couldn’t fit through the auditorium fire exit doors, hired carpenters to remove the center post. The celebration was epic, with three different models of that engine on display for our teams and our customers, including top brass from our military.
Another example is the unique test documents previously used by the Lynn site only. Lynn had its own unique document types for many, many years. The local system that was used to care for and update these documents was expiring, and the best solution was to change the document management system for engine testing to be the same as elsewhere in the world. I led the change, and people immediately said that the local DCMA (Defense Contract Management Association, aka the government) would never agree. I methodically met with DCMA engineering and quality assurance, and many, many people in the GE testing and quality divisions. The result was a roll-out of the new documents for one of the Lynn engines together with a plan for the rest. That plan is fully implemented today.
I share all this for one reason — for you to know who best for you to elect to City Council, not for me, but for you. And with me being the only candidate fully retired and an empty-nester with 100% of my time available, the answer is pretty clear.
There are many, many issues and challenges for us to work on. I have many ideas for improvement, and can’t wait to work with you to optimize them, and to implement them!
Sincerely,
Paul Gerard Gouthro
Lynn
