Computer Games Failing Grade

Yet another report has issued forth detailing poor management in city government. This one - an audit of operational performance in the Richmond Public Schools - finds that 42 percent of computer equipment that exists on paper cannot be found. It also faults the system for other oversights, such as a lack of risk-assessment and disaster-recovery procedures.

A few things are bound to fall through the cracks in any large organization. (Quick: How many pens does your company have on hand?) But a 42-percent discrepancy raises eyebrows, as they say.

That so many pieces of computer hardware cannot be tracked down does not imply anything willfully nefarious. It might be the case, for instance, that the system simply has been disposing of old PCs without crossing them off the inventory list. On the other hand, the lack of a rigorous inventory-control system also makes it possible for expensive equipment to simply grow legs and walk away - with a bit of human assistance, of course. If the school system has no means of checking, then it has no way to know whether hardware is being disposed of at the end of its useful life - or stolen.

The problem needs fixing. Unfortunately, the Richmond school system has what is by now a hoary tradition. The superintendency has bounced like a ping-pong ball between individuals whose strong point was either academics (e.g., Patricia Conn) or operations (e.g., Albert Williams). The new superintendent, Yvonne Brandon, hails from the academic side. Perhaps she has the chops to straighten out the business side as well. If so, she probably deserves to trade in her business suits for a blue leotard and red cape.