Melverta Wilkins for County Treasurer 2022
Melverta is a write-in candidate for County Treasurer, running as a Democrat
- Party: Democrat
Campaign Platform
Written by Reed Sutman on Oct 08, 2022
Melverta Wilkins is a write-in Democrat candidate for Macon County Treasurer. She's prepared to monitor and process the county finances and ensure investments are good. She's been interested in the treasurer position for awhile and wants to bring the office online, with more public visibility as well as online payments, among other priorities. She has a Master's in Business Administration, and a Master's of Science in Development & Training. She doesn't see the office as a partisan position. Melverta serves in several not-for-profit organizations and on several boards.
Melverta Wilkins wants to setup a treasurer website, where taxpayers can setup online accounts, make payments, and view tax receipts. She hasn't yet determined how much this will cost, but says "you have to create that [funding]" to setup new programs. New funding would likely need approval from the County Board. She'd also like to start a digital newsletter to inform citizens about county finances, taxes collected, and other important updates about the office. Her opponent, John Jackson says he's prepared documentation on how to run the office, which Melverta was not aware of - she identifies this as one of the updates that the public should know about.
Melverta says that her first 90 days will be focused on learning from the staff, learning everything about the office, and learning what changes the staff wants, if any. She commends Jackson for preparing the documentation. She hasn't reviewed his procedures yet, but says she'll follow his processes that "have a current operating flow". She also intends to review and revise processes as needed, saying that she'll want to look at what's going well, what may need changed/added, and what might be wasting time. She does not plan to replace or hire any new staff.
Her top priority is to invest and make "better use of our County's money" and better connect the County Treasurer with the State Treasurer and programs available through the state. She'd also like to ensure "that people are being trained and people have access to financial information to be better at their finances. ... So that people understand the housing process and how to get a house, credit and all of [that]." She also wants to educate the public about what financial county officers do, including the Treasurer, Assessor, Collector, Recorder, and Auditor. Her third priority is "Having resources and things available for the community, so [the people] can better manage their finances and they can become better stewards of their money, to help them ultimately become better community partners."
I asked Melverta how a Republican Treasurer may differ from a Democrat treasurer and she said "I don't know that ultimately it comes down to being just a Democrat or a Republican. [Mr. Jackson] is a Republican. I'm a Democrat. He wants the office. I want the office. He has ideas. I have ideas." She goes on to say "I'm not the person ... to try to divvy into the political portion of that. That's not gonna be me. I just know that there's some things that are needed in the county office" and she says she'll be representing "the Democratic party and the Democratic community as well as the Republican community."
As far as political advocacy in her position as Treasurer, Ms. Wilkins says "if I need a bigger budget, of course I would advocate for that." She says there should be a deeper connection with the Macon County Treasurer and the Illinois State Treasurer and that the state treasurer has a lot of programs that "I think should be connected to our Macon County Treasurer." She says "I'd like to advocate for the community, and I'd like to see more resources for them to build homes and to buy homes and to be able to flourish a little bit more than what they are now."
She says she is a Six Sigma Black Belt, which is a training and certification program in project management. She also has a Master's in Business Administration and a Master's of Science in Development & Training from St. Francis University. She is the Executive Director of Sista Girls & Friends, which recently received a $500,000 grant from the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity. Sista Girls helps girls with career and business training. She also serves as the executive director of Flourish Political Action Committee and Progressive Minds Training & Development Institute, which sells courses in soft skills and business related fields.
She worked at Caterpillar from 2000 through 2020 when she retired. She started in HR and worked as a supervisor in manufacturing operations. In 2013, she took the Product Change Engineer role, where she helped coordinate the review and integration of new products. Since retiring from that role in 2020, she's worked more on her community efforts, which she intends to stay on top of whether she gets elected or not. She also serves on Reimagining Public Safety Local Advisory Council, the State Employees Retirement System Board of Trustees, and is a member of the International Society of Female Professionals.
She is a write-in candidate, which means to vote for her you have write her name on the ballot, whereas the Republican candidate John Jackson will just require voters to fill in a bubble. She was slated after the primaries, then her petitions were challenged by Macon County Republicans which is why she's now a write-in candidate.
She thought about running before the primaries, but thought someone else was going to run instead. She said "Next time I will be very very much more prepared and ready to go," but has not firmly committed to running the next time. When asked whether she has future plans to run for Macon County or state offices, she said "Oh my gosh yes. I love, i love politics. Not politics. Not politicking, but I love political offices." She then talked about how much respect she has for public officials who "sacrifice a lot of their lives" to serve the public.
Listen to the full interview on YouTube. Quotes are of Melverta Wilkins unless otherwise noted. Quotes may be edited to improve readibility. Edits includ removing filler words, [adding context], [paraphrasing], and other minor edits.
What does the County Treasurer do?
Melverta says the County Treasurer is the steward of the money. She says the treasurer handles and oversees any money that comes in through the county. She says the treasurer would make sure investments are good, that the county finances are stable, and that there is the right amount of money coming in and going out.
Why are you running for Macon County Treasurer?
Melverta: "Because I'd like to be the Macon County Treasurer. I think I would do a great job. I think I would serve the people well."
"There's some antiquated systems and processes that would need to be updated and changed and I would like to be the conduit to do that."
Reed: "Do you have any specifics in mind of those antiquated processes you want to change?"
Melverta says says she'd like to setup online payments, online receipts, and setup accounts for everyone who pays taxes in Macon County. She says "We're sending out invoices still", "You have to still go and get in [a long line] to pay your taxes", and "Ultimately, the treasurer could be the one to make those changes".
Reed: "Do you know if there is funding available to set up those online systems?"
Melverta says "You don't come up with processes or things based upon the funding that you have now, because it's not in the budget for that, so you have to create that [funding]."
Reed: "Do you have an idea of how much that would cost and where that funding would come from?"
Melverta: "I don't. I'm not in the office yet."
What are your top three priorities?
Top Priority: "Investing. and Making better use of our county's money. That's number one. Being able to connect with the state treasurer, that's also very important. Those two things to me come together."
Second Priority: "That people are being trained and people have access to financial information to be better at their finances. ... So that people understand the housing process and how to get a house, credit and all of [that]."
"Educating on the county resources, the county assessor, the county collector, the auditor, the treasurer, getting all that information out that people would need."
Third Priority: "Three. Having resources and things available for the community, so [the people] can better manage their finances and they can become better stewards of their money, to help them ultimately become better community partners."
Why is the County Treasurer an elected, partisan position?
Melverta: "I don't know"
Reed: "Can you think of anything that a Republican treasurer would do different from a Democrat treasurer?"
Melverta: "Umm, no. ... I don't know that ultimately it comes down to being just a Democrat or a Republican. [Mr. Jackson] is a Republican. I'm a Democrat. He wants the office. I want the office. He has ideas. I have ideas. ..."
"I'm not the person ... to try to divvy into the political portion of that. That's not gonna be me. I just know that there's some things that are needed in the county office."
"I don't know what the goals are of Mr. Jackson. He's not someone that I know personally. He's not visible in the treasurer's office for whatever reason. He's decided not to do that. I don't know that being a Democrat would make me 'umm oh yeah i've got better ideas or whatever because I'm a Democrat'."
She says she'll be representing "the Democratic party and the Democratic community as well as the Republican community."
What role would you play in the county's legislative process, such as advocating for certain policies?
Melverta: "If I need a bigger budget, of course I would advocate for that."
"I feel like there should be a deeper connection with the Macon County Treasurer and the Illinois Treasurer. There's a lot of programs that the Illinois State Treasurer has that I think should be connected to our Macon County Treasurer."
"I would advocate for what is needed. It is hard to just talk general about what I would be advocating for, but I would advocate for what I would need to."
"I'd like to advocate for the community, and I'd like to see more resources for them to build homes and to buy homes and to be able to flourish a little bit more than what they are now."
Would you follow John Jackson's standard operating procedures?
Reed: "Our current treasurer John Jackson, who is a Republican. He was appointed to replace Ed Yoder, who was also a Republican. Mr Jackson says he has automated processes, cross trained employees, and has standard operating procedures in place for every job in the office. He says he's documented and can show those procedures to anyone who wants to see them. "
Reed: "First of all, were you aware that those things were available and have you had a chance to look at them?"
Melverta: "I think standard operating procedures would be great. That is huge, especially in an office like that, [which] may flip over every four years. To have that would be awesome, so if he's done that, I commend him for it."
Melverta says that she has not seen the standard operating procedures documentation because she didn't know about them.
Reed: "Would you intend to follow the standard operating procedures that he's set up during his tenure?"
Melverta: "I don't know what they are, so I can't answer that. But if he has processes that have a current operating flow, absolutely."
Melverta says that she sees the processes as a working document that need to be updated regularly to accomodate for changes. She says she'll want to look at what's going well, what may need changed/added, and what might be wasting time.
Melverta: "I cannot blanketly say I would keep all his processes or get rid of all of his processes. We just want it to be a good consistent flow, a good use of money, not a waste of time. I'm very much into lean management. So how can we make it lean? Make money. Make profit, but also work as efficiently as possible."
Melverta says she is a Six Sigma Black Belt, which is a training and certification program in project management.
Reed: "Do you have plans to replace any of the existing staff or hire additional staff?"
Melverta: "Nope"
Reed: "John said that before he came into the office, everything was compartmentalized and everyone "stayed in their own lane". What is your management style, between cross-training staff &/or highly specializing staff?"
Melverta: "I definitely think that there should be specialists and there should be subject matter experts, and I think there should be more than one or two. And I think the treasurer should know all those jobs as well in the office." She also says "I do believe in cross training" and "I think that more than one person should know the job."
How will you make the treasurer's office more visible?
Reed: You said in a recent video on your Facebook page that you "want to make the county treasurer's office more visible". You already talked a little bit about getting online and education about the assessor and stuff. Is that kind of what you were talking about or did you have something else in mind?
Melverta: "I thought his name was Bob Jackson. Noone knows who the treasurer is, right. And I'll be honest with you. I'm at a deficit because I'm a write in candidate."
"But honestly, I don't know him. I don't know what he's doing. I'm real excited that he's gone in and he's made some great changes to that office and he's doing some good things. I think that's exciting. Why didn't he tell us that?"
"Why are you telling me that? So that's what I'm talking about visibility. Get out. Be available. Be where your constituents can speak with you and talk to you and ask you questions and you can talk to them about your office, your treasurer's office, your treasurer's report. Be visible, that's all."
"Get a website. I would like to see. I'm not trying to tell him how to do his job, but I think it would be great if we had a website, or if we even had some type of digital newsletter. People wanna know this stuff."
"How much taxes we're collecting. How much are we behind. How much are we in debt for the county. How many things are we utilizing. How much does it cost to run the transportation department. You know all of these things are important to people ..."
"I just feel like when you run for political office and you're in a political office, you kind of belong to the people. You serve and you belong and it is definitely my job to inform them and keep them in the loop."
"Not saying that Mr. Jackson isn't doing a good job, because I don't know that. I just know that I'd like to do it. And I think I can do it differently. Not saying I can do it better, but I can impact it. And I'm not saying he didn't impact it. I'm saying that's what I want to do."
What else do you need to do to prepare for being treasurer?
Reed: "Do you already know everything you need to know?"
Summary: Melverta says her first 90 days will be focused on learning from the staff, learning everything about the office, learning what changes the staff wants, if any. She says she needs to learn about the office before working to make any changes. She adds that she has a Masters in Business Administration and a Masters of Science in Development and Training. She is committed to respecting the staff that has already been working in that office for some time.
Melverta: "Absolutely not. I need to know everything. I'm brand new. I need to come in, talking to people, seeing what they do, learning the office. So Treasurer is just a title, right? There's work behind that. I've never worked in the Macon County Treasurer's office, so I don't have all of the details of the job, but I do have an MBA and I do have a Masters of Science in development and training. I think I can go in there and grasp that and do very well at what is needed."
"First to learn. I can't make any changes or do any updates until I absolutely learn and know what's going on. 'Til I absolutely know and learn what the people in the office that are already doing their jobs and have done it so well and for most of them for a long time. There's not a lot of new people in that office, and I can appreciate that and respect that. And I would want to know what it is that they would want and how, what changes they would wanna see, if any changes at all. So, I'm prepared in the fact that I have the mindset to go in and do a great job. And I have a mindset to learn the job. And I love people. And I love, youknow, and respect the people who work for me. So, those things would be important first. First 90 days is learning, learning learning learning, and knowing knowing knowing, and respecting respecting respecting."
Why weren't you on the ballot in the Primaries?
Reed: "You were slated after the primaries and ultimately became a write-in candidate after Republican Challenges. Why didn't you get on the ballot before the primaries?"
Melverta: "Like why didn't I run for it in the primaries?"
Reed: "Yeah"
Melverta: "I wish I had"
"It was definitely talked about, but [I] thought maybe someone else was going to run" and "[I] didn't wanna run against anyone else and it turns out noone ran. ... That was definitely an oversight for me ..."
"Definitely an oversight on my part. Next time, regardless of how the outcome is. Next time I will be very very much more prepared and ready to go."
What are your future plans for politics?
Reed: "So are you planning to run for treasurer again next time around?"
Melverta: "I didn't say that. I just said the next time." laughter
Reed: "Do you have any plans for future politics, whether it is a different Macon County office or a State office or something?"
Melverta: "Oh my gosh yes. I love, i love politics. Not politics. Not politicking, but I love political offices."
"I just have so much respect for people who are in office. It is a tremendous, i don't know, i'm gonna say honor, first to be elected, and then to be trusted to serve in any of those capacities in an elected office. And I feel like elected people or people in office, they sacrifice a lot of their lives, right. And so I do, I have so much respect and honor for them."
"So in turn, whenever I have the opportunity to serve or to do anything like that, I take it in the same manner, and it's nothing that I take lightly or anything like that. But there are a lot of positions in the county, and I honestly would like to tell anyone who's interested to run and to get a campaign and to run a campaign because it is something very noble, it's something very decent that they should do."
"So umm, you know, if there's something that you're interested in, go for it. Do it, and I will. And I will do that. And umm, Definitely have been interested in the County Treasurer position for awhile, and it looks like I'm getting an opportunity, and then hopefully soon I will get my turn."
Let's talk about your work at Caterpillar
Reed: "I understand you currently work full time at Caterpillar as a 'Product Change Engineer' since 2013 and have been with Caterpillar in a few different roles since 2000. Is that right?"
Melverta: "Actually Reed, I retired from Caterpillar May 1st of 2020. Maybe I do need to go out there and look at that linkedin again. I thought I had all that updated. I retired. I was a Product Change Engineer. Definitely started out in HR. I worked as Supervisor in the manufacturing role, in operations."
Reed: "What did you do as a product change engineer? What is that?"
Melverta: "A product change engineer is umm, a new product introductory. So caterpillar, they have new products come in all the time, and then they have products that we have to make changes and adjustments to, to make sure that [they run efficiently], that the bearings are working right, the radiator is good, all of those things."
"So, that's what I did. I worked as a team with the design team and purchasing. We were called a 'CPI staff', so we went through and looked at the whole model and made changes to it, updates to it, and so it's very detailed, it's very detailed to what we did, but that is basically the concept."
"Talking about processes, right? So is this the right process for implementing this undercarriage, or whatever the situation may have been. That is what, that is what I did. I made changes."
Let's talk about your community work
Reed: "I understand you founded and serve on the board of Sista Girls & Friends, helping girls with carreer and business training. I understand you are the executive director at Flourish PAC, and run the Progressive Minds Training & Development Institute, which sells courses and certifications in business related fields. Is that all still true?"
Melverta: "That is all still true. I am actually the executive director and president of Sista Girls & Friends. And we have impacted the community in major ways. I think I told you that I have an MBA (Master's of Business Administration) and that I also have a Masters in Training and Development. So one of the things that I went for when I retired was again developing some of these things that I've had passion for."
"And so we've worked with Workforce, and we have a grant with DCEO for pre-apprenticeship. Again, I have soft skills through PMTDI that I am also the president and CEO of."
"The educating the community, I have an asynchronous training that I provide as well as, I do community training, not just this community, but other communities. Just some exciting things Reed, honestly, youknow, that I've been able to do."
"Some things that I was working on when I worked at Caterpillar, and then in 2020, being able to retire from there and really be able to go after these things. Again with Flourish PAC, as I have told you, I have that strong desire for politics and working, and I'm really, honestly, I'm really good in the background of it. I can work really well in the background. I can work with fundraising and things like that."
"But I am the executive director of Flourish PAC. I have attended Illinois Women in Leadership Academy. And umm, so I take, I have tons of skill sets that i can take to any job, to any organization. I served as a treasurer on boards. I'm also on some other boards, so umm, yes. "
Reed: "If you are elected, how will that impact your other endeavors? The several boards you serve on as well as the three that I mentioned?"
Melverta: "Oh, it will just make it better. It will just make it better. I think again, I will bring all my skillsets to the treasurer's position. I will be able to manage my time well with all of them. And again, I'm looking for the consistency of the team, youknow that's already there. If they're willing and able and they want to do that, to help me lead them, and I'll humbly lead them in learning what they do, and the details of what they do. I have great teams. I have great teams with PMTDI. I have great teams with Sista Girls & Friends. So, I can do it. I can do it. And I'll do it effective and well. "
Reed: "So you plan to stay on top of Sista Girls & Friends, PMTDI and Flourish if you do get elected?"
Meleverta: "And everything, absolutely."
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Melverta Wilkins is a write-in Democrat candidate for Macon County Treasurer. She's prepared to monitor and process the county finances and ensure investments are good. She's been interested in the treasurer position for awhile and wants to bring the office online, with more public visibility as well as online payments, among other priorities. She has a Master's in Business Administration, and a Master's of Science in Development & Training. She doesn't see the office as a partisan position. Melverta serves in several not-for-profit organizations and on several boards.
Melverta Wilkins wants to setup a treasurer website, where taxpayers can setup online accounts, make payments, and view tax receipts. She hasn't yet determined how much this will cost, but says "you have to create that [funding]" to setup new programs. New funding would likely need approval from the County Board. She'd also like to start a digital newsletter to inform citizens about county finances, taxes collected, and other important updates about the office. Her opponent, John Jackson says he's prepared documentation on how to run the office, which Melverta was not aware of - she identifies this as one of the updates that the public should know about.
Melverta says that her first 90 days will be focused on learning from the staff, learning everything about the office, and learning what changes the staff wants, if any. She commends Jackson for preparing the documentation. She hasn't reviewed his procedures yet, but says she'll follow his processes that "have a current operating flow". She also intends to review and revise processes as needed, saying that she'll want to look at what's going well, what may need changed/added, and what might be wasting time. She does not plan to replace or hire any new staff.
Her top priority is to invest and make "better use of our County's money" and better connect the County Treasurer with the State Treasurer and programs available through the state. She'd also like to ensure "that people are being trained and people have access to financial information to be better at their finances. ... So that people understand the housing process and how to get a house, credit and all of [that]." She also wants to educate the public about what financial county officers do, including the Treasurer, Assessor, Collector, Recorder, and Auditor. Her third priority is "Having resources and things available for the community, so [the people] can better manage their finances and they can become better stewards of their money, to help them ultimately become better community partners."
I asked Melverta how a Republican Treasurer may differ from a Democrat treasurer and she said "I don't know that ultimately it comes down to being just a Democrat or a Republican. [Mr. Jackson] is a Republican. I'm a Democrat. He wants the office. I want the office. He has ideas. I have ideas." She goes on to say "I'm not the person ... to try to divvy into the political portion of that. That's not gonna be me. I just know that there's some things that are needed in the county office" and she says she'll be representing "the Democratic party and the Democratic community as well as the Republican community."
As far as political advocacy in her position as Treasurer, Ms. Wilkins says "if I need a bigger budget, of course I would advocate for that." She says there should be a deeper connection with the Macon County Treasurer and the Illinois State Treasurer and that the state treasurer has a lot of programs that "I think should be connected to our Macon County Treasurer." She says "I'd like to advocate for the community, and I'd like to see more resources for them to build homes and to buy homes and to be able to flourish a little bit more than what they are now."
She says she is a Six Sigma Black Belt, which is a training and certification program in project management. She also has a Master's in Business Administration and a Master's of Science in Development & Training from St. Francis University. She is the Executive Director of Sista Girls & Friends, which recently received a $500,000 grant from the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity. Sista Girls helps girls with career and business training. She also serves as the executive director of Flourish Political Action Committee and Progressive Minds Training & Development Institute, which sells courses in soft skills and business related fields.
She worked at Caterpillar from 2000 through 2020 when she retired. She started in HR and worked as a supervisor in manufacturing operations. In 2013, she took the Product Change Engineer role, where she helped coordinate the review and integration of new products. Since retiring from that role in 2020, she's worked more on her community efforts, which she intends to stay on top of whether she gets elected or not. She also serves on Reimagining Public Safety Local Advisory Council, the State Employees Retirement System Board of Trustees, and is a member of the International Society of Female Professionals.
She is a write-in candidate, which means to vote for her you have write her name on the ballot, whereas the Republican candidate John Jackson will just require voters to fill in a bubble. She was slated after the primaries, then her petitions were challenged by Macon County Republicans which is why she's now a write-in candidate.
She thought about running before the primaries, but thought someone else was going to run instead. She said "Next time I will be very very much more prepared and ready to go," but has not firmly committed to running the next time. When asked whether she has future plans to run for Macon County or state offices, she said "Oh my gosh yes. I love, i love politics. Not politics. Not politicking, but I love political offices." She then talked about how much respect she has for public officials who "sacrifice a lot of their lives" to serve the public.
Listen to the full interview on YouTube. Quotes are of Melverta Wilkins unless otherwise noted. Quotes may be edited to improve readibility. Edits includ removing filler words, [adding context], [paraphrasing], and other minor edits.
What does the County Treasurer do?
Melverta says the County Treasurer is the steward of the money. She says the treasurer handles and oversees any money that comes in through the county. She says the treasurer would make sure investments are good, that the county finances are stable, and that there is the right amount of money coming in and going out.
Why are you running for Macon County Treasurer?
Melverta: "Because I'd like to be the Macon County Treasurer. I think I would do a great job. I think I would serve the people well."
"There's some antiquated systems and processes that would need to be updated and changed and I would like to be the conduit to do that."
Reed: "Do you have any specifics in mind of those antiquated processes you want to change?"
Melverta says says she'd like to setup online payments, online receipts, and setup accounts for everyone who pays taxes in Macon County. She says "We're sending out invoices still", "You have to still go and get in [a long line] to pay your taxes", and "Ultimately, the treasurer could be the one to make those changes".
Reed: "Do you know if there is funding available to set up those online systems?"
Melverta says "You don't come up with processes or things based upon the funding that you have now, because it's not in the budget for that, so you have to create that [funding]."
Reed: "Do you have an idea of how much that would cost and where that funding would come from?"
Melverta: "I don't. I'm not in the office yet."
What are your top three priorities?
Top Priority: "Investing. and Making better use of our county's money. That's number one. Being able to connect with the state treasurer, that's also very important. Those two things to me come together."
Second Priority: "That people are being trained and people have access to financial information to be better at their finances. ... So that people understand the housing process and how to get a house, credit and all of [that]."
"Educating on the county resources, the county assessor, the county collector, the auditor, the treasurer, getting all that information out that people would need."
Third Priority: "Three. Having resources and things available for the community, so [the people] can better manage their finances and they can become better stewards of their money, to help them ultimately become better community partners."
Why is the County Treasurer an elected, partisan position?
Melverta: "I don't know"
Reed: "Can you think of anything that a Republican treasurer would do different from a Democrat treasurer?"
Melverta: "Umm, no. ... I don't know that ultimately it comes down to being just a Democrat or a Republican. [Mr. Jackson] is a Republican. I'm a Democrat. He wants the office. I want the office. He has ideas. I have ideas. ..."
"I'm not the person ... to try to divvy into the political portion of that. That's not gonna be me. I just know that there's some things that are needed in the county office."
"I don't know what the goals are of Mr. Jackson. He's not someone that I know personally. He's not visible in the treasurer's office for whatever reason. He's decided not to do that. I don't know that being a Democrat would make me 'umm oh yeah i've got better ideas or whatever because I'm a Democrat'."
She says she'll be representing "the Democratic party and the Democratic community as well as the Republican community."
What role would you play in the county's legislative process, such as advocating for certain policies?
Melverta: "If I need a bigger budget, of course I would advocate for that."
"I feel like there should be a deeper connection with the Macon County Treasurer and the Illinois Treasurer. There's a lot of programs that the Illinois State Treasurer has that I think should be connected to our Macon County Treasurer."
"I would advocate for what is needed. It is hard to just talk general about what I would be advocating for, but I would advocate for what I would need to."
"I'd like to advocate for the community, and I'd like to see more resources for them to build homes and to buy homes and to be able to flourish a little bit more than what they are now."
Would you follow John Jackson's standard operating procedures?
Reed: "Our current treasurer John Jackson, who is a Republican. He was appointed to replace Ed Yoder, who was also a Republican. Mr Jackson says he has automated processes, cross trained employees, and has standard operating procedures in place for every job in the office. He says he's documented and can show those procedures to anyone who wants to see them. "
Reed: "First of all, were you aware that those things were available and have you had a chance to look at them?"
Melverta: "I think standard operating procedures would be great. That is huge, especially in an office like that, [which] may flip over every four years. To have that would be awesome, so if he's done that, I commend him for it."
Melverta says that she has not seen the standard operating procedures documentation because she didn't know about them.
Reed: "Would you intend to follow the standard operating procedures that he's set up during his tenure?"
Melverta: "I don't know what they are, so I can't answer that. But if he has processes that have a current operating flow, absolutely."
Melverta says that she sees the processes as a working document that need to be updated regularly to accomodate for changes. She says she'll want to look at what's going well, what may need changed/added, and what might be wasting time.
Melverta: "I cannot blanketly say I would keep all his processes or get rid of all of his processes. We just want it to be a good consistent flow, a good use of money, not a waste of time. I'm very much into lean management. So how can we make it lean? Make money. Make profit, but also work as efficiently as possible."
Melverta says she is a Six Sigma Black Belt, which is a training and certification program in project management.
Reed: "Do you have plans to replace any of the existing staff or hire additional staff?"
Melverta: "Nope"
Reed: "John said that before he came into the office, everything was compartmentalized and everyone "stayed in their own lane". What is your management style, between cross-training staff &/or highly specializing staff?"
Melverta: "I definitely think that there should be specialists and there should be subject matter experts, and I think there should be more than one or two. And I think the treasurer should know all those jobs as well in the office." She also says "I do believe in cross training" and "I think that more than one person should know the job."
How will you make the treasurer's office more visible?
Reed: You said in a recent video on your Facebook page that you "want to make the county treasurer's office more visible". You already talked a little bit about getting online and education about the assessor and stuff. Is that kind of what you were talking about or did you have something else in mind?
Melverta: "I thought his name was Bob Jackson. Noone knows who the treasurer is, right. And I'll be honest with you. I'm at a deficit because I'm a write in candidate."
"But honestly, I don't know him. I don't know what he's doing. I'm real excited that he's gone in and he's made some great changes to that office and he's doing some good things. I think that's exciting. Why didn't he tell us that?"
"Why are you telling me that? So that's what I'm talking about visibility. Get out. Be available. Be where your constituents can speak with you and talk to you and ask you questions and you can talk to them about your office, your treasurer's office, your treasurer's report. Be visible, that's all."
"Get a website. I would like to see. I'm not trying to tell him how to do his job, but I think it would be great if we had a website, or if we even had some type of digital newsletter. People wanna know this stuff."
"How much taxes we're collecting. How much are we behind. How much are we in debt for the county. How many things are we utilizing. How much does it cost to run the transportation department. You know all of these things are important to people ..."
"I just feel like when you run for political office and you're in a political office, you kind of belong to the people. You serve and you belong and it is definitely my job to inform them and keep them in the loop."
"Not saying that Mr. Jackson isn't doing a good job, because I don't know that. I just know that I'd like to do it. And I think I can do it differently. Not saying I can do it better, but I can impact it. And I'm not saying he didn't impact it. I'm saying that's what I want to do."
What else do you need to do to prepare for being treasurer?
Reed: "Do you already know everything you need to know?"
Summary: Melverta says her first 90 days will be focused on learning from the staff, learning everything about the office, learning what changes the staff wants, if any. She says she needs to learn about the office before working to make any changes. She adds that she has a Masters in Business Administration and a Masters of Science in Development and Training. She is committed to respecting the staff that has already been working in that office for some time.
Melverta: "Absolutely not. I need to know everything. I'm brand new. I need to come in, talking to people, seeing what they do, learning the office. So Treasurer is just a title, right? There's work behind that. I've never worked in the Macon County Treasurer's office, so I don't have all of the details of the job, but I do have an MBA and I do have a Masters of Science in development and training. I think I can go in there and grasp that and do very well at what is needed."
"First to learn. I can't make any changes or do any updates until I absolutely learn and know what's going on. 'Til I absolutely know and learn what the people in the office that are already doing their jobs and have done it so well and for most of them for a long time. There's not a lot of new people in that office, and I can appreciate that and respect that. And I would want to know what it is that they would want and how, what changes they would wanna see, if any changes at all. So, I'm prepared in the fact that I have the mindset to go in and do a great job. And I have a mindset to learn the job. And I love people. And I love, youknow, and respect the people who work for me. So, those things would be important first. First 90 days is learning, learning learning learning, and knowing knowing knowing, and respecting respecting respecting."
Why weren't you on the ballot in the Primaries?
Reed: "You were slated after the primaries and ultimately became a write-in candidate after Republican Challenges. Why didn't you get on the ballot before the primaries?"
Melverta: "Like why didn't I run for it in the primaries?"
Reed: "Yeah"
Melverta: "I wish I had"
"It was definitely talked about, but [I] thought maybe someone else was going to run" and "[I] didn't wanna run against anyone else and it turns out noone ran. ... That was definitely an oversight for me ..."
"Definitely an oversight on my part. Next time, regardless of how the outcome is. Next time I will be very very much more prepared and ready to go."
What are your future plans for politics?
Reed: "So are you planning to run for treasurer again next time around?"
Melverta: "I didn't say that. I just said the next time." laughter
Reed: "Do you have any plans for future politics, whether it is a different Macon County office or a State office or something?"
Melverta: "Oh my gosh yes. I love, i love politics. Not politics. Not politicking, but I love political offices."
"I just have so much respect for people who are in office. It is a tremendous, i don't know, i'm gonna say honor, first to be elected, and then to be trusted to serve in any of those capacities in an elected office. And I feel like elected people or people in office, they sacrifice a lot of their lives, right. And so I do, I have so much respect and honor for them."
"So in turn, whenever I have the opportunity to serve or to do anything like that, I take it in the same manner, and it's nothing that I take lightly or anything like that. But there are a lot of positions in the county, and I honestly would like to tell anyone who's interested to run and to get a campaign and to run a campaign because it is something very noble, it's something very decent that they should do."
"So umm, you know, if there's something that you're interested in, go for it. Do it, and I will. And I will do that. And umm, Definitely have been interested in the County Treasurer position for awhile, and it looks like I'm getting an opportunity, and then hopefully soon I will get my turn."
Let's talk about your work at Caterpillar
Reed: "I understand you currently work full time at Caterpillar as a 'Product Change Engineer' since 2013 and have been with Caterpillar in a few different roles since 2000. Is that right?"
Melverta: "Actually Reed, I retired from Caterpillar May 1st of 2020. Maybe I do need to go out there and look at that linkedin again. I thought I had all that updated. I retired. I was a Product Change Engineer. Definitely started out in HR. I worked as Supervisor in the manufacturing role, in operations."
Reed: "What did you do as a product change engineer? What is that?"
Melverta: "A product change engineer is umm, a new product introductory. So caterpillar, they have new products come in all the time, and then they have products that we have to make changes and adjustments to, to make sure that [they run efficiently], that the bearings are working right, the radiator is good, all of those things."
"So, that's what I did. I worked as a team with the design team and purchasing. We were called a 'CPI staff', so we went through and looked at the whole model and made changes to it, updates to it, and so it's very detailed, it's very detailed to what we did, but that is basically the concept."
"Talking about processes, right? So is this the right process for implementing this undercarriage, or whatever the situation may have been. That is what, that is what I did. I made changes."
Let's talk about your community work
Reed: "I understand you founded and serve on the board of Sista Girls & Friends, helping girls with carreer and business training. I understand you are the executive director at Flourish PAC, and run the Progressive Minds Training & Development Institute, which sells courses and certifications in business related fields. Is that all still true?"
Melverta: "That is all still true. I am actually the executive director and president of Sista Girls & Friends. And we have impacted the community in major ways. I think I told you that I have an MBA (Master's of Business Administration) and that I also have a Masters in Training and Development. So one of the things that I went for when I retired was again developing some of these things that I've had passion for."
"And so we've worked with Workforce, and we have a grant with DCEO for pre-apprenticeship. Again, I have soft skills through PMTDI that I am also the president and CEO of."
"The educating the community, I have an asynchronous training that I provide as well as, I do community training, not just this community, but other communities. Just some exciting things Reed, honestly, youknow, that I've been able to do."
"Some things that I was working on when I worked at Caterpillar, and then in 2020, being able to retire from there and really be able to go after these things. Again with Flourish PAC, as I have told you, I have that strong desire for politics and working, and I'm really, honestly, I'm really good in the background of it. I can work really well in the background. I can work with fundraising and things like that."
"But I am the executive director of Flourish PAC. I have attended Illinois Women in Leadership Academy. And umm, so I take, I have tons of skill sets that i can take to any job, to any organization. I served as a treasurer on boards. I'm also on some other boards, so umm, yes. "
Reed: "If you are elected, how will that impact your other endeavors? The several boards you serve on as well as the three that I mentioned?"
Melverta: "Oh, it will just make it better. It will just make it better. I think again, I will bring all my skillsets to the treasurer's position. I will be able to manage my time well with all of them. And again, I'm looking for the consistency of the team, youknow that's already there. If they're willing and able and they want to do that, to help me lead them, and I'll humbly lead them in learning what they do, and the details of what they do. I have great teams. I have great teams with PMTDI. I have great teams with Sista Girls & Friends. So, I can do it. I can do it. And I'll do it effective and well. "
Reed: "So you plan to stay on top of Sista Girls & Friends, PMTDI and Flourish if you do get elected?"
Meleverta: "And everything, absolutely."
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Q/A with Melverta Wilkins
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John D Jackson