Solomons, MD — Kelly Schultz (shown) was about to begin serving her second term in the Maryland House of Delegates when she was called into the office of Governor-elect Larry Hogan. The Frederick County Republican was asked by Hogan if she would like to serve in his administration and if so what would she like to do. She immediately said. “DLLR!” That’s the acronym for Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation. Not exactly the sexiest job in state government, but she told Hogan, “That’s what I want to do.”

Schultz, who had a business background before being elected a delegate, told that story of her meeting with Hogan to members of the Tri-County Council or Southern Maryland. She was guest speaker at the council’s June 16 dinner meeting at Hilton Garden inn in Solomons.

According to their website www.dllr.maryland.gov Schultz leads an agency “that protects and empowers Marylanders by safeguarding workers, protecting consumers and cultivating a thriving workforce that can meet the demands of Maryland’s dynamic economy.

“DLLR has several divisions including Unemployment Insurance, Occupational and Professional Licensing, Financial Regulation, Labor and Industry, Workforce Development and Adult Learning, the Maryland Racing Commission and Governor’s Workforce Investment Board. The agency employs nearly 2,000 workers and has an operating budget of more than $375 million.”

During her four years in Annapolis Schultz took special interest in legislation relating to banks and other financial institutions and other issues that match what DLLR does.

Schultz was attracted to the agency with the opportunity to be an agent for change, particularly in the perception that the state was not business friendly. “We can turn it around,” she said.

The new secretary is a big fan of the Augustine Commission, which was assembled by former governor Martin O’Malley to review that business unfriendliness rap and do something about it. One of the Augustine Commission recommendations is the creation of the post of Secretary of Commerce. That idea is also embraced by Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development Secretary Mike Gill, who spoke to the council at its April 23rd meeting at Sotterley Plantation in Hollywood.

But Schultz emphasized one of the commission’s other key recommendations: the need for state agencies to embrace “customer service.” She has tackled that issue with a vengeance in her first few months in office. “It’s more than customer service. It’s a culture,” she said, noting that all of the agency’s employees have received training, “including myself.”

“Industry is our number one focus,” Schultz said. “Without them then there is no reason to be in this room.” Job one in that regard is reversing the thought process of any industry that is thinking of leaving the state. And she insists, customer service is part of that effort.

Then the next step is attracting industry from outside. You do that, she said, by “letting them know that we have made a dedication to our stakeholders.”

Schultz said her agency’s stakeholders are evenly divided into 25 percent partners: employers; employees; consumers; and local, state and federal government. “No one is more important than the other,” she said, adding, “We want to be an equal partner.”

One immediate change is eliminating “training for the sake of training” and instead training workers for the “specifics of the Industry” in need of workers. “I am committed to that,” she insisted.

The new secretary said she is totally behind her agency’s employees. “Everyone [of her employees] is there on their own personal mission which is a shared mission,” she explained.

She said one piece of anecdotal evidence of the agency’s turned culture was a call for a businessman who said that an OSHA inspection had been a pleasurable experience.

In response to a question from Del. Matt Morgan about the number one complaint the agency hears from business, she explained that often they are generally upset but have trouble pinpointing the specifics. Often after probing she finds it’s not the regulations but their implementation, “It comes full circle around to customer service,” she concluded.

Contact Dick Myers at dick.myers@thebaynet.com