New Steamship Boss Addresses Scathing Inspector General Report

In his first Board of Governors meeting as the Steamship Authority's new general manager, Alex Kryska was immediately handed a hot potato.

Kryska, who replaced Bob Davis as the head of the Steamship Authority late last year, spent a good portion of Tuesday's meeting addressing the scathing Inspector General report that accused the boat line of wasting millions of public dollars on a failed website redesign project.

"I'm reviewing it with the Board and the Steamship team, and view it as an important tool that will help us strengthen the Steamship Authority's governance, operations and public trust," Kryska said, reading from a prepared statement. "The report appropriately identifies areas where the improvement is necessary. Many of its findings reinforce concerns previously identified in the 2018 HMS consulting report, confirming that these challenges are long-standing and require focused, sustained action. I'm committed to addressing these issues promptly, transparently, and with accountability."

The Inspector General’s review, launched in 2023 after multiple years of website crashes during peak reservation periods and significant delays in the ferry service’s promised website redesign, outlined a lengthy list of administrative failures over the course of a blistering 59-page document. The Steamship Authority’s website redesign efforts, which began in 2022, were ultimately shelved before a new website could be completed, in what Inspector General Jeffrey Shapiro referred to as an “unacceptable waste of public resources.”

On Tuesday, Kryska told the members of the Steamship's Board of Governors who hired him that he had identified three priorities to begin addressing the issues identified by the state. These priorities include:

Governance, oversight and role clarity: "The inspector general cites gaps in governance, inconsistent oversight, and unclear roles between the board, management and staff," Kryska said. "These same issues were highlighted in a 2018 HMS report, which emphasize the need for clear decision-making, authority, and governance structure. I attend address these as follows: conduct one-on-one meetings with all senior-level and mid-level managers to review decision-making and clarify roles within departments, establish standardized reporting and performance dashboards so the board receives timely, consistent and decision-ready information investment, implement a regular schedule of strategic and operational reviews to strengthen accountability while avoiding micromanagement. This will improve transparency, clarify authority and allow the board to assist with policy and strategy while management executes."

Financial controls, planning, and transparency: "The report identifies weaknesses in financial controls, long-range planning, and documentation supporting key decisions - concerns also raised by the HMS report," Kryska said. "I intend to address these as follows: strengthen internal financial controls, including approval thresholds, documentation standards, and reconciliation practices through all departments. Implement a multi-year financial plan aligned with the capital plan, service objectives, and labor agreements, improve transparency through regular financial forecasts, variance reporting, and clear communication of risks and assumptions. These steps will strengthen fiscal discipline, reduce risk, and support informed long-term decision-making."

Strategic planning and operational alignment: "The inspector general notes an absence of an integrated long-term strategic plan linking service levels, fleet investments, workforce planning, and financial capacity, a key gap also identified in the 2018 HMS report," Kryska said. "I intend to address these as follows: build on the current multi year strategic planning process that is in place and improve operations and boost in the areas of future planning, capital forecasting, to develop a fully comprehensive board approved plan that has clear priorities, timelines and performance metrics. Align fleet replacement maintenance planning and workforce development with service reliability and customer expectations. Treat the strategic plan as a living document, reviewed annually and adjusted as conditions change. This will ensure daily decisions support long term goals and resources are allocated intentionally."

The Steamship Authority Board of Governors decided to "save a conversation for the next meeting" on Kryska's plan and how it will address the IG report.