By Andrew Coulson – LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Twitter Unfortunately, I was unable to attend #ELGL15, due to a little matter of deep water getting in the way, but I managed to gatehash along with the proceedings thanks to those wonderful members who tweeted using the conference hashtag #ELGL15. The refreshing panel of young, innovative elected officials stuck … Continued
Steve Harding, former city manager in California, provides a refresher course in optimism. Like most professions, public managers are usually very good at explaining the what they do and how they do it. What they are not as good at is asking and telling “Why” they do it. This presentation is about how governmental professionals can reestablish a … Continued
By Kristin Donald, MBA, Finance Manager at Apex Park and Recreation District I have read the articles about the cool workspace at Google and Facebook. I have read articles on the new office spaces being built with green features and open concepts. For me, an open concept would make me want to leave work early and avoid staying late … Continued
In the continuing #LocalGovSolutions series, Trevor Minyard, City of McKinney, TX, reflects on lessons learned from increasing financial transparency. The City of McKinney, TX has a history of achieving excellence in financial reporting. Despite the normal changes to financial services staff, city council elections, and explosive growth, McKinney has achieved 30 years of consecutive awards from … Continued
In September, ELGL issued the the Local Government Challenge to Dr. Colleen Casey’s class of Ph.D candidates in the College of Architecture, Planning, and Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Arlington. The time has come to check in on their progress. The Challenge: Each of the five teams will develop community engagement solutions for … Continued
Chris Floore, 3CMA Communicator of the Year and Macon-Bibb County, GA Assistant to the County Manager, reflects on the recent Presidential debates to identify tips for working with the media. Or…why you shouldn’t watch the early Presidential Debates Did I watch the Republican or Democratic debates? No. I learn more about the world from playing … Continued
In the continuing #LocalGovSolutions series, Andrew Coulson, Corey Speers, and Matt Murray, write about community engagement in Australia. Local government in Australia is the third tier of government. Local government was not initially mentioned in the Constitution of Australia; however, it is mentioned several times in the Annotated Constitution of Australia and in every state … Continued
In the continuing #LocalGovSolutions series, Douglas Petroshius, Lincolnwood, IL assistant village manager, writes about five approaches to funding infrastructure. By Douglas Petroshius – LinkedIn Public infrastructure is a constant challenge facing all municipalities. The expenses are high and construction costs continue to escalate. Further, many types of improvements are not visible by residents (i.e. water, sewer) … Continued
ELGL member Ryan Adams (LinkedIn and Twitter) has been named the 2016 President for Urban Management Assistants of North Texas (Texas regional city management professional association). He is the Assistant to the City Manager at the City of Irving, TX. Ryan has been a driving force behind the growth of ELGL in Texas. We look forward to … Continued
In a continuing series as part of the ELGL & UTA Local Government Challenge, Shahrzad Rizvi, Budget & Policy Analyst with the Dallas County Office of Budget & Evaluation, highlights technology trends facing local government. By Shahrzad Rizvi With the continual updating of technology it can be a challenge for local government to stay current on technology. … Continued
