City Manager Unfiltered

This is the first installment in my upcoming series of interviews with public sector executive recruiters and recruitment firms. In this interview with Michael Boese of Clear Carer Professionals, we discuss his firm's "candidate focus" approach that emphasizes consistent and timely communication with prospective candidates. Near the end of the interview, Boese answers a question posed by a city ma...

Public Works Administrator Kevin Richardson messaged me about a year ago seeking career advice. This inquiry was the genesis of a new friendship and eventual "title change" designed to better reflect the role and responsibilities assigned to him at the City of Rock Hill in South Carolina. In this episode, we illustrate the benefits of self-advocacy and discuss the importance of mentorship, especia...

The typical cover letter sucks. It literally hurts to read them they are so bad. But, don't fall for the "fried ice cream" peddled by the private sector recruiters who argue that cover letters are no longer necessary. That is not true. Every public sector executive competing for a position needs to have a cover letter and this is one of the easiest places elite candidates can differentiate themsel...

On multiple occasions, Charlotte Colley has been the "first female" and trailblazed her away across a 20 year career in the public sector. Being the first female manager can be incredibly challenging and she has experienced some tough days. In this episode we talk about her public sector executive journey and how her faith in Jesus Christ has given her the strength to endure and persevere. And we...

Consultant and resident expert Tim Nowak argues that there is an impending collapse of fire/EMS services in America and that there must be a paradigm shift in our thinking with respect to how these vital services are funded. In this episode, we talk about the causes of the crisis, what it is going to take to fix it, and engage in other general subject matter related topics that have gnawed at me o...

SHOUT OUT SATURDAY (SOS): San Angelo resident John Bariou wants to recall the entire city council because they have violated the charter and undermined the council-manager form of government. The central Texas community of 100,000 people will get an opportunity to "vote the bums out" in just a few short months if Bariou gets his way. He believes the mayor has violated the charter, run roughshod ov...

It is easy to send a custom resume that is specifically tailored to the job you are applying for if you follow my simple hack. Don't sell yourself short and send the same resume to every job. Differentiate yourself and demonstrate how you are the solution to their problem by using my system.  When you build a results oriented, custom resume that illustrates how you are the perfect fit for the job,...

Jordan Cook didn't even get an interview the first time he tried to land a city administrator gig in Nevada, Iowa. But, on the second go around he not only got an interview -- he got the job. In this episode we discuss perseverance, mental toughness, and talk about the state of public sector executive recruiting. We also extoll the virtues of the Midwest and talk about how aspiring city managers c...

The Aransas Pass police department recently removed two public speakers from council chambers after they hurled numerous vulgarities and profane language at members of the governing body and city staff.  Did they violate the First Amendment rights of these individuals and expose the taxpayers to a lawsuit? One of the men booted from the meeting is a civil rights attorney who claims the city did vi...

City manager Stanley Hawthorne was wrongfully fired with cause by just two members of his governing body. It was amateur night in Georgia on January 16, 2024 when Councilman Joe Carn rushed through this vote over the objections of Mayor Bianca Motley Broom.  In this episode, I breakdown the tape and show how these unprofessional councilmembers voted to silence Hawthorne and prevent him from speaki...

A disgruntled ICMA spouse is submitting public information requests across the country and ICMA executive board members are stonewalling and blocking these requests. Why? In this episode we talk about the increasing levels of scrutiny the ICMA is facing as a result of my podcast and LinkedIn posting. And we also highight various executive board members across the country who are refusing the respo...

A disgruntled spouse of an ICMA member emailed me in December to express their frustration with staff salaries and the luxurious international travel junkets enjoyed by organizational executives and the executive board members.  A city manager vents to me about the crappy salary listed in a job recruitment brochure. And I take a look back at my LinkedIn and podcast stats for 2023 and compare my pe...

Former Fort Meade City Manager Jan Bagnall declined to be interviewed for the second part of our interview series after receiving multiple threats since our first interview aired on December 13th, or Episode 29. On New Year's Day, I received an email from a stranger named Greg King. I would later learn that he was the campaign manager for Jaret Williams, who one his Fort Meade commission race in N...

Nick Kittle is a nationally recognized leader in the field of public sector innovation and author of the book, Sustainovation . At the age of 35, Nick suffered a major health scare and it would become a catalytic moment in his quest to find personal purpose and fulfillment. He would go on to ask himself the following question: "What pays my soul?" We explore a wide array of topics in this deeply p...

Former Hallandale Beach city manager Daniel Rosemond checks-in to update us on his wrongful termination lawsuit. The author of the " Death of the Public Servant " won a massive multi-million dollar judgment and we discussed his story from termination to jury awarded verdict to the appeal filed by the Florida beach community. Rosemond recently received news from the court that the city's appeal hea...

When Amanda Mack was tapped to lead the City of Watertown, South Dakota, she didn't just become their first ever female city manager. She became their first ever city manager. And the manner in which Watertown maneuvered through this process created the foundation for a successful conversion and fruitful marriage between Mack, the governing body, and the community. The multi-year process culminate...

Wisconsin City Manager John Weidl's boundaries were crossed by members of his governing body while out on paternity leave. This led him to start searching for another position where he was ultimately named as a finalist for a manager position in a neighboring community. However, he withdrew from the recruitment and opted to continue serving as the city manager for the City of Whitewater. We talk a...

Jamie Gwynn is an innovative leader on the cutting edge of the alternative work schedule debate. He needed to get creative if he was going to be competitive in this tight labor market, especially as he was forced to compete against the high wages offered by local governments in the Philadelphia metroplex. We examine the New Hanover Township manager's implementation of a 36-hour workweek in a small...

Baker Tilly "shot its shot" in Deltona, Florida and came up with an air ball. Not only did they lose out to Colin Baenzinger & Associates, some no-name shop outscored them in the final results tally. But wait until you hear what a couple of the governing body members say on the record. Yikes! Listen to find out what involvement I had in this recruitment. I am confident that I had some influenc...

Benjamin Effinger is a military veteran who transitioned over to the public sector and has quickly become a rising star who has built a reputation as a dynamic problem solver, grinder, and compassionate friend. Effinger currently serves as an Operations Chief overseeing cash management functions in the Los Angeles County Treasurer and Tax Collector's Office. In this episode, we discuss the benefit...

Mortgage rates have skyrocketed and homeownership is often a liability for city managers given our short life spans and transient nature. Combined with residency requirements and rampant inflation, it can be extremely expensive for city managers to relocate for a new opportunity. In this episode I discuss some inventive ways local governments can get creative to lure city managers to dump their su...

A few years back, and only a couple of years into her first town manager gig, Sara McGuffin suffered an accident that nearly ended her life, nevermind her career. In this episode we recount McGuffin's horrific experience and her recovery. We also acknowledge the loyalty and wonderful support provided by the Town of Amherst (VA) mayor and council. In an age where personal and professional relations...

Reports out of Hutchinson, Kansas are that the city council is not happy with the quality of city manager candidates produced by Baker Tilly. On top of that, Baker Tilly is hiding a secret about this position and not informing the candidates it has recruited thus far. This episode of the podcast will once again illustrate the point that Baker Tilly cannot be trusted by city manager candidates to t...

Michael Rogers' career arc was impressive having become a well-respected public sector executive in some of the largest organizations in the nation. He  had finally reached his goal of becoming a city manager -- and he was killing it. He received glowing remarks and a salary increase in his first annual review. But an election in the City of Tracy, Calif., brought changes to the council compositio...

The fallout from the James Freed interview is reverberating throughout the city management ecosystem. Hundreds of city managers were talking about the situation during this week's annual ICMA conference in Austin. The story received front page coverage in the Sunday edition of the Port Huron Times Herald. City managers across the nation are furious that an orchestrated campaign to ruin Freed's car...