Why ICMA Created the Center for Management Strategies

Powerful blog post from ICMA's Center for Management Strategies Director, Cheryl Hilvert (read it here)

From the post:

"Today's environment requires us to think differently, approach the work of our organizations in such a way as to engage everyone--including our citizens-- in the work we perform, and look at new and different ways to deliver services. 

In the midst of these challenges, ICMA has "stepped up to the plate" to find a way to work with recognized national organizations to bring forward leading practices that can assist you in addressing issues in your communities and organizations.   And, the Center for Management Strategies was launched.   The goal here is to not make you "reinvent the wheel" when issues confront you, but instead to make available education and technical assistance to you on practices that have been proven to work through academic research and by "early innovators" in our profession.

The Center is currently focused on two areas of leading practices--Higher Performing Organizations and Priority Based Budgeting."

28 August 2012 | 11:54 AM

As a long time ICMA member and now a retired city manager, I am excited to be a part of ICMA's new Center for Management Strategies.  I am excited not only because of such a wonderful opportunity for me to continuing giving back to my profession through such an exciting "encore" career, but more so about the concept of the new Center which will focus on those leading practices that will carry local government management into the future.

I have always been moved by the Athenian Oath, which states in part, "we will transmit this City, not only not less, but greater and more beautiful than it was transmitted to us."   However, with all the challenges we face in local government today, it can be hard to figure out how to make a community better when we are lucky just to be able to maintain the status quo.

Today's environment requires us to think differently, approach the work of our organizations in such a way as to engage everyone--including our citizens-- in the work we perform, and look at new and different ways to deliver services.  This can be a daunting task for managers when revenues are down and difficult decisions have to be made involving our workforces and our delivery of service to our customers.  For any manager facing these issues, these challenges can leave you feeling more alone than ever before.

In the midst of these challenges, ICMA has "stepped up to the plate" to find a way to work with recognized national organizations to bring forward leading practices that can assist you in addressing issues in your communities and organizations.   And, the Center for Management Strategies was launched.   The goal here is to not make you "reinvent the wheel" when issues confront you, but instead to make available education and technical assistance to you on practices that have been proven to work through academic research and by "early innovators" in our profession.

The Center is currently focused on two areas of leading practices--Higher Performing Organizations and Priority Based Budgeting and soon will be adding more.     There are many ways you can learn more about these two leading practices at ICMA's Annual Conference in Phoenix.  The Center will be conducting three pre-conference workshops on Saturday, October 6--two on "Moving Your Organization to Higher Performance" and one on "Fiscal Distress" which will focus on Priority Based Budgeting as a mechanism for aligning your resources to community priorities.

The Center for Management Strategies will also host a pre-conference forum on Sunday, October 7 entitled, "Do you Have on Your Rose-Colored Management Glasses" which will focus on the importance of objectively looking at your organization in order to determine how and what steps you can take to improve performance.    The Center is also sponsoring an educational session on Tuesday October 9 entitled "News Flash:  You Don't Have to Have All the Answers or Solve All Your Community's Problems" which will focus on how involving citizens in your decisionmaking and service delivery can actually make your job easier.

As I look back on a 31 year local government management career, I am heartened by the opportunities I had to make the communities and the local government organizations I served a little better than they were when I joined them.  I can only imagine where we could have gone had we had resources like the Center for Management Strategies will offer.  Come join us at the ICMA Annual Conference in Phoenix and learn more about how our new Center can assist you and your local government in addressing tough issues and moving forward in the future.  After all, it really is all about leaving our communities better than we found them!