A professional local government manager supports the vision and policy goals of elected officials. If city council members feel that the manager or the city staff is not working in tandem with them, tension develops within city hall, plans get derailed, and the whole community suffers.

When Jack Ethredge took over as city manager in Thornton, Colorado, in 1985, he soon learned that the city council did not trust the professional staff and saw them as an obstacle rather than a resource for achieving success. This distrust made it impossible to engage in long-term planning and implementing programs and projects to improve the community.

To build trust between the council and the professional city staff, Ethredge started the Policy Planning Program in 1985. His hope was to bring a collaborative approach to developing and implementing the council’s goals.

Did he succeed?  Is the Policy Planning Program still ongoing?  Was he able to help the council become more effective and efficient?  Read the rest of the story to learn the answers.   

Life, Well Run Campaign

The mission of ICMA’s Life, Well Run campaign is to raise awareness of and appreciation for the value professional local government managers bring to building effective, efficient, ethical local governments and communities we’re proud to call home. An important mechanism for doing this is sharing the stories that exemplify successful professional local government management.  We gather your stories and post them on the campaign’s map so visitors can get a feel for the important work you do.

Get your story on the map!  Send your idea to Amy Mayers at amayers@ICMA.org.

For information about Life, Well Run contact Catherine Smith at 202-962-3632 or csmith@icma.org.