Managers in smaller local governments find themselves doing almost everything for their communities and the residents who live there. Douglas Schulze, city manager, Normandy Park, Washington, and Thomas Terry, city administrator, Elko New Market, Minnesota, authors of the May PM cover story “Too Little Time to Wear All Those Hats?,” describe how they stay on top of varied management duties. Readers can find that the strategies they use can be used by a manager in a local government of any size.

They write that the job requires unique perspective, skills, flexibility, and willingness to wear many hats. Here are the commonsense strategies that can be used to handle most everything that needs to be done:

1. Prioritization and flexibility
2. Policy perspective for elected officials
3.  Professional development
4. Collaboration
5. Contracting and outsourcing
6. Volunteers and interns.

For specifics on each of these strategies, take a look at the cover story.