December is always a busy month with work, preparing for the holidays, and last-minute shopping.  It’s also a great time to grab (or download) a book to read in a comfy chair.  If those sentiments don’t motivate you to read a book, The Huffington Post recently identified 6 science-backed reasons why it’s beneficial to read a book. Below I’ve identified ICMA publications that can make for a good December read:

 

Effective Supervisory

Effective Supervisory: Better Results Through Teamwork, 5th Edition. [Print]

This new edition of the bestseller is packed with the latest information on leadership, organizational change, values and diversity, interpersonal relations, communication, management, and ethics in a sound framework for supervision.

Regular Price: $65.95 | MEMBER PRICE: $55.95

 
Budgeting Guide

 

A Budgeting Guide for Local Government, 3rd Edition. [Print]

This guide examines the crucial importance of the budget as a tool for managers balancing a jurisdiction's needs and expectations in the face of dwindling resources. 

Regular Price: $89.95 | MEMBER PRICE: $65.95

 
Municipal Year Book

The Municipal Year Book 2015, [PDF]

Local government concerns are increasingly complex and sophisticated, and the need for familiarity with a broad range of issues is unsurpassed. The Municipal Year Book has been a trusted source of local government data and developments for ten decades.

Regular Price: $117.00 | MEMBER PRICE: $88.00

 

 

Trends in Local Economic Development

Trends in Local Economic Development Policies, [PDF]

This article, which is included in The Municipal Year Book 2015, explores what local governments currently identify as their highest-priority economic development goals, what they see as the most significant barriers to economic development, and what they have been doing to overcome those barriers over a period of extreme fiscal constraint.

Regular Price: $10.95| MEMBER PRICE: $6.95

 
Local Planning

 

Local Planning: Contemporary Principles and Practice [Print]

This new edition helps the reader understand the complexities of planning at the local level, and prepare to make decisions in a challenging environment.

Regular Price: $107.00 | MEMBER PRICE: $79.00

 

 

 

Civic Engagement

 

Civic Engagement: 10 Questions to Shape an Effective Plan, [epub]

If you’re interested in developing or updating your civic engagement plan, this publication provides 10 questions you should keep in mind.

Regular Price/MEMBER PRICE: $27.95

 
PM Magazine

 

PM Magazine: Getting Real About Performance Management

The December issue of PM magazine’s cover story looks at what performance management means, what benefits it offers an organization, and what being engaged in it means.

Public Management Magazine Online Subscription: $36.00

 
Getting Started

 

Getting Started: A Performance Measurement Handbook, [epub] or [mobi]

This publication introduces the topic of performance measurement for local governments that have not yet started measuring their performance, or that have taken the first steps, but found that reaping meaningful results can be a challenge. This e-book focuses on the areas of planning, development, implementation, and refinement with access to key topics, illustrative graphs, and local government websites as a powerful reference tool.

Regular Price/MEMBER PRICE: $27.95

 
Managing the Threat of Terrorism

 

Managing the Threat of Terrorism (e-Document), [PDF]

This report explores what communities can do to prevent, prepare for, respond to, and recover from terrorist attacks—using both traditional and nontraditional methods of dealing with disasters.

Regular Price: $19.95 | MEMBER PRICE: $12.95

 
Capital Budgeting

 

 

Capital Budgeting and Finance: A Guide for Local Governments, 2nd edition (e-Document), [PDF]

Get practical guidance to develop the essential capital budgeting strategic plan. This publication guides you through the challenging process of allocating resources under decreasing revenues, increasing energy prices, and public demand for accountability.

Regular Price: $71.50 | MEMBER PRICE: $64.35

 

 

 

Follow #ICMAbooks on Twitter for a new book to read every day through the end of December. Tweet us using #ICMAbooks to let us know what you’re reading.

 

Douglas Shontz

Knowledge Network Research and Content Development Associate

 

 

 

 

 

New, Reduced Membership Dues

A new, reduced dues rate is available for CAOs/ACAOs, along with additional discounts for those in smaller communities, has been implemented. Learn more and be sure to join or renew today!

LEARN MORE