THINK OF YOUR JOB AS YOUR “CRAFT….and take pride in your job as a craftsman. Engage in “the practice of” your craft as a professional who follows “best practices”. My craft is public administration, with an emphasis on financial management and accounting. What is your craft? Whether you are a City Manager or a City… Read More »

Volatile Economic Times Calls for Quarterly Financial Reporting. Mid-Year Budget Reviews are no longer adequate to keep local governments on track financially, especially since the audit of the prior-year’s Budget and financial statements will take over 6 months to prepare and present to the City Council. City governments, nonprofit organizations, and businesses, all recognize how… Read More »

Happy days are here again…thanks to rising interest rates! Are you ready to take an “interest” in cash flow management, to maximize the “interest earnings” revenue in your budget? Today, many people are happy to see the return of interest rates that is turning cash into a valuable commodity once again. I’m sorry for people… Read More »

Don’t panic.  Bank failures, severe weather, economic recessions…yes, these are issues of concern.  But don’t panic. Don’t put your head in the sand, take action, and don’t waste your time worrying. Silicon Valley Bank failed on Friday.  Wow!  This is scary.  Is the banking system going to collapse?  Is our money safe? Don’t panic, be… Read More »

Take Advantage of the Crossover Time You Still Have with Baby Boomers! Just like when you toook over the job from your predecessor, you may have complained that you didn’t get “crossover” enough time, to learn the nuances and finer details of your job, you may do the same with Baby Boomers. You Millenials, Gen… Read More »

I Love My City Hall! During this time, when communities across the United States are facing so many issues and civil unrest, it is more important than ever to take time to remember the excellent job that our local government leaders and their organizations are doing. I just got out of a long City Council… Read More »

In today’s labor market, which is marked by shortages in experienced professionals, an increasing number of organizations are waiving the college degree requirement in lieu of equivalent work experience. Why? Because for many jobs, even important well-paid jobs, you do NOT need a college degree to succeed in serving your organization while also earning a… Read More »

Have you ever promoted an employee to a position they were not qualified for? Today’s challenging labor market can cause us to promote employees who are not qualified.  Even worse, sometimes we promote employees without realizing that “we” may want their promotion more than “they” do, which is why they often do not succeed.  This… Read More »

Strategic Planning & Leadership Retreat: Get involved in the sessions, speak up, be vulnerable, the benefits will be huge! Remember the saying, “LEAD, FOLLOW, OR GET OUT OF THE WAY”. Yes, if we’re a leader or a manager in the organization, we are grateful and excited to be able to participate in strategic planning Let… Read More »

BETTER BUDGETING Makes Your Organization More COMPETITIVE when securing resources to FINANCE COMMUNITY INITIATIVES! Prepare Better BUDGETS that MARKET Your Community! Many public administrators with antiquated budgets say they want a better budget for their organization, but few are willing to put in the work to make it happen. What do the naysayers say? But… Read More »