Data-driven stories are powerful for informing citizens, stakeholders, and elected officials of initiatives, celebrating milestones and benefits, and inspiring people to take action aligned with community goals and initiatives. Local governments usually do have data at their fingertips that can be a gold mine for telling compelling stories to inspire action for creating a real impact. However, governments are increasingly expected to comply with open data policies, report pr

Businesses measure success in margins, units shipped, and profit, but how is success in local government measured? Good governance, not profit, is the goal, and four major premises make up good governance. Adherence to these should be obvious to most any staff member or elected official, but to make these a reality is surprisingly difficult. All jurisdictions struggle at times, and inexperience, turnover, and low morale are all understandable impediments to getting it righ

As a local government professional who has served in the public sector as a public employee for over 18 years, the transition to a private consultant working for local officials has been interesting. As a Planning Director, I would hire consultants to perform tasks or projects that I either did not have time for or, more often, that I did not have the expertise on my staff to perform. I would rely on the consultant for their expertise and insight. I would provide basic dir