Who is a member?
Our members are the local governments of Massachusetts and their elected and appointed leadership.
The MMA hosted a second webinar on July 30 focused on strategic planning and organizational alignment. Speakers included Great Barrington Town Manager Liz Hartsgrove, left, and Brewster Assistant Town Manager Donna Kalinick.
The MMA hosted a second webinar on July 30 focused on strategic planning and organizational alignment.
Great Barrington Town Manager Liz Hartsgrove briefly reviewed the content of the first session to kick things off, defining local government and why it’s important for all employees to be aligned in a shared mission.
Hartsgrove said aligning an organization starts from the very beginning — when people are hired and onboarded — by letting them know what the organization’s values are and making sure those are reflected in the job description and the interview process.
“Without planned alignment,” Hartsgrove said, “the community is not a true reflection of the values and direction of the community.”
Hartsgrove frequently returned to a core concept: a municipality’s culture is the product of its values and behaviors, multiplied by consistency.
She concluded the session by reviewing the four steps of an implementation roadmap: assessing who you serve and what their needs or wants are; creating shared commitments; designing thinking questions; and turning insights into action.
Brewster Assistant Town Manager Donna Kalinick moderated 20 minutes of questions and answers, addressing inquiries regarding navigating multiple priorities, when to relax relationships between departments, and how best to conduct a cultural swab while adhering to the open meeting law.
• Strategic Organizational Alignment (24M PDF)