Dear FCCMA Members,
The Program Year 23-24 has been an amazing year filled with some great achievements that I would like to highlight. But before I do, I want to first thank everyone here, you all are the professionals who served the organization in capacities such as Board members, committee members, subcommittee members, and task force members. The work of the organization is accomplished by the membership, and I want to thank everyone involved with FCCMA for making the organization have another great year.
I also want to especially thank FCCMA staff Casey and Carol for your service, your guidance and your professionalism shown to the association. On that same line I also want to thank all the FLC staffers that put in time and effort for FCCMA for all that you do when called upon. To all those who have not served on a committee or on the Board, you do not know how lucky we all are to have such a great professional staff keeping this organization running like a fine timepiece. In addition to that, I want to make sure to recognize and thank Beth Rawlins for her service to FCCMA over the past 20-plus years. If you all have not heard, Beth is retiring after the conference, and Dani Dahlberg will be stepping up to continue assisting the association as our corporate liaison.
I would like to thank my family for allowing me the opportunity to serve as President of this organization. I know that there have been many extra days traveling and going to meetings for this role over the past year or so. I love you all, and thank you for your love and support.
And last but not least for the thank yous, I would like to call up Michael Pleus to the stage. As FCCMA President, I get the opportunity to name a recipient for the President’s Award; Michael was the first person who came to mind. Michael has been my boss and my mentor for the past 18-plus years. To me, when you google model City Manager, it should show a picture of Michael (with his Stetson hat). He encouraged me to get involved with FCCMA early on and also encouraged me to run for the Board and executive leadership positions. Without him believing in me and pushing me, I would not be here today. So, thank you Michael, and I am proud to present the President Award to you at this time.
Now moving on from the thank yous and getting back on track to achievements from this past year. When I took the wheel from Lori this time last year, I mentioned that I was going to focus onlooking forward. I am proud to say that we accomplished that goal, and here are just a few examples of what was done:
We first re-established the FCCMA regional internship program with the help of the Next Gen Task Force. This program allowed for four internship opportunities around the state. This goal is near and dear to my heart, as that is how I was introduced into a career in public service. I felt it was the right thing to do, to bring back a program that can have a substantial impact on the next generation of talent.
The FCCMA strategic plan was updated. I want to thank the executive officers, Mark Cunningham, Sarah Campbell and Lori LaVerriere for taking on this important role of making sure that our organization has a clear road ahead for the next several years.
Finding the right professional for the City or County Manager job is important. Several of our senior advisors, along with corporate members in executive recruitment, worked on a guide to assist elected officials and/or staff in recruiting a professional manager. This guide will be posted on the FCCMA website.
This year, the Association has undertaken an exciting video training initiative to further prepare the next generation of City and County Managers. This multi-episode series addresses the technical and non-technical skills sets of local government management needed to take the steps toward becoming a professional manager. The first episodes will be released in summer 2024 and will continue hrough 2025.
Speaking of videos, I am proud that the Communications Committee was able to make my vision of a short-form video showcase a reality. We had over 46 cities and counties submit entries to help drive engagement to our social media accounts and connect with the younger generation.
It is clear that we had a successful year, and I am excited to now pass the torch to Mark Cunningham to lead this organization. I know that Mark has a passion for this organization and I am sure that he will take FCCMA to the next level.
Thank you all for your continued support and engagement and now I look forward to taking on arguably the best role in this organization: Past President.
Sincerely,
~Mike
