10 qualities that make a good local elected official
Elected officials are the constituents’ direct line to municipal government, but they can serve either as a helping hand or a painful headache for the appointed staff running municipal operations. This piece dives into the qualities that make a GOOD elected official – all from the perspective of municipal staffers who offered their insights anonymously.
1. Focus on the big picture.
A nearly unanimous answer I heard from appointed staff members that we spoke to for this article agreed: elected officials don’t micromanage operations but embrace their role as policy makers. Policy makers make legislative decisions that empower and facilitate municipal operations, but they do not engage in direct operational fulfillment (the purview of staff).
If you’re confused, a quick reminder…
Policies or legislative decisions that the elected body focuses on by writ:
Adopting an annual budget that appropriates funds
Approving and issuing bonds for infrastructure improvements
Considering and approving resolutions and ordinances that impact municipal code or land use
Reviewing and taking action on items that impact land use in the city (zoning, annexations, easements, sale or purchase of public land)
Appointing and confirming citizen representatives to committees
Approving and reviewing salary schedules, employee handbook, and personnel policies
In a nutshell: spending money, writing and passing local laws, setting the rules for the organization, and making big land use decisions.
2. Have a communications plan and point of contact (often the chief appointed officer).
Depending on the structure of your municipality, you may or may not have a Manager/Administrator function that is the chief appointed officer. Whether you have this model, or a chief elected official model (Mayor/Board President or Board Chair), you need to designate WHO the liaison will be between appointed staff and elected officials.
We don’t advocate that this be 100% black and white, as you’d like to get to a point where quick questions don’t get lost in red tape and bureaucracy but can be answered promptly. That said, when it comes to offering feedback – we recommend that 100% of employee feedback goes directly to that liaison role. This reduces the likelihood that feedback coming from policy makers will come across as micromanagement.
3. Treat staff and constituents with civility and respect.
The last two U.S. presidential elections have aligned with a disturbing trend of incivility in politics and government (ranging from federal downward to the local level). Sadly, the result of this negative trend is community members treating staff with disrespect. Elected officials (as non-employees) are not subject to employee codes of conduct, and their freedom of speech has many protections.
Just because someone CAN do something does not mean it is in the best interest of the organization for them to do it. Even if an employee does not do something they promised or should do within their role, profanity or inappropriate language, name-calling, threatening, belittling, etc. are NEVER appropriate. These actions reduce organizational morale, may pose potential liability, and reduce the reputation of the organization to childlike and immature.
(3b) Be prepared to police incivility when it happens.
Likewise, elected officials have a responsibility to demonstrate decorum AND preserve the integrity of the Council or Board chambers by insisting on civility from public participants. This may mean censuring members of the public who are disruptive or disrespectful. In an online context (for those streaming meetings virtually or participating in local government through social media feeds), it may mean establishing guidelines of what is acceptable content and removing content which does not follow said guidelines. As an elected official you are a leader in your community – act like it and encourage others to behave likewise.
4. No ”gotcha” moments.
An area where I often disagree with my clients (local government organizations and their employees) is when employees insist that elected officials bring things up in public meetings to “put them on the spot” or “embarrass them”. I would like to give elected officials the benefit of the doubt and assume that this is an unintended outcome. The solution is a two-way street. In my opinion, employees have a responsibility to voice this to elected officials and ask that communication and feedback be received in advance of meetings in the interest of promptly working toward a solution. The desired outcome for both parties is resolution – not embarrassment. Whenever possible, don’t offer criticism in a public meeting if a solution can be reached offline.
In that same vein, don’t catch employees off guard with questions about subject matter that could have been sent over beforehand. If the purpose is to inform the public of a question brought forward within the public meeting, why not (as the elected official) note, “I spoke with Employee XYZ this afternoon about ABC123 and received the following answer”? Putting an employee on the spot in a public meeting may embarrass them if they don’t know the answer OR invite an inaccurate on-the-spot answer.
5. Take the time to learn the functions and departments which make up your local government.
While elected officials do not NEED to know the ins and outs of every role within the local government organization, making the gesture of wanting to see and meet the people goes a LONG way to build trust and strong relationships with staff. Maybe this knowledge is built through a formal orientation program, through a municipal academy, or through one-on-one meetings. Employees appreciate greatly when elected officials understand and connect with the work they do. This also offers elected officials the chance to pass on insights to residents about how municipal operations work. Heck, it might be fun for the elected official, too. Consider asking your public works department if you could participate on a ride-along, see how wastewater treatment plants function, or attend a recreational program geared toward a demographic different from than the one you represent.
6. Respect your employees’ time.
This one is short and sweet. Municipal employees are doing their jobs, keeping the communities running (quite literally) with garbage collection, street paving, water treatment, etc. If you need to see them or would like to talk to them – ask them when they are available or make an appointment. Sometimes schedules align when you are free, but don’t assume that employees are doing nothing and can accommodate your interruption at the drop of a hat. This may seem heavy-handed, but remember, you’re one of five or seven or more elected officials. When you start to imagine all those unscheduled drop-ins, you can imagine how distracting and inefficient these seemingly small interruptions can be for an employee.
7. Have the humility to admit you don’t know it all.
Nobody is born knowing everything. And City Council isn’t a poker game: you don’t win any extra chips for pretending you know the answer to something when you don’t. Ask questions when you’re uncertain of something. Seek out additional resources or training if there is an area in which you’d like to increase your knowledge. Treat employees like subject-matter experts and lean on their institutional knowledge.
8. Serve as an informed and trustworthy extension of municipal communications.
As we noted earlier, elected officials have a good deal of protection for their freedom of speech. Consider having a non-political professional social media presence where you repost or share unbiased municipal communications. Don’t editorialize (this is how you foray into politicking versus reporting the facts), but seek to break down the complexities of local government to your average constituent. When talking with constituents, educate and encourage them to engage with your channels and official municipal channels (newsletters, email lists, social media outlets).
9. Sprinkle positive reinforcement around like confetti.
If you are in your elected position because you love receiving positive reinforcement and credit for your good work, you might not be in your role with the best mindset. While you will very likely be a part of accomplishing good things for your community through your role, your focus should be on lifting the community and organization as a whole, not padding your own resume.
Share positive feedback when you hear it. Compliment staff when they do things well or when they have a win. Celebrate achievements, anniversaries, grant recipients, etc. Giving credit costs you nothing, and it yields a far greater return in the trust it builds in your staff and peers.
We’re not arguing that you should be inauthentic or fake in this regard. Just check your perspective and aim to see the positive in others.
10. Remember that you serve ALL of your constituents – not just the ones who voted for you, who live in your neighborhood, or who look like you.
Few things can be more frustrating for staff to deal with than a single-issue elected official in local government who is seemingly elected to be a mouthpiece for their subdivision. Elected officials need to differentiate between campaign season and their elected term and wear the correct hat accordingly. When you are campaigning, you are catering to those who you think will vote for you. When you are elected to office, you are there to represent ALL your constituents in your ward or district – whether they voted for you or not.
Go outside your comfort zone. Build connections with individuals outside your direct spheres of influence. Aim to relate and find common ground with those whom you serve.
