Contributors
Author Archives: Allie Sharkey
When municipalities come together…
What can happen if you bring municipalities, all with the common goal of wanting to 
manage better, together for a full day of learning and networking? The short answer…a lot. And a lot took place took place on the picturesque campus of Fairleigh Dickinson University just a few weeks ago during Revelstone’s Second Annual Customer Interaction Day.
For the second year in a row, municipalities who subscribe to Compass, Revelstone’s web-based performance analytics and benchmarking platform, gathered for a conference-style event of education, networking, best practices exchange and more. Filling the room were municipal managers and department heads eager to hear what others are doing with their performance initiatives and to discuss the challenges and successes that go along with it. Sessions ranged from the latest updates on Compass to open discussions and interactive workshops on implementing a performance management culture and creating a 2013 performance plan.
The event provided a forum for municipalities,…
What are Holiday Season Fires Costing Your Town?
While Mythbusters found that Christmas tree lights do not cause house fires, the National Fire Protection Association can prove otherwise. The Association reports that U.S. fire departments responded to an annual average of 240 house fires started by Christmas trees between 2005 and 2009 alone. These fires resulted in:
• 13 deaths
• 27 injuries
• $16.7 million in property damage
Although Christmas tree fires are not a common occurrence, the numbers prove they still happen and preparing for these fires is something towns need to be doing every year.
To start, municipal officials can educate their citizens. Wishing your town a safe and happy holiday season is no longer enough. A simple fact sheet distributed to citizens and/or posted on your town website could be a great way to bring awareness to holiday season fires. For example, did you know that Christmas tree fires don’t just…
Engaging with performance leaders at the ICMA’s 98th Annual Conference
Every day we hear about the struggles facing local governments, from the rising costs of delivering service to slashed sources of funding and increased citizen demands. Revelstone understands the pressures facing municipal leaders, and next week we are bringing our knowledge of performance analytics and creating government efficiencies to thousands of municipal officials at the ICMA’s 98th Annual Conference.
Revelstone shares the ICMA’s vision of building better communities and is dedicated to helping local governments operate more efficiently while improving the services that are delivered to citizens. As a conference exhibitor, we aim to “use the floor” to empower attendees to become performance leaders despite the tough economy and the ongoing battle to do more with less.
However, to get there you have to first understand how you are performing. Often times municipal managers don’t know where to start, but with performance analytics and Revelstone Compass, managers can begin analyzing their services and costs…
Municipality meltdown: Is your town headed toward a financial crisis?
This article landed on the front page of the New York Times. I urge you to read it and start thinking about the actions your town should make to avoid a municipal meltdown.
From California to New York, municipalities across the nation are facing a financial emergency. An emergency so extreme, that it will require officials to make difficult choices in order to avoid potential seizures from state oversight boards. These choices are not easy to make. Think about your own town and ask yourself, “Would I rather cut the police force patrolling my streets or the number of teachers in my schools?” Your answer would probably be neither, but what if you are one of the many municipalities that HAVE to make this choice?
This is a harsh reality for many government officials, but the truth is municipalities didn’t get there overnight—these meltdowns have been years in the making. The economy, falling property values and rising pension costs are all factors in the equation for failing local…
Revelstone does its part in “Creating a Community with a Common Vision”
Creating a Community with a Common Vision was the theme behind this year’s New Jersey League of Municipalities (NJLM) Annual Conference, and as a first-time exhibitor, Revelstone was excited not only to participate but also to offer a solution for local governments that tied directly into this messaging.
On November 15th-17th over 10,000 attendees gathered down in Atlantic City for what is considered to be the largest gathering of public officials in New Jersey. Over this three-day event, the NJLM hosted educational panels, clinics and workshops while commercial, government and association exhibits displayed the latest products and services for municipal government. The Revelstone team had the opportunity to participate in these sessions, tour the exhibit floor and network with new and familiar faces.
As an exhibitor, our goal was to communicate how Revelstone is helping local governments operate more efficiently. Through our innovative performance management solution, Compass, we are enabling local governments to track their own performance data, benchmark against peers and learn from each other to…
Are Extreme Cuts Coming to Your Town?
Before you read on, I invite you to first watch this video that recently aired on NBC featuring communities being forced to make extreme cuts. It’s a “sign of the times” or so they say. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032619/vp/44910124#44910124
Proposing government employees bring their own toilet paper to work in an effort to save money? That’s really extreme. This is truly a sign of the times—a sign that governments are continuing with the struggle to do more with less, or as Brian Williams put it, “less with less.” Have you started to consider extreme cuts that once may have seemed unthinkable? How exactly can governments continue to deliver the same programs with the same quality of service on an extremely reduced budget? I don’t think there is an easy answer to this question.
Another controversial question is how governments are determining where to cut resources. For the sake of citizens and the programs they depend on, one can only hope that research has gone into these decisions and towns are relying…