Mid-America Regional Council

Leadership Academy Essentials for Local Government Executives

Helping you meet the challenges facing local governments today

Strong, effective leadership is one of the most valuable tools your organization can have in tough economic times. But like most local governments, you’re trying to do more with less. For 2009, we’ve modified our annual Leadership Academy for Local Government Executives to meet your needs.

We’re compacting the essentials of the academy curriculum into a day-and-a-half session, allowing you to receive valuable training with a smaller commitment of time and resources. The program provides a forum for you to come together with other local government executives and take part in an experience that invites creative thinking about the most contemporary challenges facing local government professionals.

Long-time academy instructors John and Carol Nalbandian will lead participants through a series of discussions that address the core themes of building leadership capacity, responding to contemporary trends in local government, exploring governing body and staff relations, and community building.

Register for the 2009 Leadership Academy Essentials today, and be sure to invite others in your organization who could benefit from this opportunity.

Download a PDF Brochure | 2009 Registration Form

Audience - Who Should Attend?

2009 Leadership Academy Essentials Dates

All sessions take place at the MARC Conference Center, 600 Broadway.

Topics for the Leadership Academy Essentials

Contemporary Trends
Our opening session encourages you to think broadly about your working environment — the fabulous, the adequate and the areas that need improvement. As a group we will identify common trends and challenges. How do these trends affect your work, your departments and your local government, and where could they potentially lead us in the future?

Governing Bodies and Staff in Partnership
Governing bodies and staff play an important role in building and maintaining a sense of community. In this session we will identify the values that tie a community together. While these values are an important part of the public policy making process, governing bodies and city/county staff may view them from very different perspectives. Exploring these differences will help you open the door to stronger partnerships between staff and council.

Leadership Styles and Effective Teamwork
Have you ever wondered why you have difficulty working with a particular individual - such as one council member or a certain employee? Do you chalk it up to personality differences and just try to get along? There is another way. This session uses the self-assessment instrument, “The Strength Deployment Inventory,” to help you discover the strengths you use when things are going well and to realize how they change during conflict situations. You will also learn a conceptual framework to help you “figure out” another person and what their strengths might be. This increased understanding of what motivates people to act as they do will lead to more effective strategies in working with them. You will gain insights not only about yourself as a leader but also how others are similar and different from you.

Leadership Academy Essentials Fees

Early Registration (by June 5, 2009):
GTI Members: $150 per person
Non-members: $175 per person

Registrations made June 5, or later:
GTI Members: $175 per person
Non-members: $200 per person

Leadership Academy Essentials Registration

Leadership Academy Essentials Faculty

Carol Nalbandian • Carol works with governing bodies, management teams and executives — from the private, public and nonprofit sectors — in strategic planning, goal setting and team building. She is the former director of the Menninger Leadership Center in Topeka and director of management programs for the University of Kansas School of Business.

John Nalbandian •John is a professor in the Department of Public Administration at the University of Kansas. He has taught local government professionals for over 30 years. In addition, having served on the Lawrence, Kansas City Commission for eight years, including two terms as mayor, he brings a unique perspective to his teaching and training. He consults with and serves as a trainer to local government professionals and elected officials nationwide. Annually, he serves on the faculty of the Senior Executive Institute at the University of Virginia. He is a member of the National Academy of Public Administration.

For complete details about the academy, contact Georgia Nesselrode.