The Collins Center Report
Municipal Performance Management Program Seeks Applicant Municipalities to Join in FY15
Participants Receive Low-Cost Technical Assistance for Starting or Expanding Performance Management Efforts
With continued funding from the Executive Office for Administration and Finance (A&F), the Collins Center is preparing to launch a new round of municipalities into the Municipal Performance Management Program (MPMP) in FY15. This innovative program provides assistance to Massachusetts municipalities looking to tune up or establish a performance management program and to improve their use of data in management and policymaking. 

Participating municipalities will receive the assistance of a trained analyst for roughly one day per week for five months, as well as additional training and support. In return, those municipalities will be required to make certain commitments as part of the work and will pay a $1,000 participation fee. At the end of five months, municipalities have options for paying to continue the work at a variety of levels of service and prices. For more information, please review the MPMP FY15 Program Overview.

Municipalities will be selected based on their level of commitment to the work and based on the intent to create a set of municipalities that reflects the diversity of the Commonwealth's cities and towns, as well as the need to have a set of municipalities that fit together geographically. (Special consideration may be given to applicant municipalities not selected during the first three rounds.)

The complete application packet is available here and is due by April 30.  Selected municipalities will be notified by early June.

For further information, please contact Michael Ward at michael.ward@umb.edu.
UMass Boston to Host American Society for Public Administration Symposium April 5, 2014
Technological Innovation in Government: Toward Open and Smart Government
MASS ASPA
The Massachusetts chapter of the American Society for Public Administration (MassASPA) is sponsoring a symposium on Saturday, April 5, on "Technological Innovation in Government: Toward Open and Smart Government." This instructional symposium will take place on the campus of University of Massachusetts Boston from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

At this day-long event, conference attendees will come away with proven strategies, policies, and examples of innovations from leaders in these emerging fields. Potentials of open government, Gov 2.0, civic hacking, Big Data in government, and online civic engagement and collaboration will be discussed.  A session will be dedicated to questions and discussions between the presenters and the speakers to address the challenges of implementing these emerging innovative practices.  

The event is free for students (must register online) and $35 for professionals. Online registration is open; breakfast and lunch are included.

Speaker Bios
Massachusetts Education Partnership To Hold Third Statewide Conference
Leading K-12 Innovation through Labor-Management Collaboration: Lessons from MEP's First Two Years
MEP Logo
The Massachusetts Education Partnership (MEP), an organization  dedicated to improving student success through labor-management collaboration, will hold its third statewide conference on Thursday, June 12, at the Doubletree Inn in Westborough, MA. The theme of this conference is "Leading K12 Innovation through Labor-Management Collaboration: Lessons from MEP's First Two Years." The plenary speaker will be Greg Anrig, Jr., vice president, of The Century Foundation and author of Beyond the Education Wars:  Evidence that Collaboration Builds Effective Schools.

There is no fee to attend this conference, but registration is required. Registration information will be available in early May. If you would like to receive registration information, please contact Collins Center staff member Amanda.Achin@umb.edu.

If you have questions about the conference or the Massachusetts Education Partnership, please contact MEP Executive Director Nancy E. Peace at Nancy.Peace@umb.edu or call 617.287.7185.
New Mid-Atlantic StatNet to Hold Second Meeting in May in Washington, D.C.
Collins Center Chosen as a Partner for the Initiative, Partially Modeled after
New England StatNet
In partnership with the Collins Center, three Washington D.C. area jurisdictions have taken the lead to form a regional performance management practitioners' consortium dedicated to sharing best practices and benchmarking across the national capital region. Following a successful initial meeting last October, managers from Fairfax County and the City of Alexandria, Virginia, and Montgomery county, Maryland are planning the second meeting for jurisdictions and organizations stretching from the suburbs of Philadelphia to Virginia Beach that are.

The spring 2014 meeting of Mid-Atlantic StatNet will take place on May 8 in Washington, D.C. at the training center for the Performance Institute, another invaluable partner in bringing this effort to fruition. In addition to engaging speakers, networking, and information sharing opportunities, Mid-Atlantic StatNet is borrowing New England StatNet's practice of devoting meeting time to compare and contrast data and practices around a single service area. The meeting will focus  on permitting and inspection services, with the discussion to be led by the Collins Center.
New England StatNet Holds Meeting on Inspectional Services
Next Meeting Will Be on May 6 and Will Focus on Public Works
NE Statnet
New England StatNet held its winter meeting on Wednesday, March 19, 2014 at the Worcester Public Library. The topic of the meeting was data and performance management in municipal inspectional services, and it was attended by approximately 100 city and town managers, building commissioners and inspectors, health directors, and other state and local officials.

Topics discussed at the meeting included: inspectional services staffing, organization, workload, training, fees, and revenue; cross-departmental teams addressing problem properties; and performance measures in inspectional services. In addition, the Massachusetts Executive Office for Administration and Finance (A&F) led a panel on municipal experiences with online permitting, and case studies were presented by officials from the cities of Lowell and Malden. Initial feedback from attendees provided through the follow-up survey has been very positive, with attendees citing a large number of practical takeaways from the meeting
Collins Center Executive Recruitment Practice Continues to See Big Demand
CPM Logo Narrow The Collins Center has completed several recruitment activities recently. The Town of Foxborough appointed William Keegan as Town Manager. Keegan had served the Town of Dedham for twelve years as its Town Manager. The Town of Cohasset appointed Christopher Senior as Town Manager. Senior was previously Deputy Town Supervisor in North Hempstead, NY. The Town of Carver appointed Michael Milanoski as Town Administrator following his service as interim Town Manager in Cohasset. In addition, the Somerville Retirement Board appointed Michael Pasquariello as its first Executive Director. Pasquariello was previously Executive Director of the Melrose Retirement Board.

Currently underway are searches for Town Administrators in North Reading and Medway and for a Chief Financial Officer in the City of Amesbury. The Center is also assisting the Salem Public Schools hire three school principals.

The Center has completed over thirty searches for senior municipal executives in its five-year history. All but one of these professionals continue in their positions today.

Collins Center In the News
Another Vote on Treasurer - SouthCoastToday.com (AP), March 23, 2014
Salem May Hike Principal Salaries - The Salem News, March 20, 2014
Dracut Sets March 18 for Town Manager Interviews - Lowell Sun, March 5, 2014

Our View: Reinventing Government - SouthCoastToday.com (AP), January 24, 2014

About Ed Collins
Throughout his outstanding public career, Edward J. Collins, Jr. epitomized the spirit and goals of the center that now bears his name.  We at the Collins Center are proud to continue Ed's legacy - helping governments work effectively and productively for the benefit of their citizens.
Contracting with the Collins Center  
CPM Logo Narrow Agreements between local governments and the Collins Center are exempt from the provisions of Chapter 30B, the Uniform Procurement Act, since the University of Massachusetts is an instrumentality of the Commonwealth. Municipalities may negotiate a scope of services and a price with the Collins Center directly, saving both time and money. Similarly, Massachusetts state agencies may enter into Interagency Service Agreements with the Collins Center. For further information, please contact Stephen McGoldrick at stephen.mcgoldrick@umb.edu.

The Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management is dedicated to improving the efficiency and effectiveness of all levels of government, with a particular focus on state and local government. The Collins Center is part of the John W. McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies at the University of Massachusetts Boston.

Quick Links
View our profile on LinkedInView our videos on YouTubeLike us on Facebook

E
dward J. Collins, Jr.  Center for Public Management
John W. McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
 www.umb.edu/cpm