Franklin County Media

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During the episode, Tom Homan shares his experiences in being a part of a successful ICMA (International City/County Management Association) conference with the City of Columbus, Franklin County, and the Columbus Convention and Visitors Bureau. The conference emphasized excellence in planning and execution, showcasing the dedication and collaboration necessary for impactful events within local government.

Homan's 40-year membership with ICMA highlights the organization's support for local government professionals, offering learning opportunities, connections with colleagues, and ongoing professional development. He emphasizes the value of ICMA credentialing, which requires a commitment to continuing education and is highly regarded within the profession.

As the City Manager of the City of Delaware, Tom Homan discusses the evolution of Delaware, maintaining its rural roots while also becoming more diverse and interesting. His 25 years of service as a city manager in Central Ohio demonstrates his dedication to integrity, servant leadership, and community building. Homan emphasizes the importance of aligning community goals with the views of the governing bodies and shares his experiences navigating significant challenges such as the 2008 financial crisis and the impact of COVID-19.

Throughout the episode, Homan reflects on the importance of aspiring city managers seeking internships in local government to gain a deeper understanding of the profession's diverse nature and significance. He underscores the principles of servant leadership, emphasizing selfless dedication, integrity, and prioritizing the needs of the community over personal goals.

The episode also addresses the relevance of work-life balance within municipal government jobs, acknowledging the increasing importance of flexibility and support for employees' needs. Homan recognizes the essential nature of many municipal government roles that cannot be performed remotely, such as firefighting, rescuing children, and providing public services, underscoring the dedication of these essential workers.

Diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging initiatives are highlighted as vital components of organizational culture within the City of Delaware, showcasing the community's commitment to embracing and supporting these principles. He encourages a focus on attracting and retaining diverse talent and emphasizes the time and dedication required to effect change in organizational culture.

Workplace Diversity: "I think increasingly, you talked about work life balance. You've got generations coming into the workplace today that are gonna expect this. They're gonna expect to be welcomed regardless of their situation in life."

— Tom Homan

Top Takeaways

1. In-depth planning and execution are essential for successful conferences that promote excellence in local government.

2. The International City/County Management Association (ICMA) provides valuable learning opportunities, professional connections, and ongoing development for local government professionals.

3. The ICMA credentialing for city managers reflects a commitment to continuing education and is highly valued within the profession.

4. Aspiring city managers can benefit from internships in local government to gain a comprehensive understanding of the diverse and vital nature of the work.

5. The qualities of servant leadership—selfless dedication, integrity, and community prioritization—are fundamental for city managers in their role.

6. Embracing diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in local government requires commitment, time, and a targeted plan to attract and retain diverse talent.

7. Effective collaboration with city councils and alignment of community goals with governing bodies is crucial for successful city management.

8. Adaptation to challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic and financial crises is essential for city managers, who must prioritize both community needs and workforce support.

9. Municipal government positions, such as those in public safety, require physical presence and cannot be done remotely.

Memorable Moments

05:11 ICMA conferences are vital for local government professionals.

09:02 Delaware County: Rural roots and diverse growth.

11:38 Balanced relationships with governing bodies for success.

14:54 Influence decision to work in local government.

19:11 Flexibility and support in the workforce are emphasized.

23:56 Discussion on international food and cultural diversity.

Tom Homan has been Delaware City Manager since 1999. As the city’s chief executive officer, Homan oversees the operations of a full-service city, which includes police, fire, a municipal airport, and a water and wastewater utility. The city workforce numbers nearly 300 and the operating budget is approximately $45 million. A graduate of both Michigan State University’s James Madison College and New York University’s Wagner School of Public Service, where he received a Master’s degree in Public Administration, Homan previously held manager positions in Connecticut and New York. He is an accredited member of the International City/County Management Association.

talkofthecounty@franklincountyohio.gov

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Copyright 2024 Franklin County Board of Commissioners

Good afternoon, Franklin County. This is the Talk Of The County with your County Administrator, Kenneth Wilson. I'm pleased to be here, this afternoon with Tom Homan, a true local government legend in Central Ohio. He serves in the City of Delaware as their esteemed City Manager. Good morning. Good morning, Ken. Thank you for, inviting me here today. And, I'm I'm pleased

to be part of this podcast.

Great to have you. We're here in Austin. You're a lot more relaxed than you were Around this time last year when Franklin County in Columbus was lucky enough to host the ICMA conference.

Yeah. It feels, like a a lot a big weight has been lifted from my shoulders. And, that effort, which was really collaborative between the City of Columbus, Franklin County, and the, Convention Visitors Bureau was, was a success, and, we're happy to have made it that way and and and pleased that, we're here this year to enjoy this conference in a different way. As you say, a little less little less stressful.

You know, you had the Job of cohosting along with Charlotte Connolly, this conference, and I know firsthand that you were, From day 1 saying that excellence is our only option as far as putting that conference together.

Yeah. That we we set the bar high. And, by all of the feedback we got, I think we we hit that we hit the bar. And, excellence was the kind of the watchword that we used, and Columbus and Franklin County showed well. It the weather was great. Columbus always looks better when it's a nice day and the sun is out, and we actually we're very fortunate To have a lot of the a lot of the pieces to spell together.

It's it's it's warmer here in this morning to noon hour time, here in Austin, but Columbus and Franklin County, we had great weather as you pointed out. In that general session, I mean, talk about that. Talk about having Not just a piece of the debt this darn band in the land, but the whole darn band.

Yeah. We were, from the outset of planning the conference, We wanted to make sure that we had an exclamation point, and we wanted that to occur during the general session. So early on in the planning, The idea that we were doing this in Columbus, that Ohio State is such a big part of being in Columbus, the thought came up, let's get the band. And we were very fortunate to, to work with, the Ohio State Band and, their their team. And at the end of the general session, capping off the keynote speaker, in comes, the Ohio State Band, And they just brought down the house. I mean, there wasn't, there wasn't a a smartphone that wasn't up in the air, taking pictures, recording the moment From the time they walked into the house, into the general session, the the crowd followed them out, and that opened, that opened the conference, and it was, as you point out, was was that was excellence, and we're quite quite proud of that.

Podcast listeners, mister Homan said it was gonna be all about the pump and circumstance. And that's just one example of of the What you had in mind from day 1 in planning this conference. So great job. I'm We still hear positive reviews. Tom, talk about, your, work in ICMA and and how ICMA provides value, to city managers.

Yeah. I think, I it's it's a it's a great Question. Earlier today, I received my 40 year, service award along with a number of other members. ICMA at these annual conferences recognize managers who have, 20, 25, 30, 35. All the way up to Yesterday, we had somebody who had 55 years of service in local government. I have 40. I started when I was an intern, in graduate school working in a small village outside of New York City, that's when I became a member. The manager at the time, recommended, becoming a member of ICMA.

And over the years, it's been a It's been a bedrock of my professional development. The national conferences that they do every year, the regional conferences, All of the learning opportunities that they provide, the different connections with other colleagues, across the country, It really helps to, just kind of motivate you as a local government professional. It keeps you involved with other local government professionals, And it's a, it's an important part of our profession. I mean, I ICMA, we would not be in local government, with without that organization supporting us. So I'm kind of a proud member of the organization. It's changed over the years, under different leadership, but every year, they kind of we celebrate, we celebrate the profession by being at these conferences.

It's about, best practices and Sharing best practices and the educational sessions

Yeah.

Are extremely valuable. It's like ongoing continuing education if a local government officials, city managers, county administrators. That's the way I see it. Yeah. That leads me to ask you about the ICM ICMA, credential manager. Why does that credentialing matter so much? I know for, to be on official, Within ICMA, a a a vice president, of a region, that is a commitment that is always mentioned.

Yeah. It is. I became a crunch credentialed manager when they started the program. I can't remember how many years ago it was. I've got my credentialed manager PIN here, but, really, it it it requires, a commitment to continuing education, at least 40 hours a year. Some of those hours can be spent reading. Some of those hours can be spent at educational sessions at a conference. That can be spent, in any ways that that better you as a professional.

And ICMA recognized a number of years ago that it wanted to, it wanted to confirm upon managers who were committed to that 40 hours a week in that professional development, the, the title of credentialed manager. And increasingly, when you're looking for career opportunities, credentialed manager is often noted as something that, is is desirable, from a governing board's perspective, from, you know, people who are looking at local government leaders.

Central Ohio is a a strong region. The city of Delaware, is a strong community, Always ranks up there for the being highly educated compared to other, communities. You know? When you look at demographic factors like the percentage of the population that has at least a bachelor's degree,

percentage of the population that recycles. All of these progressive type, stats. But yet, Dell Delaware also has its rural roots. Talk a little bit about the evolution of the city of Delaware over your career, which I believe spans 25 years. Yeah. I'd be happy to. And I think I'm really happy you pointed out the the kind of rural agrarian, History of of Delaware and Delaware County. I mean, it is still everything north of Delaware, the city of Delaware is still very rural.

Lot of the same farmers, farming fields, and that is an important part of our heritage. That, At one point, the city of Delaware was the kind of center of Delaware County. Now increasingly, Southern Delaware County, Lewis Center, Powell, Orange, Galena, all those different areas, and even Sunbury, which became a city last year, are now making Delaware County a more diverse, Interesting, county. And, but we don't wanna forget, those those rural roots of the of the, of county and the role that the the city of Delaware played in that over the years.

I started off this this in the interview, You know, noting the fact that you, have made quite a name for yourself, in local government. And City managers, the fraternity of them have a lot of respect for Tom Homan. As you exit, we don't know what the next chapter is. But as you have announced your exit, Your retirement. What do you want, the profession to have to say about Tom Homan? Final words.

I I guess, that he served with integrity, that he, was a servant leader, that he was able to, navigate the challenges of local government, the last, kinda during that pandemic period, that was a very, very challenging period for anybody in local government, from anybody, from school superintendents, City or county managers. And I'd like to be just kind of remembered for somebody that cared about the community, that helped build the community, make it stronger, Make it a more vibrant part, of our of our, Central Ohio region.

Great. Talk a little bit

about the dynamic

of working as a city manager, with the surrounding jurisdictions you mentioned. But let's drill it in even a little bit more. How many different city councils that you worked with over your career? And what was your key to success? You know, there are sessions here at ICMA about manager council relations. To go 25 years, Tom, you had to be pretty good at it.

Well, I I appreciate that, and it it is a is kind of a a an accomplishment, and It has a lot to do with the governing bodies I was honored to serve with. They were very cooperative, supportive. Did they have their disagreements? Yes. Did did I occasionally have disagreements with them over issues? Yes. But we were able to, over the years, Find a balance between, the importance of, what the community goals were and keeping counsel engaged in that process, and that's really a lot of what you have to do. I there's no shortage of managers that end up with governing bodies that don't agree with each other and that sometimes manifests itself in, going after the manager in some way. Fortunately, in Central Ohio, not just in Delaware, but Westerville, Worthington, and some of the other communities, Hilliard, there has been a a considerable amount of stability, And that's helped, I think, immensely. But, again, it gets back to, in in my view, the way I Kind of view leadership and the way the council governs and those 2 things aligning correctly.

And, knock on wood if it's around you somewhere, 25 years, has been, has been a a really, a big part of my career. My 40 year career, 25 of which has been Spend here in Delaware.

Yes. We would you know, a lot of things happen, Every day within a city, both large and small. What issues kept you up at night?

Well, I think it's easy to default to COVID. Obviously, that was a, crisis that none of us had anticipated. And unlike the crisis that, you know, a natural disaster, a flood, or an earthquake, or a hurricane where the crisis comes, There's a cleanup, there's a response, and the crisis recedes. COVID really didn't recede. So that was obviously in the last few years, that was definitely a, a situation that was very, very challenging. I think during the financial crisis in 2008, that whole period, challenged us financially, challenged a lot of communities financially. That kept me up at night. How is the city gonna maintain its ability to serve its residents? So that was a that was a big deal.

I think when Delaware County Bank, which was always headquartered in the city of Delaware, moved out of the town moved out of the city In the early aughts, was really a a a big, big disappointment for us. We weren't able to retain them, And that was that was a disappointment. But, on balance, though, I've had far more Mornings waking up and feeling positive about serving the community than I have had sleepless nights worrying about one thing or another. And that those things happen, but they're offset, greatly by all of the positive things that we've done in the community.

If I was a 20 something Graduate of an MPA program. What would Tom say to

influence A decision to look at municipal government. I would say that, do it to kind of follow One way is to look at my path, which was during graduate school, I took an internship in local government. I didn't know a whole lot about it. I had a relative who was involved in local government Spoke very highly of it. I think the internship in a city manager's office, in a county administrator's office, a county manager's office Really helps to inform 1 about the important role that local government plays, but also just from the standpoint of working, the diverse, The day up, no 2 days are the same. And it's really, I think, about serving that community and getting that, getting that positive reassurance of what you're doing is important. Whether it's helping with the fire doing fire negotiations, Whether it's helping the public works depart department, coming up with a better way to to plow a road or pave a street, all of those things factor into The fabric of what makes a community great. And, being in local government, you're really at the center of where local democracy is.

And, yes, it does get challenging. Yes. It can be a fishbowl kind of situation. But, ultimately, whether it's at the county level, the township level, or the city level, You're able to make a difference in people's lives.

Give the the listeners of this podcast, A profile of servant leadership

from the view of Of a city manager. I think servant leadership is about selfless, dedication to, Making a community a better place and, putting the, the the needs of the community ahead of your own needs, and I think, servant leadership is also about integrity, acting with integrity. ICMA is is One of the bedrocks of ICMA, as you know, is the code of ethics. It's acting ethically, acting with integrity, Serving people in a way that recognizes the importance of the individual in the community, but understanding you're trying to do what is good for the whole. Servant leadership is is, is putting, again, putting the, the the good of the team, the good of the community, ahead of any personal, any personal goals. And I think, we all tried it. We all tried to live that.

You talked about 40 years of of total service and being recognized here, by ICMA. If there was a quote for your career, what would be that quote?

Oh my. That's a, that's that's not an easy that's not an easy question to answer. I think it would be a combination of of of the importance of of servant leadership, the importance of integrity, and really the importance of ICMA, in helping build and support, the profession of local government.

You know, in in as a as a as a city manager, You have to manage, a place where every employee is Uniquely different. And today is different to be in a manager than it was Even 5 years ago. People, place a greater premium than ever on work life balance, And they won't compromise work life balance. I think generations earlier, Felt like you had to put work pretty high up there. And you may take a week or two, and that's about it. How have you dealt with that change as a city manager?

That's been hard for me to deal with personally, But I've recognized professionally within my organization that the ability to be flexible With respect to people's schedules, their needs needs to be more of a priority, and it has been In our organization, I think that became more pronounced during COVID when we had to change our The way we worked, and we had to recognize that, yes, you could work at home and get things done. And, that also, I think it forced a reexamination across not just the local government workforce, but just the workforce in general That, work life balance, the ability to, be supportive of somebody's needs at home, whatever their issues are, whether it's, You know, whether it's elder care or whether it's day care, whatever it is, that we as an employer need to recognize that and put a value on that and put policies and practices in place to support employees because as you point out, it it it's somewhat nonnegotiable for a lot of folks coming into the workforce, and we've learned a lot about that at this conference.

Yes. And and you know firsthand that there are Important jobs in municipal government that can't be done from a home office. You can't put out a fire from your couch. You can't get, you can't rescue, a a kid that's In a tree and can't get down. You can't you can't provide public services remotely. So it creates issues of equity. Yeah. So how have you dealt with that?

I think carefully. And and I think we stipulated at the outset that there's no perfect arrangement, that we try to balance the needs of our Of our municipal court workers who have no option, they have to come to work, a probation officer has to come into work, somebody at you know, the judge, the whole municipal court operation is One example of they weren't really able to, to deviate from the the the work model that we're used to. But we have recently, put together a telework policy, which actually kind of formalizes what We will, as an employer, allow to happen, but equity is, that's a challenge To try to to kind of balance that, especially for the uniform services, police, fire, public works, they've got to be out there. But that's kind of always been the case. They've they've had that the demand on their schedule.

And speaking of equity, now let's let's let's Go a little bit, further into this book of evolving public policy. Diversity is not a joy a choice. It is a reality. And inclusion Has to be, purposeful. And going the next step, belonging is essential. In today's workplace, tell me some of the things that have been done in the city of Delaware In the diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and accessibility space.

We started an initiative, post Post George Floyd, that was which recognized That diversity, equity, and inclusion was something that we talked about before as an organization, but not really embraced. And we put together a report for city council that outlined a number of steps that we were gonna take organizationally To, to work with our staff and to try to make, DEI more a part of our organizational culture. And I can tell you every time when I was considering this initiative, in early it was in, the latter part of 2020, early part of 2021. Every person I spoke with within Central Ohio in that space, who was engaged in that space already said, you have to take the long view. This is not something that just changes overnight. It's about an organizational culture and trying to get as much Support and understanding about that. So we've we have a, diversity and equity inclusion working group. They have a staff members.

They recently did something around the issue of international food and and and and talked about different ways of of What different cultures and food and different cultures, the importance of food and things like that. So it's not it it's a it's a myriad of things that we need to think about, but I I I've really, really it's probably more challenging because we've had people in the community question why we're doing this Mhmm. And it's it's why why would you wanna question something? I mean, I guess you can question it, but I think you wanna learn about it And understand it, and figuring out ways to to, to address it. Because I think increasingly, you talked about work work life balance. You've got generations coming into the workplace today that are gonna expect this. They're gonna expect to be welcomed regardless of their situation in life. And I think If they know that is happening at the organizational level from the top, that's gonna help them reassure them a little about coming in and working for the organization.

See, she you you said that well, Tom. My opinion is that individuals are gonna choose An employer where diversity, equity, inclusion is ingrained in its DNA. Absolutely. No exceptions whatsoever. If you're gonna win and you're gonna attract and retain the best people, it's got to be in the DNA. It can't be a class. It's gotta be more than just a class. Yes.

I agree. And that's why I think by getting back to the comment about the long view, it just to change a culture, to change an organizational work culture Takes commitment, takes time, takes a lot of energy, and and but you gotta you gotta keep working at it. Spartan's will. That's right.

Now that's a little that's a little tidbit here. Tom and I both are Michigan proud Michigan State University graduates. Yes. Doing trying to do well in Ohio. You put in 4 decades of service. I put in 3 decade. So Michigan State is contributing every single day.

Yeah. And I'll shout out Ohio. That's right. And I'll shout out and Say James Madden Madison College, it was it was a big part of that, the residential college in the social sciences, and, That made a big, big difference. So they didn't hold it against me in 1998 when I interviewed for the job in Delaware. That was the that was the year that Michigan State, I think, Set Ohio State's chances of something, of a Rose Bowl. I I remember there was a lot of mourning going on, but they didn't They didn't hold it against me. I think if I had maize and blue on, they may have.

You're right. I mean, James Madison College, Put me on a course that I didn't see coming the day I stepped on that campus at in Eastland. It was really a game changer as far as directing me towards service. Yeah. My priorities were were different from a career what I thought my career would look like. And if I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't change a thing. Yeah. Because public service is everything for me, and that's what makes it hard to Not talk all day, and this is supposed to be a podcast.

I could ask you questions all day. We could just conversation Sure. And just talk about government Yeah. In in the work. But we don't have that much time, so I gotta try to wrap this up. Alright? And let's tell me a fun fact. Tell me a fun fact about,

I love to cook, and I have my, my leadership staff, at my house every year in the spring, after we've adopted the budget over for pizza. Now that's I love

to cook. That's that you that makes you a popular guy because there are a lot of people that like to eat. So if you invite them over

and you a good cook, Food is breaking bread with people is is always a great way to to start conversations, and and I enjoy cooking. I loved it. I'm I've I'm kind of a multitasker, to begin with, and and cooking is a lot about multitasking.

Okay. What is What is Tom's master dish? What have you masked?

Oh my gosh. My kids would say, Roll ups for dinner. You know? You're taking just coming home and and taking up a a flour tortilla and throwing a bunch of stuff on it, but that's that's Kind of low budget stuff, but, what have I mastered? I think pizza, I'm good at. I'm good at, trying, Stir fry, I I enjoy that. I mostly enjoy just the the result of cooking and bringing people together. And just as You say people love to eat, and and it's there's always great conversations around.

So the kitchen is somewhat of an is creative escape.

Yeah. It is. It can be.

Yeah. Rate of escape.

Yeah. Another fun fact is I love to exercise. I do it 6 days a week, and I think that's helped my Work life balance, it's part of self care, which wasn't really in our vocabulary a few years ago. But I've been practicing self care with a group of Friends in Delaware for the last 24 years. We've worked out together, swim, bike, and run. And it's

So that explains how a guy could be in great Shaped like you, but like to cook and like pizza. In part. Yeah. Yeah.

Yeah. In part. So it's it's yeah. But, yeah, I love that love that To to exercise. It's kinda part of my part of my DNA, but it's health.

Well, you know, I I This conversation has been really, enlightening. I hope for those that listen to this podcast. I'm planning, in the future to bring people like you and sit down and talk to them about their careers And continue to much like we work with organizations like ICMA and the National Association of Counties, That's the Elevate local government, be it county government, city government, because there's so much that we do to impact, the lives of our residents. And in Franklin County, we're dedicated to every resident every day, and We want to recruit people that understand the mission of every resident every day. So thank you, Tom, for being My, on the talk of the county and the one of the first people to sit down and talk to a central Ohio local government legend, City manager Tom Holman. Thank you.

Appreciate it, Ken. Thanks a lot.