Introducing: The Municipal Leadership Development Circle (MLDC) - Save 50% During Launch Phase
Every week, you’ll get insights and actionable steps to help you navigate personal growth and professional success.
It’s late Tuesday evening, and you’re the last one in city hall. On your desk sits a stack of congratulatory messages about your city’s recent bond rating upgrade. Down the hall, your team has just wrapped up another successful council presentation. By most measures, your city is doing well. Yet something nags at you – a persistent question: “How do we move from good performance to truly great impact?”
This question lies at the heart of Jim Collins’ best-selling book, “Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap and Others Don’t,” and it’s particularly relevant for municipal leaders who navigate the complex waters of public service. While Collins focused on the corporate sector, his insights about what transforms organizations from good to great offer powerful lessons for city management.
At the core of these transformations sits a surprising discovery – Level 5 Leadership. It’s a leadership style that might feel counterintuitive in today’s world of high-profile CEOs and personal branding, but it’s exactly what municipal organizations need.
Consider these three key elements of Level 5 Leadership in your municipal context:
First, Level 5 leaders channel their ambition into the organization, not themselves. As a city manager, your greatest achievements often come without fanfare – the smooth execution of essential services, the quiet cultivation of high-performing teams, the steady progress toward long-term goals. Your success isn’t measured in personal accolades but in community outcomes.
Second, these leaders confront brutal realities while maintaining unwavering faith in ultimate success. You face this balance daily – acknowledging budget constraints, infrastructure challenges, or staffing shortages while never losing sight of your city’s potential. It’s about creating an environment where hard truths can be discussed openly, even in the politically charged atmosphere of local government.
Third, Level 5 leaders build enduring greatness through quiet, deliberate actions. Think about the municipal leaders you most admire. Chances are, they didn’t transform their cities through flashy initiatives or quick fixes. Instead, they likely demonstrated sustained commitment to excellence, careful stewardship of resources, and steady investment in their teams.
The journey from good to great in municipal government isn’t about dramatic transformations or headline-grabbing initiatives. It’s about consistent, focused leadership that puts the community’s long-term success above personal recognition.
Your Next Step: The journey from good to great in municipal government isn’t one you have to navigate alone. Every day, city managers across the country wrestle with these same challenges, seeking ways to create lasting positive impact in their communities.
This is why we’ve created the Municipal Leadership Development Circle – a community of forward-thinking city managers committed to elevating their leadership and transforming their cities. Through focused weekly insights, practical application tools, and connection with peers who understand your unique challenges, you’ll develop the skills and mindset needed to move your city from good to great.
The question isn’t whether your city can achieve greatness – it’s whether you’re ready to take the next step in your leadership journey. Visit HaltingWinter.com/MLDC to learn how you can join a nationwide community of municipal leaders dedicated to creating stronger cities through stronger leadership.
This week, the MLDC community is diving deep into Jim Collin’s insights through daily blogs and podcasts. Join us in this endeavor to transform from good to great because your community deserves more than good enough. They deserve great. And great cities start with great leaders.
Seth Winterhalter is President of HaltingWinter Municipal Solutions, dedicated to making stronger cities through stronger leaders. Through executive coaching, results-based consulting, and the Municipal Leadership Development Circle (MLDC), HaltingWinter helps city managers and municipal leaders transform their leadership impact and their organizational culture.
