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This session details the experience of a large, full-service municipal public works department, the City of Olathe, Kansas, going through the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (DHS CISA) Protective Services and Cybersecurity Assessment processes. It features a roundtable including both public works and emergency management professionals as well as members of DHS CISA Protective Services and Cybersecurity groups. The discussion will have two areas of focus. First, participants will discuss specific critical areas of risk assessment, cyber security, employee safety, and continuity of operations. Specific attention will be paid to basic risk assessment principles, SCADA vulnerabilities, physical security and active shooter training, and second and third order threats to service delivery. Second, participants will have an open discussion on the DHS CISA assessment process as it pertains to the unique needs of public works, both areas of strength and opportunities for improvement. Finally, the presentation will provide attendees the opportunity to hear from all three stakeholder groups involved in this process and gain an awareness of how this free program may be of benefit to their agency.
Read MoreRapid digital adoption driven by the pandemic has altered the traditional methods for engaging landowners and completing projects. This presentation addresses the challenges and benefits affecting real estate and land departments that formerly relied on in-person transactions. It includes suggestions for working with virtual open houses, electronic notary, online title work and virtual negotiation.
Read MorePublic works operations and maintenance staff excel when routines and standard procedures are in place, but public works rarely has the luxury of working without unexpected disruptions. The panel discusses operations…
Read MoreWhile small cities and rural communities face the same challenges as larger and urban communities to address sustainability issues. This panel discusses how sustainability is being advanced in small cities…
Read MoreWinter weather forecasts can be exhausting, confusing and frustrating. There is always weather that you have to deal with or pay attention to in the extended forecast. Forecasts range from heavy snow, light snow, frost, freezing rain, ice, rain. Chances for weather are 20%, 50%, 75%. Forecasters are not always right but our industry still has to rely on weather forecasts to effectively do our jobs. In this session, we will discuss what to look for in a winter weather forecast, tools to easily get quality forecasts, methods to increase your winter weather forecast confidence, and ways to organize and easily communicate forecasts to your staff and leaders.
Read MoreWhen approaching the delivery of local services, collaborating with an outside partner can be extremely helpful for local governments. Collaboration occurs when two or more organizations work together, sharing the costs and benefits of a project to address a need in a way that achieves efficiency and effectiveness that would not be realized by one organization operating alone. It can be difficult to determine when a project is ripe for collaboration. This session highlights a decision tool that is designed to fill this need. Working through this decision matrix will assist local leaders in determining whether the conditions are right for collaboration on a project and if so, what form of collaboration will help local governments best achieve their goals. The tool is in two parts. The first part helps communities determine whether or not a collaborative arrangement is a good idea for the delivery of a specific service. The second part helps those that want to pursue a collaborative arrangement (as determined by part one) choose among the types of collaborative arrangements.
Read MoreDelivering improvements to our communities through projects and maintaining the assets of our communities are at the core of what public works agencies do. Both represent the most significant long-term financial investment for any community. In this session experts will examine the relationships between projects and assets. The evolution of public works demands that both be forecasted and managed well. But what are the best, and most affordable, practices to explaining, managing, and modeling these? Does one drive the other? Is one more important? Are the necessary tools and skills the same? In small ways and big ways, public works agencies throughout the nation are answering these questions and more. This session dives into responses from five different high-performing agencies. Participants will hear from each and then discuss the best ways to learn, expand, and adapt from their approaches.
Read MorePeople love clarity. If you confuse, you lose. It’s all about surviving and thriving… and conserving calories. If you’re like most agencies and firms, you’re fed up with spending time and money on communications that don’t work. If you knew what to do differently, you would—but you don’t, and so you feel stuck. Meanwhile, your sales are lagging. Colleagues are confused. Your bottom line isn’t budging. And worst of all, you feel discouraged. Here’s the good news: It doesn’t have to be that way. In this talk, Everest Marketing Services President, Barbara Shuck—a StoryBrand Certified Guide—will share seven simple marketing principles proven to engage clients and prospects. Participants will walk away knowing how to capture their audience’s attention and compel them to respond. The presenter has spent her career developing communications that help clients stand out. Imagine submitting a proposal with a clear client-focused story about how your firm is the right fit for a project. Imagine a conversation where the other person leans into what you’re saying. Imagine a presentation that reflects your professionalism and expertise, where the audience or decision-makers are intrigued by your story… and your evaluation score reflects their interest! Imagine having something clever to say when someone asks you about your agency or business. With 25+ years working for design and construction firms, the presenter understands the frustration of not clearly communicating your differentiators and creating “why us” and “why not them” themes from the consultant’s side of the table. She regularly speaks with clients and understands how they, too, struggle with memos and meetings. And, because of almost four decades of experience in business, you can count on her to help you communicate clearly, both in writing and verbally. Attend this must-see session so you can learn 7 Steps to Communicate Clearly. Stop worrying about your communications, and get back to winning when you communicate.
Read MoreWhen the COVID-19 pandemic struck the nation, leading to understandable confusion and concern, the public immediately began hoarding bottled water as a panicked, knee-jerk reaction. It was understandable to a degree, the actions being recommended to reduce the impact of the virus were the first of their kind. Being told you shouldn't leave the house and that you should minimize trips for basic necessities will lead you to stuff your cart with everything you can find. Of course, what we discovered very early on was that COVID-19 did not impact the quality of our drinking water. In fact, the worst potential impacts from the virus on our water and wastewater services were not its threats to public health, they were the threats to staffing levels at our plants. Dozens of utilities sheltered their staffs at their plants, rotating them out after days at a time, to make sure the water and wastewater systems kept running. During the earliest days of the crisis, the press and the public were looking for any good news to reassure themselves that life would be turned upside down just a little less. And that's where proactive communications about public water's response to COVID-19 perfectly fit the bill. Here was a positive story, no impact on drinking water, that attached to EVERY viewer or reader of a news outlet covering their service area. If customers questioned or didn't think about the value of their water before COVID-19, there was a new opportunity to drive home that point during the pandemic response. After all, imagine if COVID infected our drinking water? Our lives would have been very different. Hundreds of positive stories ran across the nation by public water's higher value. References to our water's value during COVID-19 don't have to stop once we get a vaccine; we should mention it at every turn for years to come. The staffing response during COVID-19 also served as a tremendously positive story from several utilities.
Read MoreA wastewater utility’s customers are receiving information that they believe is important without having to ask for it; they’re sent notifications dozens of times a day. As a result, expectations have risen with service providers, especially those people who pay every month, every other month, or every quarter to ensure their quality of life. When emergencies occur, especially those that make news throughout an entire area, like with a significant sewer spill, a utility must quickly act to assure the public that the crisis is being responded to and that the potential for any long-term impacts are being mitigated. What many people don’t realize is that successful crisis communications responses are actually rooted in a utility’s efforts to proactively inform their customers about their services before an emergency occurs. Regular releases of information to the press, the public, and key stakeholders about the good work you do 24/7/365 or communications that provide helpful tips to say, keep FOG out of a customer’s pipes, goes a long way to building trust and respect for the utility’s work. And that trust is important, because it will be called upon in a crisis. This presentation will discuss how to handle internal and external communications during a wastewater crisis, in this case, a 500,000-gallon SSO alongside a commuter route during rush hour that flowed into a creek known for its wildlife and boating activity. WaterPIO will show the tactics used to help diffuse the initial negative reaction and turn the actions of the utility into a positive, not only by showcasing the response but continuing to provide information after the immediate crisis has passed. Utilities can actually IMPROVE their standing with the public after a major SSO by regularly providing information about the improvement of the waterway involved day after day.
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