Shana Yelverton, City Manager, City of Southlake
Bill Lindley, Town Administrator, Town of Highland Park
April 23, 2010 – Southlake DPS Headquarters, Southlake, Texas
Bill
Shana
Complaints
• “Everyone knows you run the place…” Yikes!
•“Shana, can you come to my office? I need to talk with you,” said
Mayor Wambsganss
•Crisis of ridiculous proportions
•Window of opportunity
•Change management…and the price
•Leading leaders
•Momentum
• Sternly suggested that I allow a voter to absentee vote after hours on
the last day of early voting.
• As the new manager, I was told to fire the police
chief even though there was no written evidence
supporting a termination.
• Taking the lead role opposing the location of
NASCAR locating a new track would mean
my being “the fall guy” for any public opinion.
• Manager was berating staff for allowing employees to
goof off during a required city wide training session, all the while
with the manager present but not taking any action himself.
• Mayor threatened my employment if I continued recognizing
candidates during a series of community meetings.
• Several co-workers would see me as a “suck-up” for promoting a new
initiative the manager was trying to gain staff support for.
Trait Theory
Some personality traits may lead people naturally into
leadership roles.
• President Franklin Delano Roosevelt
• President Ronald Reagan
Great Events Theory
A crisis or important event may cause a person to rise to
the occasion, which brings out extraordinary leadership
qualities in ordinary people.
• Mayor Rudy Giuliani
• Prime Minister Winston Churchill
Transformation Theory
People can choose to become leaders and learn leadership skills.
• The breeding ground for most leaders!
The key to successful leadership today is
influence, not authority.
Kenneth Blanchard
Managing is about coping with complexity:
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planning and budgeting
organizing and staffing
controlling and problem solving
Leadership is about coping with challenges:
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setting direction
aligning people
motivating and inspiring
risk taking
Management is efficiency in climbing the ladder of success; leadership
determines whether the ladder is leaning against the right wall.
Stephen R. Covey
Early identification of a leader may be problematic:
• excel at getting noticed,
• love the spotlight,
• have a good story to tell, or
• appear more mainstream, etc.
Identification of “emerging leaders” may eliminate
those who:
• work for a challenging city or supervisor,
• are not given any real responsibility for being entry level, or
• eliminates late bloomers, etc.
Those ‘chosen’ start getting extra attention and
mentoring from day one of being identified, so the
traits that gain their notoriety may get stronger.
Patience – Good leadership is about waiting as much as
acting.
Vision – While everyone is cleaning the deck and
preparing the sails, somebody has to be looking where
the ship is going.
Adaptability and Flexibility – Be able to cope with
negative change, and also be able to quickly grab
opportunities as soon as they appear.
Empathy – Putting yourself in the shoes of your
employees allows you to make decisions that will enthuse
and motivate your staff.
Ability to Delegate/Listen – Give subordinates the real
responsibility and confidence to be able to make their
own decisions.
Calmness/Confidence – Confidence flows through a
team just like cheerfulness or a hardworking attitude.
Passion and Motivation – Whatever your role, people
will respect the fact that you take pride in your work, you
enjoy it.
Trustworthiness – Nobody will obey, follow, or be
inspired by someone they distrust.
Ethical – Ability to establish a corporate culture of
integrity and accountability.
UMANT has entered into a collaborative initiative with
the NCTCOG and SGR to provide a Leadership Series
as a part of The Institute for Leadership and Change
Management. Monthly brownbag topics include:
• Staffing Effectiveness ( 3 sessions)
• Policy Facilitation (2 sessions)
• Functional and Operational Expertise and Planning (2 sessions)
• Citizen Service
• Performance Measurement/Management and Quality Assurance
• Initiative, Risk Taking, Vision, Creativity, and Innovation
• Technological Literacy
• Democratic Advocacy and Citizen Participation
Cost per session is $22 for UMANT members and $72 for non-members
The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, by John Maxwell
Principle Centered Leadership, by Stephen Covey
Results Based Leadership, by David Ulrich
On Becoming a Leader, by Warren Bennis
Leading Leaders, by Jeswald W. Salacuse
Speed of Trust, by Stephen M.R. Covey
Good to Great, by Jim Collins
Leading Change, by John P. Kotter
• Recognize opportunities
• Inspire a shared vision
• Challenge the process
• Enable others to act
• Encourage the heart
• Model the way
“I attended the leadership
conference. Now I am following
everything they recommended.”
Shana Yelverton I City Manager I City of Southlake
817.748.8001 I Syelverton@ci.southlake.tx.us
Bill Lindley I Town Administrator I Town of Highland Park
214.559.9300 I Blindley@hptx.org