REVIEW: The City Manager's Chief of Staff

In a recent interview by A.J. Bingham (The Bingham Group), A.J. interviewed the newly appointed Chief of Staff (COS) to the City Manager Jason Alexander.

I took a listen for the same reason I am writing this review: I wanted to learn more about what the COS for the City Manager does and how the City Manager's department operates. This article outlines some of the points that I thought insightful. If this intrigues you to know more, I would encourage you to take a listen to the full podcast [1].

Key Points

• Made sense to bring a Chief of Staff role at this current time. This is referring to Jason's first-of-year appointment to the position and why now, in Austin's growth, it's a necessary and vital position to help sustain and support the growth.
• Direct support for the City manager - his source of counsel. This is the single-line definition of the role that Jason Alexander took on in January of 2022.
• Oversee the administrative support, policy, and agenda office. These are some of the managerial duties that the COS for the City Manager is in charge of.
• Overseeing four different offices: Office of Sustainability, Innovation Office, Equity Office, and (soon to be) Chief Resiliency Officer. These are all under the COS's service group purview.
• 18 years (February 2022) with the City of Austin. Starting as a temporary employee, Jason has now served over 18 years with the City of Austin in various capacities - with the majority in the City Manager department.

"Austin has such a footprint in the world right now." - Jason Alexander, Chief of Staff to the City Manager

Alexander, talking with Mr. Bingham, states that being part of such a large organization harkens to the importance of bringing on good talent to work for the residents of Austin.

Top Employers in Austin [2]

• State of Texas: 62,853
• The University of Texas at Austin: 23,925
• H-E-B: 13,756
• City of Austin: 13,531
• Dell Technologies: 13,000

"Never underestimate the power of the written word." -Jason Alexander, Chief of Staff to the City Manager

Jason outlines his family's history in public service and how he learned the importance of the position of the City Manager. Jason tells a wonderful story about his father, who is still in public service.

Jason was working in the policy department as a temporary employee during hurricane Katrina. He remembers looking down the hall, after being asked to man the phones during the disaster, seeing the Assistant to the City Manager and thinking to himself,

"That has to be the best - coolest job in the entire city."

Citations:

1. The BG Podcast: A Conversation with Jason Alexander, Chief of Staff to the Austin City Manager on Apple Podcasts
2. Chamber of Commerce gives estimates of Austin's top 30 employers | kvue.com
3. Jason Alexander - Texas City Management Association Directory (tml.org)
4. City Manager | AustinTexas.gov