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Tuesday, October 25, 2022
6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. Pre-Conference Networking Mixer
Hyatt Regency Bar

For the eager and early arrivals, join fellow conference attendees, Region Co-Chairs, and colleagues for a Networking Mixer to sip and socialize before the start of the 2022 Annual Conference!
Wednesday, October 26, 2022
8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Registration Open
Regency Foyer
7:30 a.m. – 8:45 a.m. Breakfast Buffet Open
Regency Foyer and Main Ballroom
9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. Opening General Session
Main Ballroom
Opening Remarks: Ellie Dallman, MMANC President
The Light Shines Through – 9-11 Remembrances & Reflections

NYPD Chief of Interagency Operations, Theresa Tobin will be kicking off the annual MMANC conference! Hear from Chief Tobin as she talks about what we can learn from the resiliency following 9-11.

Chief Tobin earned a Ph.D. and Master of Arts degree in Criminal Justice; a Master of Social Work; and a Bachelor of Science degree in Sociology/Social Work. She has been a New York State Certified Social Worker since 1985. Chief Tobin is also a graduate of the FBI Academy, the Columbia University’s Police Management Institute; and, Harvard University’s Senior Executives in State and Local Government Program.

During her career, Chief Tobin has received numerous honors and medals including and the NYPD’s Medal of Valor and a Special Congressional Recognition in honor of her heroism, bravery and sacrifice during the tumultuous events of September 11, 2001.

10:30 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. Coffee & Tea Break
Regency Foyer – Conference Center, Second Floor
10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. CGL Session 1– Keys to Successful Legislative Advocacy in Sacramento
(1/2 credit for Legislative Program Management)
Regency I Room
This CGL course will introduce attendees to the basics of managing a robust Legislative Advocacy Program. This 90-minute course will provide an overview of the State’s legislative process and how Cities can leverage Legislative Programs to participate and make an impact in that process. The presentation will take a look at best practices and case studies of successful city and coalition advocacy efforts as well as provide a recap of some of the biggest bills from the most recent legislative session that will impact Cities in the future. Presentation flow will look like:

  • Overview of Legislative Process
  • Role of a Municipal Legislative Platform/Framework
  • What advocacy looks like day-to-day
  • Successful advocacy case study
  • Overview of the 2021-22 Legislative Session
  • Q&A

This course will meet the CGL Effective Area of Legislative Program Management. The Course will facilitate the professional development of CGL participants by giving them an understanding of the State’s legislative process, ways to participate in the process, and case studies on how to best manage a City’s Legislative Program as well as an overview of legislative outcomes from the most recent legislative session.

Presenters:
Andres Ramirez, Senior Associate, Townsend Public Affairs
Carly Shelby, Legislative Associate, Townsend Public Affairs

10:30 a.m. – 11:45 a.m. Police Reform is Not Optional and it’s On Us
Main Ballroom
Police reform remains a controversial topic in the public. Come listen to Jonathan Holtzman discuss the main components of ongoing police reform efforts and the critical role city and county management can play in successful police reform efforts. Politic aside, this is a concrete issue for government to resolve. City and County Managers will be charged with helping to decide what reform initiatives make sense, and how they can be implemented.
Presenter:
Jonathan V. Holtzman, Founding Partner of Renne Public Law Group
The Secret Life of Grants: Hidden Costs
Regency IV Room
Maximizing and sustaining revenue is more important now than ever. ARPA Funding and Federal Grants are a chief source of revenue across the board for state, local, and tribal governments, and vehicles for achieving resilience. Agencies spend on average 30-40% of total program cost in indirect cost to support federally funded grant programs. However, much of this indirect cost ends up being subsidized by the General Fund. It is critical that agencies understand their true costs in order to support their programs long-term and remain Rooted in Resilience. This session will impart awareness of true program cost, enabling sustainability; and uncover the opportunity for maximizing grant funding.
Presenters:
Kimberly Konczak, Associate Director of Operations, HdL
Nicky Lettini, VP of Indirect Cost Services, eCivis
11:45 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Break
3:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. Exhibit Hall Open
Regency Foyer
12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m Lunch Buffet Open
Regency Foyer and Main Ballroom
Lunchtime Trivia and Networking
Main Ballroom
1:00 p.m. – 4:45 p.m. Mock Interviews
Oak Tree II Room
Are you ready to take the next step in your local government career? Do you need to sharpen your interview skills to set yourself apart from other candidates? Whether you are an early career professional looking to advance or a more experienced public servant ready for their first director or executive position, the MMANC Mock Interview Session at the Annual Conference will help get you prepared! Pre-Registration is required for this event. Contact Liz Habkirk at LHabkirk@cityofnapa.org for more information.
Coordinators:
Jessica Deakyne, Assistant City Manager, City of Novato
Liz Habkirk, Assistant City Manager, City of Napa
1:15 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. CGL Session 2– The Essential Skills of Local Government Leaders
(Full credit for Creative and Critical Thinking)
Regency I Room
How do we keep up with the speed of change and address increasingly complex challenges in our communities? We empower people to pause and use simple, yet powerful problem-solving skills to efficiently and effectively move through uncertainty. Even though the challenges and opportunities we face can be enormously complex, the skills we adopt to achieve deep impact can be streamlined and simplified. In this hands-on workshop, attendees will get a chance to practice five key skills that have transformed the ways multiple local governments address problems. These skills can help local governments know what ideas to pursue in an environment of numerous diverse stakeholders, constrained resources, and unpredictable demographic, economic, and political shifts.The skills encompass the essential elements of human-centered design, rapid experimentation, and agile practices in order to help change makers and organizations create deeper impact. Pause for Change will walk attendees through individual and small group exercises and share examples from deploying these new skills to address multiple vexing challenges.
Presenter:
Heather Hiscox, Founder and CEO, Pause for Change
1:15 p.m. – 2:15 p.m. Building a Resilient Food System through Local Climate Policy
Regency IV Room
In this session, participants will learn about the opportunities for local government to improve food system and ecosystem resilience as an integrated part of their climate action planning process. Jurisdictions across California are exploring how to integrate working lands into their climate policies, including Marin and Sonoma Counties, especially as carbon sequestration becomes a necessary tool to meet California’s climate goals. A collaboration, funded by the Department of Conservation, brought together the San Mateo Resource Conservation District (SMRCD), San Mateo County (SMC), and the Carbon Cycle Institute to quantify the potential carbon sequestration on working lands in and craft a board-adopted policy that will incentivize climate beneficial agriculture and support carbon farming practices through the Working Lands chapter in the forthcoming Community Climate Action Plan. Together, the panelists will speak to the critical role that the agricultural community plays in stewarding local ecosystems and sequestering carbon toward reaching climate goals, and lessons learned in laying out strategies that enable the agricultural community to scale on-farm conservation and climate resilience work.
Specific aspects of the San Mateo County team’s work will be highlighted: co-learning policy processes that has deepened the capacity of government and RCD staff, carbon sequestration scenarios along with a first-generation agricultural emissions inventory integrated with “urban-oriented” emissions accounting, as well as a policy process directly informed by input from producers. The information guiding each county’s work has come directly from the agricultural sector, in an effort to center farmer perspectives and aspirations, making the findings usable in other counties. The outcome of these dialogues and boundary-crossing conversations is a framework and basis upon which targeted investments can be made from local and State government and private donors to build agricultural resilience, steward resources and habitats, and sequester carbon.

Learning Objectives:

  • Participants should gain a deeper understanding of the role working lands play in ecosystem resilience as well as the threats to that resilience brought by climate change.
  • Participants should gain a deeper understanding of the role that climate action plans can play in securing food system and ecosystem resilience.
  • Participants should gain an appreciation for their local resource conservation district, or similar agricultural partner and the opportunity for collaboration and co-learning between local government and agricultural stakeholders to inform cutting edge local climate policy.

Presenters:
Adria Arko, Senior Program Manager (Agriculture and Climate) and San Mateo County Agricultural Ombudsman
Avana Andrade, Senior Sustainability Specialist, San Mateo County Office of Sustainability

1:15 p.m. – 2:45 p.m. We Are Not Throwing Away Our Shot: How San Jose Became the Most Vaccinated Large City in the Country
Main Ballroom
With a population of over one million residents, the City of San José faced numerous challenges throughout the COVID-19 pandemic emergency response. Learn how partnership, communication, and innovation all played a role in saving lives and livelihoods – one person, one family, one neighborhood, one community – at a time.This session will explain how the City of San Jose identified its residents with higher risk of contracting COVID-19 and the steps involved on how best to serve and care for them through the pandemic.This session will also examine how City departments succeeded in overcoming the difficulties of shifting priorities, processes, and procedures through a never-before-seen global pandemic.After attending this session, participants will be able to identify the key internal and external stakeholders when planning, implementing, and evaluating COVID-19 pandemic response initiatives and campaigns.This session focuses on the challenges and successes that the City of San Jose faced throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly the disproportionately affected groups such as people who are experiencing homelessness; people with mobility, cognitive, vision, hearing, independent living, and/or self-care disabilities; and groups that have been economically and socially marginalized.
Presenters:
Alvin Galang, Assistant to the City Manager, City of San José
Cesar Martinez, Bureau of Field Operations, San José Fire Department
Anh T. Tran, Manager of Facilities, Security, and Inter-Branch Delivery, San José Public Library
2:15 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. Coffee and Tea Break
Regency Foyer
2:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. Litigation Trends in an Emerging Post Pandemic World
Regency IV Room
Employer and agencies can continue to expect legal challenges related to COVID-19 as we shift into a post-pandemic world. This presentation will forecast expected litigation trends as more employees return to a “new normal” workplace. This presentation will specifically highlight how hybrid or work from arrangements may impact requests for reasonable accommodations and the interactive process, the effects of any vaccine or booster policy in a post-pandemic world, and projected wage and hour issues.
Presenter:
Jesse Maddox, Attorney
3:30 p.m. – 3:45 p.m. Break
3:45 p.m. – 4:45 p.m. The Coastside Recovery Initiative–One Community’s Roadmap to Recovery
Main Ballroom
How do businesses and communities recover from the impacts of COVID? What role does government play in creating a more equitable, vibrant, and resilient economy? Take a journey with one rural, coastal California city as we persevere through the challenges and opportunities of creating and implementing a recovery plan and a future economy that works for all. Learn how to create a recovery plan that is community driven, anchored to data, takes into consideration regional connections while not losing sight of local needs, and is appropriately ambitious in government’s role of getting to the next economy.
Presenters:
Karen Decker, City of Half Moon Bay
Erica Wood, Wood Consulting Services
Introduction to MMANC–How to get the most out of your membership
Regency IV Room
Connect with experts, upgrade your skills, stay informed and keep it local with your MMANC membership. This workshop discusses how to become an engaged MMANC member and how to participate in programs such as Credentialed Government Leader (CGL), a joint venture between MMANC, MMASC and Cal-ICMA. CGL provides foundational tools, experiences and connections designed to develop participants’ knowledge, self-awareness and skill set.
Presenters:
Anthony Valdez, MMANC Director of Membership
Justin Lovell, MMANC CGL Program Director
4:45 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. Sponsor Hall Welcoming Reception
Sponsored by Ascendent
Claim your complimentary beverage and meet with our numerous exhibitors. If you visit each of our exhibitors and complete your bingo card, you will be entered into our Friday raffle drawing for some great prizes. 
7:00 p.m. Cal-ICMA Networking Dinner
Lalla Grill Oceanside
654 Cannery Row
Monterey, CA 93940
Cal-ICMA is excited to host a networking dinner at the 2022 MMANC Annual Conference on Wednesday, October 26, at Lalla Grille Oceanside. Check out the venue here.Dinner options include:

  • Lobster shrimp enchilada
  • Bolognese
  • Brick chicken
  • Vegetarian pasta with marinara sauce

Cal-ICMA will provide 1 complimentary drink ticket per attendee.

Ticket purchase link

Thursday, October 27, 2022
7:00 a.m. – 8:00 a.m. Bob Murray and Associates 5K Walk/Run
Get ready to run… or walk in the 5k fun walk/run event taking place at 7:00 a.m. on October 26th. We ask that participants check in outside of the south entrance of the conference center by 6:45 a.m. At 7:00 a.m. we will take a quick group photo and the event will begin at 7:05 a.m. The route will take us down Sloat Avenue to the Monterey Peninsula Recreational Trail for an out-and-back route. All participants will be asked to follow the rules of the road which include obeying signalized intersections.Shirts will be available at the Bob Murray and Associates vendor table and will be distributed on a first-come, first-serve basis. We ask that you pick up your shirt early and wear it proudly for the event.
7:30 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. Breakfast Buffet Open
Regency Foyer and Main Ballroom
9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Registration Open
Exhibit Hall Open
Regency Foyer
9:15 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. CGL Session 3 – Change Leadership: How to Lead and Manage Change Effectively
(Full credit for Organizational Leadership)
Regency I Room
Change leadership is a proactive, people-centric approach to change management, visualizing change initiatives as an opportunity for organizational growth and improvement rather than a finite project. It requires being visionary, agile, and responsive to hanging organizational needs and requirements, and understanding how to overcome common barriers to change. This CGL course will introduce participants to the concepts of change leadership and organizational change management. Gone are the days when organizations can manage change at a comfortable pace. Every public organization is experiencing volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) times. Bigger, faster, more complex, more cross-functional, more multi-disciplinary change is the new norm. Change leaders are not the same as change managers. This session will help attendees understand the critical differences between leading and managing change initiatives. Key concepts to be covered in this session include:

  • Overview of the change management process: what it is, why it’s important, benefits of change management
  • Top reasons why change management initiatives fail
  • What is change leadership?
  • Change leadership versus change management
  • How change leaders make a difference
  • Skills required to lead change effectively versus managing change
  • Case studies
  • Q & A

Presenters:
Pat Martel, ICMA West Coast Regional Director, Retired City Manager
Dr. Kurt Wilson, President, Cal-ICMA
Elisa Cox, Vice-President, Cal-ICMA
Denna Hilbrants, Board Member, Women Leading Government

9:15 a.m. – 10:15 a.m. How City Managers Manage Challenging Situations
Main Ballroom
In this session, three City Managers will (1) share their career journey, (2) discuss current challenges their organizations are facing and how they’re addressing them, and (3) talk about how staff can support leaders, organizations, and build resilient organizations. Objectives:

  1. Discuss how leaders navigate challenging situations
  2. Describe what role staff play in a resilient organization
  3. Explain how staff can support their organization and leaders in challenging times

Presenters:
Dan Buckshi, City Manager, City of Walnut Creek
Michael A. Malone, City Manager, City of Vallejo
Kelly McAdoo, City Manager, City of Hayward

Rumor Has It: Tools for Dispelling Social Media Misinformation
Regency IV Room
Social media has become a powerful tool that has dominated our communication routines and become the most common bridge between government agencies and their constituents, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. With most people getting their “news” via social media, there is more of a risk for your agency’s message to be misconstrued or for misinformation to spread. Tripepi Smith President Ryder Todd Smith will share his insights gained from assisting local government agencies navigating through these situations. Attendees will walk away from this session with a roster of tips and tools to utilize when establishing trust within your community and promoting truths.
Resiliency area: resilient organizations

Presenter:
Ryder Todd Smith, President, Tripepi Smith

10:15 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. Break
10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Historic Walking Tours
Tour 1: Monterey Path of History
Walk the “Path of History” to experience the birthplace of early California’s capital and the beginning of California’s statehood. Start at the Custom House – the first government building in California. Along the way, see historic gardens & buildings and learn about the people behind them. Visit Colton Hall, the site of the 1849 California Constitution Convention where the first bi-lingual state constitution was created. Tour lead by Richard Fletcher, California State Parks & Brian Edwards, City of Monterey – Library & Museums Director.
Meet at Custom House Museum near Fisherman’s Wharf.

The length of the tour is 2 miles and will last 90 minuntes. Space is limited to 15. Recommended Attire: Wear layers for Monterey weather and closed-toe shoes are recommended.

There is no cost to Annual Conference registrants. Conference registration is required.

Online Registration

Tour 2: Monterey Harbor

Join Harbormaster Brian Nelson and Assistant City Manager Nat Rojanasathira on a walking tour of the historic Monterey Harbor. Located in the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, one of the largest marine sanctuaries in the world, the Monterey Harbor provides access to a variety of recreational and commercial opportunities in a scenic setting. Having been under the control of three nations (Spain, Mexico, and the United States), the harbor has been managed by the City of Monterey since 1913.

In 1769, Spanish explorer Gaspar de Portola was sent north and in 1770 located Monterey Harbor and the ultimate City of Monterey was founded. California remained under Spanish control with Monterey as its capital until 1822, when Mexico added California to its empire. After war broke out between the United States and Mexico in 1846, Commodore Sloat, on landing in Monterey, claimed California for the Union. The walking tour will take visitors through the three main sections of the City’s harbor: commercial wharf (Municipal Wharf No. 2) where sustainable fishing operations thrive; the marina, used by recreational boaters and liveaboards; and Old Fisherman’s Wharf, home to numerous restaurants, gift shops, and whale watching companies.

Registration is limited to 18 people. Meeting location is in front of the Harbor Office, 250 Figueroa Street.

Online Registration

Three Approaches to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging
Main Ballroom
How do you pave the path towards a more equitable and inclusive community? How does a community embrace diversity and foster a sense of belonging? And where do you start?Every path is unique. Some cities start with external community engagement. Other cities want to internally lay the foundation for engaging in equity work. Representatives from three cities will share their approach in this session. Hear about their challenges, successes and lessons learned.
Moderator:
Jacqueline Guzman, Deputy City Manager, City of SunnyvalePanelists:
Holly Young, Management Analyst, Town of Los Gatos
Briana Evans, Equity and Inclusion Officer, Redwood City
Beatriz Guerrero Auna, Equity & Public Health Senior Planner, City of Santa Rosa
10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. Public Engagement as a Means to Build Resiliency
Regency IV Room
Responding and bouncing back from a major crisis is an important feature of any successful government or municipal agency. The COVID pandemic highlighted how many municipalities and agencies could benefit from an increased focus on public engagement techniques as a means of cultivating a more resilient and better functioning organization at any level to respond to a variety of crises. Public engagement helps put the policy focus where it belongs, on the people, so that agencies can co-create more resilient plans, innovative ideas, and serve their residents in the best way possible. With healthy public engagement frameworks already in place, an organization can successfully weather any threat, together with their residents.
Presenter:
Maureen Tobin, Executive Director, Davenport Institute
12:00 p.m. – 1:45 p.m. Lunch on Your Own: Nourish and Network
Thursday’s Lunch is on your own, but we’ve helped to take the guesswork on where to eat! Enjoy a great lunch from one of the selected located in lively downtown Monterey and connect with fellow conference attendees to reflect on the topics discussed during the conference. Spots are limited at each location, sign up today using this form if you’re interested in attending!
Locations Map
2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. CGL Session 4– Team Building Lab: Building Workplace Culture, Promoting Pride, and Engaging Employees
(1/2 credit for Creating a Culture of Success)
Regency I Room
This interactive and engaging workshop begins with a conversation about Organization Development and how to better understand your team, we will also discuss needs assessment tools and methods. You will get to engage in some team building techniques and activities to see the impact and value in these practices. The workshop will also include how to promote organizational pride and get employees excited about being a part of the team. These components all create a business and human case for building resilience in organizations, see how team building can change the game for your employees.
Recommended articles for participants to review:
2022 Guide to Employee Engagement
Team Building and Performance in Organizations
Building Team Bonds
Resiliency after Rejection
Main Ballroom
You poured your heart and soul into your job, a new project or maybe a grant application. But you were told your best wasn’t good enough. Setbacks such as these can represent an opportunity for growth. A panel of Bay Area city leaders will discuss how rejection can make us stronger and prepare for future achievement.
Presenters:
Jessica Deakyne, Assistant City Manager, City of Novato
Christa Johnson, Town Manager, Town of Ross
Nat Rojanasathira, Assistant City Manager, City of Monterey
2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. CZU Partnering for Community Resilience
Regency IV Room
How Puente de la Costa Sur and the County of San Mateo worked together during the CZU fire of 2020 to provide emergency services to residents of the rural South Coast communities of San Mateo County. This presentation will cover coordinated response with Puente, the County of San Mateo Human Services Agency and other organizations, outreach to community members, shelter operations, and long-term recovery. Todd will address the challenges of building mass care & shelter capability in such a remote and geographically hard to reach corner of the county, the value of the partnership and how it helps us make progress, as well as how partnerships like the one with Puente broaden their perspective by incorporating different cultural perspectives into their work. Rita will discuss her perspective of community preparedness/resilience and how Puente approaches its work in this regard, and how Puente’s vision of self-sufficiency, diversity and equity relate to community resilience in disasters. We will explore how communities can tap into its own strengths and how partnerships like ours can enable and support these efforts.
Presenters:
Todd Blair, Emergency Response Manager, County of San Mateo Human Services Agency
Rita Mancera, Executive Director, Puente de la Costa Sur
3:00 p.m. – 3:45 p.m. Coffee & Tea Break
Regency Foyer
3:45 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. Keynote: Developing High Resiliency Public Organizations: Challenging Assumptions and Strategies for Succeeding
Presented by Stifel
Main Ballroom
High Resilient Organizations (HROs) are adaptive organizations that also embrace specific principles that guide their operations. Their leaders learn how to quickly recognize emergent crises and develop focused strategies for addressing them. But there are five general assumptions that are prevalent among public sector managers that make it difficult to adapt to changing circumstances and makes them less resilient when faced with challenges. This presentation identifies those assumptions and provides practical tools for managers to get beyond those assumptions and turn their units, departments, and entire organizations into HROs.
Speaker:
David Fraser, Ed.D
6:00 p.m – 9:00 p.m. Beach Bash Dinner & Reception, Sponsored by Tripepi Smith, Climatec, and California JPIA
Offsite: Monterey Beach House, 285 Figueroa Street
Transportation provided starting at 5:45 p.m. from the Hyatt Lobby Registration includes Transportation, Dinner, No-Host Bar and Reception. Additional tickets available for purchase ($50) here.
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Friday, October 28, 2022
8:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. Morning Yoga & Sports Center Tour
301 E. Franklin Street Monterey, CA 93940
Join the City of Monterey for yoga and a tour of their award-winning Sports Center. The City of Monterey operates a premier fitness facility that offers group exercise, personal training, aquatics, and gym and camp youth programs. The Sports Center is a community favorite and has been named the Best Health Club in Monterey County for over seven years. This activity will include a 45-minute yoga class followed by a 15-minute tour at no cost to conference attendees. All skill levels are welcome and attendees should bring their own yoga mats and any other supplies they will need.
The yoga session will be in Studio 1 at the Monterey Sports Center.

Morning Yoga Registration

8:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. Breakfast Buffet Open
Regency Foyer and Main Ballroom
10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. Keynote–Building Resilience: Lessons on the Nature of Burnout
Main Ballroom
Burnout is a natural phenomenon: it occurs in nature, therefore it occurs in us as humans. The good news? We have an innate ability to build resilience in response to burnout. We can even learn to predict when burnout will occur and cultivate habits to reduce its impact. Together, we will examine the conditions that lead to burnout and explore what today’s leaders can do to build resilience in themselves, their teams, and their communities.
Speaker:
Ryan Giordano, Founder & Growth Coach, Growthwave
11:00 a.m. – 11:15 a.m. Conference Closing & Basket Raffle
Main Ballroom