Stephen Goldsmith

Recent Articles

• Can Local Governments Prevail?
• Sep 24, 2008
• A new award will recognize creativity in urban policy.

• Atlanta's Shirley Franklin
• Jul 14, 2008
• Indirect leadership is perhaps the most difficult to harness. But it can be done. Atlanta's mayor, Shirley Franklin, effectively used an indirect leadership strategy when she was determined to improve the services of the city's judicial system and eliminate wasteful practices in the organization.

• King County's Ron Sims
• Jun 23, 2008
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• Providence's David N. Cicilline
• Jun 8, 2008
• A particularly dynamic mayor often embodies the personality or tone of a city. How much influence a mayor has is critically dependent upon timing and context, though. When a mayor with a strong personality takes over a troubled city with latent assets, the stage is set for a mayor like David Cicilline to produce dramatic reforms.

• Private Schools, Public Education
• Jun 4, 2008
• What is the government role when private schools produce education for the public?

• Boston's Thomas M. Menino
• Mar 24, 2008
• In nearly every state across the country, families are being forced from their homes, and the American dream of homeownership is turning into a nightmare. Well before the current crisis, Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino made preserving and creating affordable housing a priority.

• Hope to Be the Next Silicon Valley? What Every Mayor Should Know
• Mar 10, 2008
• Transforming cities into competitive hubs for economic growth is a top priority for our nation's mayors. Yet, the traditional "firm chasing" and incentivizing efforts frequently fall short. This week, I welcome guest authors Ed Glaeser of the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and Robert Litan of the Kauffman Foundation to address this issue.

• Denver's John Hickenlooper
• Feb 25, 2008
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• Innovative Ideas for New Mayors
• Feb 11, 2008
• Achievements of recent winners of Harvard's Innovations in American Government Award were recognized, in part, because they are readily transferable to other jurisdictions.

• Lessons from Our Best
• Jan 28, 2008
• Over the coming months, I will spotlight some of the best and brightest ideas generated by our nation's mayors, county executives and other government leaders. We will examine the critical qualities, including leadership, tenacity and creativity, that enabled these leaders to transform government services.

• Chasing the Wrong Goals Faster
• Dec 19, 2007
• When implementing a "stat" program, writes Stephen Goldsmith, new officials would be well advised to focus on truly big issues with the goal of turning "performance" into public value.

• One Mayor's Provocative Leadership Lessons
• Oct 31, 2007
• Spearheaded by the mayor, Seattle has successfully reduced government carbon dioxide emissions and fossil fuel consumption. These achievements, writes Stephen Goldsmith, are the result of a provocative leader.

• Managing Infrastructure Investment
• Aug 8, 2007
• Infrastructure repair and maintenance typically do not make headlines, which makes the job of seeking investment extremely difficult. Fortunately, there are some promising approaches.

• Privatization: Transformation or Efficient Obsolescence?
• May 2, 2007
• Managers face two major challenges: how to protect their constituent's values and, of course, how to succeed in their policy goals.