MTAS Mustard for weeks ended 9-13-19 through 11-29-19

 


Hi There MTAS,

Have you missed the Mustard lately? I’m way more than a little behind in talking with you. After the MTAS retreat, I headed to the beach for a week – aaaahhh. After that, it’s been crazy-busy going here, there, and yonder. I have a lot to share with you, so grab an extra cup of coffee or tea and settle in for an informative read. 

I’d like to start off with recognition of all the birthdays and work anniversaries I missed for most of September, all of October and November. Let’s start with birthdays. Happy belated birthday wishes go to Warren (9/19), Abb (9/22), Lisa (9/23) and Kelly (also 9/23), Brett (10/1), Emily (10/28), Dawn (11/11), Kay (11/16) and Bethany (11/19). I hope you all celebrated with style and are looking forward to a great year ahead. As I looked for anniversaries, there weren’t any that I missed in September, but I sure did miss some in the other months. Happy Anniversary to: Frances (10/1), Elisha (10/6), Emily (10/8), Michelle B. (10/29), Melissa (11/1), Kelley (11/4), Sherri (11/5), Doug (11/20), and Sharon (11/26). Combined, these nine individuals represent 118 years of tenure dedicated to MTAS. Thanks for the longevity and your commitment to the agency!

But wait, I have more to celebrate. THANK YOU to all of you who contributed to the campus chest campaign. I was so proud that so many of you opted to be philanthropic and gave to a charity/cause of your choice. MTAS had 98% participation rate, and we raised 137% of our goal. I can’t help but smile when I think about the impact you all made across the state for all the worthwhile agencies. I’m pretty sure they are smiling too. Thanks again, and here’s a huge shout out to Armintha for once again representing MTAS as the campaign champion. Wahoo!!

Okay – I’m not done yet. In the words of infamous infomercials: But wait, there’s more! Please help me give Ronnie hearty congratulations on earning the Abbie Hudgens Distinguished Service Award from TN PRIMA a week and a half ago. Below is a picture of him receiving this prestigious award. For those who can’t read the small print in the photo, it says the “Tennessee Public Risk Management Association bestows its highest honor upon Ronnie Neill as recipient of the Abbie Hudgens Distinguished Service Award for years of dedicated and relentless service to the public risk discipline in Tennessee.” For those who read the IPS Catch Up, Ronnie received top billing in last week’s edition. I know we have an incredible staff here at MTAS, but it sure is nice to get reinforcement from others outside the agency. WAY TO GO RONNIE!



In early November, I met with the MTAS advisory board. It’s comprised of 15 individuals, and we had a terrific meeting at a state park. On the agenda, I asked for feedback on the agency’s progress on the strategic plan; to complete the sentence “I wish MTAS would…”; and I asked for their input on positions for succession planning. I also asked what was happening in their communities. It was an enlightening couple of days, and we all learned several things together. We even had a little fun with a trivia game, compliments of Ms. Loveday. Do you know who the third MTAS director was? I’ll tell you at the bottom of the Mustard. 

During the advisory board meeting, I gave them an update on the hiring status of several positions. I thought you’d like to know this too, so here you go: 

• Training Consultant (Memphis – new position) – Interviewing phase
• Training Coordinator (Nashville – Sarah’s former position) – Removed from job board to make changes to position description, will repost
• HR Consultant (Knoxville or Johnson City – John G.’s former position) – Interviewing phase
• HR Consultant (Jackson – new position) – Interviewing phase
• HR Consultant (Nashville – Richard S.) – Recruiting phase
• Municipal Court Specialist (Nashville – Paige’s former position) – Recruiting/screening phase
• Still to start hiring process (three new budgeted positions this year): Utility/PWK consultant for middle TN, a marketing/branding administrative position, and a third IT administrator for internal purposes.
• Management Consultant (Nashville – Joe C.’s former position) – recruiting phase

Finally, on the topic of the advisory board meeting, I shared with them the video that was produced for the ICMA Annual Conference that was held in Nashville October 20 – 23. Here is a link to the short film: https://www.dropbox.com/s/ymoymia8vc0gnd0/ICMA_MTAS_v3-FINAL.mp4?dl=0. I also gave a presentation at the conference on the MTAS model so that city managers in other states know how we work here in TN. The attendance wasn’t what I had hoped for, but the attendees from other states were definitely impressed by the support MTAS gives to cities.

Well, okay, just one more – THANK YOU!!! We just celebrated the Thanksgiving holiday, and I want you to know how much I appreciate everything that you do for our customers – internal and external. You are a wonderful team of folks that I am grateful to work with (and especially for). MTAS does amazing work and delivers excellent customer service. Thank you for helping make me so proud to say that I am a part of MTAS.

Most sincerely,
Margaret



TRIVIA ANSWER: The third MTAS director was Dr. E. Odell Miner (1980 – 1983)