By Robert Bruner
My exposure to public service began at a young age through the Boy Scouts of America. Scouting was the formative experience in my life when I graduated from high school and went to college, so I decided to study political science and public service. I thought I would like to serve the public by becoming a United States Senator. Somewhere along the way I realized I was too introverted to run for public office (I later did anyway, but that is a story for another day). I thought I was better suited for an appointed position, and I was interested in international relations, so I set my sights on Secretary of State. I will spare you the details, but my plans changed again.
Suffice it to say, I stumbled into a career in local government management. I did not know the council-manager form of government existed in 2001 when I applied for Assistant to the City Manager of Oak Park, Michigan. I still remember City Manager Dan Fitzpatrick asking about my background during the interview. My resume indicated I had been preparing for a career in federal government, so he asked me why I wanted to work in local government, and I explained why I thought local government management was an ideal career for me. The rest is history.
During my career I have tried to make myself useful to students and early career professionals. Occasionally, I have met people with experience in politics who are interested in local government management. My first piece of advice is always the same: Pick a lane.
The ICMA Code of Ethics (Tenet 7) prohibits ICMA members (this means you too MME members) from running for or even accepting appointment to an elected office. However, I have seen each occur during my two years on the MME Ethics Committee. I do not believe the MME members intentionally violated Tenet 7. I think they were ignorant of it.
There are many ways to serve the public and the council-manager form of government needs both appointed and elected officials. However, we must each choose our lane and be aware of the potential consequences if we want to change. It can be done. For example, I worked with an elected official in 2014 who became a city manager in 2017. Dan Fitzpatrick retired as City Manager of Rochester, New Hampshire in 2018. In August 2021 he was appointed to fill a City Council vacancy.
Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could end up in the wrong lane. Public service is a noble calling. Be thoughtful how you answer the call.
Robert Bruner
Chair, Ethics Committee
Assistant City Manager, Troy
Robert Bruner became Assistant City Manager of Troy in 2019. Prior to that he served as Chief Executive Officer of the Michigan Municipal Services Authority (MMSA) from 2014 to 2019. He began his career in Oak Park in 2001 and subsequently worked in Ypsilanti, Ferndale, Birmingham, and Mount Clemens. You may reach him at (248) 524-3326 or r.bruner@troymi.gov.