Supporting Leadership Through Transition
In November, thirty-six states and three U.S. territories elected governors. Although only four governor’s seats changed party hands, two of those states resulted in a single party gaining control of both branches of the legislature and the governors’ office; two resulted in divided government, with the governor coming from a different party than the majority of legislative members. Partisanship and economic uncertainty have the potential to undermine the public’s trust in public institutions at a time when conditions require strategic decision making and operational resiliency. These conditions also make the role of the state government accountability community - state auditors, comptrollers, and treasurers - more critical than ever before.
At the National Association of State Auditors, Comptrollers, and Treasurer’s (NASACT) Annual Conference in August 2022, Gila Bronner, President and CEO of Bronner Group, LLC, facilitated a discussion about this topic with South Carolina Comptroller General Richard Eckstrom, Maryland State Treasurer Dereck Davis, Indiana State Examiner Paul Joyce, and Mississippi State Treasurer David McRae.
Despite continued stability in elected state leadership in South Carolina, Comptroller General Eckstrom emphasized the importance of transparency and the importance of the Comptroller’s Office in supporting the continuity of state government functions. Under Mr. Eckstrom’s leadership, the Office of the Comptroller General has leveraged technological developments, like upgraded ERP platforms, to provide new insights to legislators and constituents while simultaneously establishing institutionalized processes through digitization (modernization) efforts.
State Examiner Joyce’s recommendations focused on leveraging the State Board of Accounts’ (SBOA) role as an audit and accountability agency to support better governance. The SBOA provides training for newly elected local officials and ongoing educational opportunities for state and local government officials. State Examiner Joyce also advocated for the SBOA to support seamless continuity of state government operations by preparing manuals for newly elected officials.
During his own transition, Treasurer Davis was a proponent of sustaining and preserving institutional memory. A member of the Maryland House of Delegates for 26 years, Mr. Davis was elected to be Maryland’s State Treasurer and assumed that role in December of 2021. To minimize disruptions and ensure continuity, Treasurer Davis worked to curtail staff turnover during his transition to diminish the loss of institutional knowledge.
Treasurer McRae recently joined Mississippi state government and brought insights on business continuity from the private sector. To improve the efficiency and continuity of service delivery, Mr. McRae leveraged technology to automate certain Treasurer’s Office functions. One example is the use of an online portal that allows Mississippians to identify and access unclaimed funds. Making this tool available has allowed the Mississippi Treasury to return more than $60 million over the past three years, substantially increasing its process efficiency during a period of adverse conditions caused by the pandemic.
For over 35 years, Bronner has helped public sector clients make accountability matter. Bronner ’s government optimization consulting strengthens organizational resiliency so that institutions are positioned to emerge from transitionary periods better equipped to serve their constituents. Bronner’s multi-disciplinary, deeply experienced team is equipped to support state and local leaders who want to create a culture of accountability through the development of strategies, change management support for transformation, deployment of accountability tools and processes, and technical support. These transformational initiatives improve the accountability infrastructure ensuring that governments are equipped to provide the best possible services to their constituents.