City of Austin

City Manager Marc Ott is one of six municipal executives worldwide featured in the winter issue of Public Sector Digest, an international publication focusing on in-depth analysis of government-related issues.

Ott was interviewed by the publication as part of its feature section, “6 Global Cities, 6 Executives, 6 Conversations--The Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Chronicles.”  A number of issues specific to Austin were discussed in the article, including what Ott believes Austin will look like in 20 years.

“We will be leaders in green technology, government transparency and accountability,” Ott said, acknowledging that Austin faces significant challenges as it continues to rapidly grow.

Other top public executives interviewed were from the municipal governments in Chicago; Las Vegas; Los Angeles; Melbourne, Australia; and Vienna.

Public Sector Digest reaches more than 140,000 public sector practitioners across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia. The majority of its readership consists of executive-level decision makers within municipal, provincial and national public sector organizations, universities, public sector associations, and private sector companies with an interest in public sector issues.

"The CAO Chronicles highlight the innovative work being done by the managerial leaders of some of the most interesting cities in the world,” said Israr Ahmad, Managing Editor of Public Sector Digest. “While many of the challenges facing these municipal governments are certainly unique to their exceptional cities, all municipal leaders can learn from the strategies employed by these CAOs to improve their own organizations."

Within the feature, Ott made a point to discuss what the City of Austin is doing to address transportation and mobility issues.

“When we talk about the most challenging circumstances facing a city, transportation mobility is almost always near the top,” Ott said. 

The article also provided significant attention to the City’s uniquely transparent budget process.

“One of my objectives was to put together a budget process that would take the mystery out of how a municipality crafts its budget,” Ott stated in the article.

View a copy of the interview conducted by Public Sector Digest.