City of Morgan Hill Communications Assessment

process as part of the Downtown projects and single-lane pilot project. These responsibilities were the primary (and sometimes sole) focus for Maureen for approximately two years. Previously, Maureen had a part-time temporary employee who helped execute some day-to- day Communications responsibilities. The hours for this position currently are budgeted, but the position is unfilled at this time. Currently, Maureen Tobin has shifted back to focusing on the City’s overall Communications efforts and fulfills the role of Public Information Officer. She has received PIO training, Crisis Communications Training, and a Public Engagement Certification. Maureen oversees Communications for the City and certain Departments have empowered individuals to champion external communications. Tripepi Smith noted that a significant portion of Maureen’s time is dedicated to executing communications and monitoring/responding to conversations on social media. Per City Manager Steve Rymer, the goal is for all Departments to embrace their own proactive and strategic Communications efforts as a fundamental part of their work. This would enable Maureen to better manage the City’s communication efforts and allow her to focus more on proactive, strategic campaigns. As of this writing, Maureen has already taken the first steps in establishing a “Communications Team.” Tripepi Smith’s recommendations generally center on: • addressing the federated nature of Communications and attempting to better coordinate and plan communication activities • expanding the use of social media as a second digital front for the City’s online communications • documenting policies and procedures • pursuing a more aggressive media engagement strategy, particularly with new media. Additionally, Tripepi Smith has identified specific areas for improvement with Action Steps in each of those areas. Some of these Action Steps are immediately achievable with current resources, while others may require additional resources to implement. These details are present in the expansive Recommendations section at the end of this report. The general theme in these areas was either identifying how to improve upon existing processes or driving an evolution in strategy that could yield communications that better tell the City’s story, reach a larger portion of the community, and encourage more positive sentiment about the City. Summarized Observations General • The City is doing relatively well with its transparency efforts: it freely offers video recordings of important meetings via Granicus, and financial information such as employee compensation. • There is a growing concern about misinformation and rumors spreading rapidly online and the current/potential resources needed to address misinformation.

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