Contact: Michele Frisby, Dir., Public Information; mfrisby@icma.org, 202-962-3658

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Marc A. Ott, the distinguished municipal manager who currently serves as executive director of ICMA, the International City/County Management Association, has been selected as a 2017 recipient of the prestigious National Public Service Award. The award will be conferred on Sunday, March 19, 2017, at 3:30 p.m. at the Elliott Richardson Lecture during ASPA’s 2017 Annual Conference in Atlanta, Georgia.

Established by the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA) and the National Academy of Public Administration (NAPA), the National Public Service Award honors individuals who make outstanding contributions to and whose accomplishments can be viewed as models of public service, both inside and outside the work environment.

"On behalf of the board and members of ICMA, we are delighted that Marc has been chosen as a 2017 recipient of the National Public Service Award," said Lee Feldman, ICMA Executive Board President and City Manager of Fort Lauderdale, Florida.  "Marc’s celebrated public service career spans nearly four decades, and his receipt of this award is only one more validation of his success as a local government management professional.”

National Public Service Award recipients come from diverse backgrounds and are often willing to take risks to achieve change, make a profound difference to improve service to the public, achieve substantial savings in government operations, develop a cadre of other government leaders, and contribute to the communities in which they live. While there are a number of awards that honor public servants, only the National Public Service Award recognizes the contributions of public service practitioners across all sectors of government.

“I am overwhelmed and humbled to be recognized with the National Public Service Award,” said Ott. “My sincere appreciation and thanks go to ASPA, NAPA, and the individuals who nominated me. When I changed directions many years ago from law to public management, I realized I would have the opportunity to serve and improve the lives of others,” he said. “I have tremendous optimism for local government and for our communities, and I truly believe that the future is as bright as we choose to make it.”

Before joining ICMA as executive director in late October 2016, Ott served as city manager of Austin, Texas, a full-service city with 40+ departments, a workforce of 14,000 employees, an all-funds budget of $3.7 billion, and a Triple-A bond rating that was maintained throughout his tenure.  During his nearly nine years as chief executive and chief administrative officer, Ott championed employee empowerment, civic dialogue, innovation, and fiscal sustainability with the goal of having Austin recognized as the "Best Managed City in America."

During his tenure with Austin, Ott received a number of awards and honors.  In 2011, he was one of only six senior public sector administrators worldwide—including in Los Angeles, Chicago, Las Vegas, Vienna (Austria), and Melbourne (Australia)—who were highlighted for their exceptional local management practices in the CAO Chronicles of Public Sector Digest. 

In 2013, Ott was recognized with ICMA’s highest professional honor, the Award for Career Excellence in Memory of Mark E. Keane, for his creative approach to such challenging issues as budget deficits, homelessness, infrastructure management, and education.  Ott’s insistence that “a good idea is a good idea, regardless of where it comes from,” was put in to practice early in his tenure with Austin, as the city faced a $30 million budget gap which, if left uncorrected, most likely would have persisted over time. Through a creative combination of employee-generated cost savings, thoughtful service reductions, strategic infrastructure investing, and unprecedented public involvement, Ott and his team navigated the fiscal challenge without laying off a single employee.

Also in 2013, Ott and the City of Austin received ICMA’s Community Sustainability Award, which recognizes innovative local government programs that creatively balance a community’s social, economic, environmental, and cultural needs. The city was cited for the Austin Energy Green Building program, a rating system initially designed for single-family homes that expanded to include multifamily and commercial buildings.

During Ott’s tenure as city manager, Austin was consistently recognized by the ETC Institute as one of the best cities in America for municipal service delivery, exceeding the national average in almost every public service category.  In 2013, Austin was ranked number one among 13 cities with populations over 500,000, and continues to garner top marks in community satisfaction rates when compared to other large cities in the country. In February of this year, U.S. News & World Report unveiled the 2017 Best Places to Live in the United States, among which Austin was ranked number 1.

Ott has had a long and distinguished career in municipal management.  Before joining Austin, he served as assistant city manager for infrastructure services for the City of Fort Worth, Texas (2002-08), where he was responsible for the infrastructure operations carried out by the Water, Transportation and Public Works, Engineering, and Aviation departments. He was also responsible for implementing one of the city council's top strategic priorities: promoting orderly growth.

Prior to moving to Texas, Ott served as city administrator of Rochester Hills, Michigan (1998-2002), where he had administrative and managerial oversight over all municipal operations. He also served as city manager (1993-97), deputy city manager (1991-1993), and as an assistant city manager (1990-91) in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Ott served in leadership and support roles for the cities of Grand Rapids and Jackson, Michigan (1982-90), and as a staff assistant to the Michigan Municipal League (1981-82).

Ott earned his bachelor's degree in management with a concentration in economics from Michigan's Oakland University and a master's in public administration from the same university. He is also a graduate of the Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and serves on the Board of Directors for the Alliance for Innovation. Ott received an ICMA Service Award in 2012 in honor of his 30 years of service to local government.

About ICMA

ICMA, the International City/County Management Association, advances professional local government worldwide. The organization’s mission is to create excellence in local governance by developing and fostering professional management to build sustainable communities that improve people’s lives. ICMA provides member support, ethics education and enforcement, publications, data and information, peer and results-oriented assistance, and training and professional development to appointed city, town, and county leaders and other individuals and organizations throughout the world.