2012 NASCA Institute on Management and Leadership

Mario Moussa, Wharton School of Business
Despite differences across states’ administrative priorities and responsibilities, all SCAs play a critical leadership role in overseeing the extent to which a state’s overall performance is positively impacted by how it conducts its business through process improvements and policy development. In order to be successful in their roles, there are several core competencies that both current and prospective SCAs can employ. Mario Moussa will present findings from the NASCA white paper, What it Takes to Be a Successful State Chief Administrator: Core Competencies for Effective Leadership, and walk participants through a self-assessment in an interactive discussion of the research.

3:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. – National Governors Association Update
Aliza Wasserman, National Governors Association
What issues are governor’s talking about? How do current topics for governors affect State Chief Administrators? Aliza Wasserman will provide a high-level overview of the National Governors Association, share information on their annual conference on government redesign, and provide SCAs with insight into the issues governors are discussing, like budget constraints and energy policies that impact their work.

David Thornburgh, Fels Institute of Government
Strong relationships are critical for facilitating state chief administrators’ goals. Whether they are seeking appropriations from the legislature, getting consensus on a specific project or striving to provide the best customer service, SCAs need the support of a number of groups of people at any given time. David Thornburgh will help participants improve their skills on how to get things done through strategic relationships in a political environment.

What issues are you facing in your state? Are you looking for advice from your peers on best practices around a certain initiative? Based on the challenges you identify, get advice, borrow an idea, or just connect with others facing the same challenges in the first of two structured networking sessions.

Mario Moussa, Wharton School of Business
What does it take to transform your organizational culture and make changes? In this workshop, Mario Moussa will help participants understand the building blocks needed to make change within your organization, the barriers that must be overcome and the essential leadership skills that help transform an organization’s culture.

Jeffery Thompson, Brigham Young University
What are successful tools and tactics that you can use to develop and engage your employees when you when you cannot incentivize performance with increased pay? In this workshop, Jeffery Thompson will discuss how employees express personal values through their work and how managers can tap into those values to get the best performance out of their employees.

Helio Fred Garcia, New York University
The actions state chief administrators take in crisis situations are under strict scrutiny and the importance of getting it right cannot be understated. In this workshop, Helio Fred Garcia will talk participants through effective crisis responses and the communication skills they need to lead their organizations through challenging times.

Note: The agenda is subject to change. Last Updated 6-19-2012

PRESENTER BIOGRAPHIES

Helio Fred Garcia, Logos Institute for Crisis Management & Executive Leadership
For more than 30 years Helio Fred Garcia has helped leaders build trust, inspire loyalty, and lead effectively. He is a coach, counselor, teacher, writer, and speaker whose clients include some of the largest and best-known companies and organizations in the world. Fred is currently the president of the crisis management firm Logos Consulting Group and executive director of the Logos Institute for Crisis Management & Executive Leadership. He is based in New York and has worked with clients in dozens of countries on six continents. Fred recently authored The Power of Communication: Skills to Build Trust, Inspire Loyalty, and Lead Effectively. Additionally, he is on the New York University faculty where he teaches courses in crisis management and communications strategy. He is also on the adjunct faculty of the Starr King School for the Ministry, Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, CA, where he teaches a seminar on religious leadership for social change. Fred has an MA in philosophy from Columbia University, and studied classical Greek language and literature in the Greek Institute of the City University of New York Graduate Center.

Mario Moussa, PhD, MBA, The Wharton School
A specialist in large-scale organizational change initiatives and collaboration, Dr. Moussa heads numerous executive programs at the Wharton School. He is the Co-Academic Director for the Wharton Strategic Persuasion Workshop, and has led the development of programs for executives in the pharmaceutical, banking and energy industries, corporate security managers, and physician leaders. In addition, he is a Senior Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania's Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics. Dr. Moussa is the co-author (with G. Richard Shell) of The Art of Woo: Using Strategic Persuasion to Sell Your Ideas. He has been widely published in the field of organizational dynamics, power, and influence. His work has been featured on National Public Radio and in print publications around the world, including Time, Business Week, U.S. News and World Report, The Harvard Management Update and HR Magazine. Dr. Moussa graduated from the Wharton MBA program and holds a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago's Committee on Social Thought.

Jeffery Thompson, PhD, MBA, Brigham Young University
Dr. Thompson is an associate professor at Brigham Young University’s Romney Institute of Public Management. Dr. Thompson’s research, published in top management and ethics journals, focuses on meaningful work and ethical dimensions of the organization-employee relationship. His recent article on work as a calling, published in Administrative Science Quarterly, was named Outstanding Publication in the field of Organizational Behavior by three different professional associations in 2009. He teaches courses in organizational behavior and business ethics in the Marriott School. He has led graduate students on several study abroad programs to Ghana to provide training to NGO leaders. He is a frequent lecturer and guest speaker on the topic of meaningful work. He earned a PhD in organizational behavior, with an emphasis in ethics, at the University of Minnesota in 1999. He enjoys racquetball, literature, theatre, and travel.

David B. Thornburgh, Fels Institute of Government
David Thornburgh was appointed Executive Director of the University of Pennsylvania’s Fels Institute of Government in August, 2008. Immediately prior to his appointment Thornburgh served as a Senior Advisor to the Econsult Corporation, a Philadelphia-based economic consulting firm. In 2006 and 2007 he served as CEO of the Alliance for Regional Stewardship (ARS), a national best practice network of leaders committed to building globally competitive regions. Before joining the Alliance Mr. Thornburgh served as Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Economy League (PEL) in Greater Philadelphia, which became one of the nation’s best regional “think and do tanks” under his leadership and received nine national awards. For his own professional and civic leadership, Mr. Thornburgh was awarded an Eisenhower Fellowship, and he has been named one of Philadelphia 101 most trusted and respected civic “connectors,” one of Philadelphia’s top “40 Business Leaders Under 40,” and one of five Outstanding Young Leaders in Philadelphia. He holds a BA in Political Science from Haverford College and a Master's Degree in Public Policy from Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government.

Aliza Wasserman, National Governors Associations
Aliza Wasserman serves as a Senior Policy Analyst in the Energy, Environment & Transportation Division at the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices. NGA is the bipartisan organization of the nation's governors that shares best practices in state policy and speaks with a collective voice on national policy. Aliza writes issue briefs, technical assistance memos, and organizes conferences for governors' energy advisors on state policy. Her areas of focus are energy efficiency, renewable energy, shale development and hydraulic fracturing, economic development, and water policy. She authored NGA's 2012 report Ten Trends to Track: State Policy Innovations to Advance Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. Over the last year, she organized a series of regional workshops on economic development in the clean energy sector. Aliza received her MPA from Princeton University, with a concentration in science, technology, & environmental policy. Previously, she served as program director at Community Alliance with Family Farmers helping to build local food economies. She also worked as a research associate at Business for Social Responsibility, advising multinational companies on their environmental and social practices.

John Nixon, State of Michigan
John Nixon serves as the State of Michigan’s Budget Director, overseeing a $48 billion annual budget. He also serves as Director of the Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget – an agency of nearly 2,500 employees – providing services to Michigan's citizens, businesses, state agencies, state employees and retirees.

John came to Michigan from Utah, where he served Governors Jon Huntsman and Gary Herbert as Director of the Governor's Office of Planning and Budget from 2006 - 2010. He also has experience in the private sector and the financial services industry.

John was recently named one of Government Technology Magazine’s Top 25 Doers, Dreamers and Drivers. In 2008, Nixon was chosen CFO of the Year for the public sector by Utah Business Magazine and was recognized as one of Utah's Forty Under Forty top business leaders. He was Adjunct Professor in the University of Utah’s MPA program and previously served as President of the National Association of State Budget Officers.
Nixon holds a BS degree in Corporate Finance from Brigham Young University and an MBA with an emphasis in Information Technology from the University of Utah.