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Nominations for the 2018 Navigator Awards will open on May 30
The road from conceiving a great idea to successfully implementing it requires ingenuity and innovation from many teams and individuals. In the second annual Navigator Awards, Route Fifty honored these individuals and teams who either work in or with state, county and municipal governments in the United States. Individuals and teams demonstrated their ability to implement a great idea that improves public sector services and the communities they serve. Nominations, reviewed by the Route Fifty editorial staff, were judged on three measurements: innovation, implementation and outcomes.
Fifty finalists will be chosen across five categories and the 10 winners will be announced in a ceremony in Charlotte, North Carolina, during the National League of Cities’ annual City Summit.
STATE AND LOCAL EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP
Who are the top executives in a state or local government who are driving change in the communities they serve, inspiring those who work inside or outside the government and getting things done in the process? Sometimes, the most successful state and local governments are the ones with leaders who focus on a particular idea, a tough challenge or policy area, beat the drum consistently and build the momentum needed to advance that idea, find solutions or otherwise bring about positive change. We want to recognize top leaders in state, county and municipal governments who know how to get things done. Individual and team nominations in this category could include:
- Elected officials, including Governors and Mayors
- City and County Administrators, Managers and Executives
IT AND DATA INNOVATORS
While top-level leaders often set a state or local government’s agenda, the implementation of innovative ideas is usually driven by champions elsewhere in government. And some of the best ideas out there are coming from those who deal with IT and data everyday. This category will highlight innovative technology and data leaders and effective teams who have taken an idea from inception to something that’s fully formed, implemented and making an impact. Individual and team nominations in this category could include:
- Chief Information Officers
- Chief Technology Officers
AGENCY AND DEPARTMENT LEADERSHIP
While top-level executive leadership can push an idea and drive change across multiple departments, it takes top-level managers to steer a steady ship when it comes to those individual departments and agencies within a state, county or municipal government being able to deliver and innovate. Which department or agency leaders have delivered on an innovative idea by harnessing the power of their teams and communities they serve and transform they way they deliver services to the public or their colleagues inside government? Individual and team nominations in this category could include:
- Department- and Agency-level Directors, Administrators and Commissioners
- Division Supervisors and Managers
THE NEXT GENERATION
Some of the best ideas out there in state and local government are coming from individuals or teams who are relatively new to the world of government and are bringing fresh ideas and perspectives to it. With more and more experienced public servants retiring, who is stepping up in state and local government? Who has taken an idea and made it something much bigger and better? Who not only has the ideas, but the innovative mind to make it reality? Who has been able to collaborate within their organization and other stakeholders in their community? Who has been making a major impact early in their career?
GOVERNMENT ALLIES AND CROSS-SECTOR PARTNERS
When it comes to state and local government innovation, there are plenty of champions of government who happen to work outside the public sector in non-profit organizations, philanthropies, associations and other groups. In addition, innovation in state, county and municipal governments are increasingly being driven by cross-sector collaboration. Who are those individuals and teams who are helping to implement great ideas? Nominations could include individuals and teams from:
- Non-profit Organizations
- Academic Institutions
- Philanthropies
- Associations
- Industry Partners