Sponsored by Orlo

This month, we’re proud to be supported by Orlo, the digital engagement platform built for the public sector.

From social media management and archiving to AI insights and customer service management, Orlo helps teams streamline communications, stay responsive, and build public trust—whether it’s crisis comms or everyday updates.

Oh, hi!

It’s the first Monday of football season which means it’s also the season of breaking down what went wrong, making the right adjustments, and coming back stronger next week. Even if you’ve never set a lineup, you know the feeling: trying to mix the right skills with the right plan so everything works under pressure.

That’s city leadership, too. The outcomes residents feel every day aren’t about one star — they’re about roles that fit together, cover for each other, and adapt when things change.

Three Things You Should Know

1️⃣ Know your starters (basic positions). Department communications leads/PIOs, channel owners (website editor, email/newsletter, each social channel), community platform managers (forums/Nextdoor/app), and a 311/service liaison. Write the lineup so everyone knows who plays where.

2️⃣ Name your flex spots (keep it simple). If you have capacity, add a digital content creator and basic data support to help with visuals, captions, and weekly “what worked” notes.

3️⃣ Watch the box score. Track time-to-first-response, resolution/closure rate, repeat-contact rate, sentiment trend, and % of posts with a clear CTA. If a stat doesn’t meet your expectation, try something different.

✋TIME OUT

🏟️ Back to the Action (What You Can Do)

• Meet Mondays at 10 a.m. for 30 minutes with last week’s timeline and metrics.
  

• Replay the sequence with receipts (screenshots, auto-replies, posts, call logs).
  

• Identify 2–3 breakdowns (handoff, latency, tone) and commit to two fixes.
  

• Assign owners, dates, and a success metric for each fix.
  

• Publish a lineup card. One page with starters + backups, response windows, links to SOPs/templates, and who to escalate to. Share it across departments.

Your city’s engagement strategy is only as strong as your lineup, your plan, and your follow-through. Build for clarity, build for coverage, and keep adapting. Residents aren’t fans in the stands, they’re the people counting on you.

Hit reply and tell me: Which role does your team need most this season?

Talk soon,
— Dana

P.S. Did you see the Bills beat the Ravens last night? Josh Allen is on another level!

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