UPMOs can achieve operational savings, bring benefit to stakeholders and catch a competitive edge by focusing on sustainability. This session will introduce the business case for sustainability as outlined the IDA Sustainability Top Issues Council’s 2021 report. The heart of the session will focus on strategies that are most relevant to small- to medium-sized UPMOs and how sustainability can benefit their districts.
Team Management
Sub Topics: Team Management
Advancing Places: Contracting & Procurement for District Organizations
This webinar will focus on the various details involved when writing a request for proposal (RFP), focusing on what questions district leaders should being asking when considering entering a contract with a third party and when to consider initiating a formal procurement process. Hear from panelists about how to set up standard operation procedures (SOPs) for contracting and procurement along with sample timelines and RFPs.
HR Strategies Roundtable
This roundtable discussion with HR practitioners discussed topics around employee relations, benefits and compensation, compliance, employee engagement, recruitment and learning and development.
Radical Welcoming: Staffing Public Spaces for All
In the face of increases in economic segregation, social isolation and distrust across the U.S., downtown leaders in Akron and Memphis see public space as a solution. Learn how practitioners in these two cities are pioneering new ways to staff and operate networks of civic assets that are truly welcoming to people of all backgrounds and cultivate civic trust.
A New Decade of Upward Mobility for Placemaking Ambassadors
In this new decade of placemaking, equity and upward mobility, opportunities should exist at all levels in the urban place management industry. This session addresses development opportunities and how organizations can actively engage and take a fresh approach to workforce development for frontline staff. We will discuss how the DowntownDC BID secured a grant to train and hire 23 ambassadors with employment challenges.
Rising to the Occasion: Operational Insights to Crisis Management (Block by Block)
Discussion on the pandemic, social unrest and natural disaster response.
Greening Lab
In a city with a nation-leading park system and leafy neighborhoods, downtown has been the gap in our tree canopy for generations. Trees cover 30% of Minneapolis overall, but only 4% in the downtown core. This is significant for our community because street trees are an invaluable resource for improving public health, addressing the heat island effect, and creating an inviting public realm.
Calgary BIAs Professional Development Fund
We set aside $30,000 of $80,000 that had accumulated in our accounts to provide grants up to $2,000 each year to the Executive Directors of smaller and newer BIAs in Calgary who do not have professional development funds in their budgets or to any Executive Directors who needed professional development funds.
Assessing Inclusion in Downtown District Toolkit
Making your district a more inclusive place begins with opening the conversation up to the community and building a team of advocates who care about this work. These assessment tools provide a place for you to start and a way to measure progress regularly as you embark on this work. A thorough assessment of weaknesses and opportunities to enhance inclusion should consider three levels of inclusion: Personal, Organizational and Municipal.
Recruiting, Training, Coordinating Clean Safe Teams
This session provides a behind the scenes look at what it takes to staff, train and coordinate the work of Clean, Safe & Outreach programs in our dynamic city centers. Discussion topics include data collection, efficiency, building partnerships and creating employee pipelines.
Kate Joncas Master Talk
Seattle Mayor Murray named Kate Joncas Deputy Mayor of Operations in June, 2014. Previously, Kate had been the President and CEO of the Downtown Seattle Association since 1994. Kate has over 30 years’ experience in downtown revitalization in the private, public and nonprofit sectors in communities around the world. Ms. Joncas is the Past Chair of the International Downtown Association.
Effective Leadership and the Toolkit to Get it Done
This workshop will explore ways to maximize your staff and productivity, manage pressure and make decisions about new projects and priority setting. We will focus on Board development, strengthening the effectiveness of committees and ways to support and bolster the Executive Director and staff of your organization. You will leave with the tools to help explain the role of the Board versus the role of the staff and discuss some of the challenges of leading in today’s business climate.
Hillsborough Street Intern Program
Hillsborough Street Community Service Corporation began as a one-person office in 2010, and soon after developed an internship program to help grow productivity and the organization’s mission by strengthening the partnership with NC State University and Meredith College. Only two students made up the initial intern class, and now approximately 11 interns are hired by HSCSC each semester.
Big Spring Partners Advisory Panel: Renewed Mission and Leadership
IDA’s Advisory Panels are a time-tested way to explore new ideas, solve difficult problems, and rally the board, staff and community around priority projects or topics. This panel focused on tailoring a fresh mission and vision for the downtown organization while also providing guidelines for how to hire and lead the organization. The report detail’s the panel’s findings and recommendations.
Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership Advisory Panel: Strategic Visioning
IDA’s Advisory Panels are a time-tested way to explore new ideas, solve difficult problems, and rally the board, staff and community around priority projects or topics. The CHDP was looking to refine their organization’s mission and community vision ahead of their search for a new executive director. The report details the panel’s findings and recommendations.
Good Governance: It may not be sexy, it’s the key to success
Governance is a constant work in progress, evolving and responding to changes in policy, regulation and the needs of volunteer Board/Commission members. NYC, Toronto and Chicago will share best practices of their BIDs/BIAs. While each city has approached governance differently, the three municipalities recognize that success of the districts relies heavily on good governance.