Earp at a ground breaking for a new turn lane in Hutto.

Despite being voted “most likely to be president” in high school, James Earp’s path to public service wasn’t a direct one. But Earp, city manager for Hutto, Texas, and a recipient of this year’s American City & County Exemplary Public Service award, believes the winding road to his current role is evidence that he’s where he’s supposed to be.

“God’s hand was moving,” Earp says.

Since signing on as city manager for fast-growing Hutto in 2022, Earp has leveraged his passions for leadership, finance and education to help reshape the city’s operations with an emphasis on collaboration.

“His ability to leverage community input and allocate resources effectively has not only improved the efficiency of city departments but also strengthened the bond between the city administration and its residents,” says Jeffrey Yarbrough, Hutto’s chief of police who nominated Earp for the Exemplary Public Service award. “His exemplary leadership has already made a significant positive impact on Hutto.”

A path to public service

It was while working in the banking industry straight out of college that Earp first learned about the job of a city manager. Having worked in student call centers and volunteered for local campaigns in high school, Earp was immediately intrigued by the position. When the turbulent post-9/11 finance industry forced him out of his banking job in the early aughts, Earp saw it as a sign to pursue that early dream of working in government.

He enrolled in a master’s program at The University of Texas at Arlington and soon began on-the-job training as an administrative assistant to Steve Howerton, a long-tenured city manager for Ennis, Texas, which at the time had a population of around 16,000.

Howerton, who served Ennis for 32 years before retiring in 2013, became an early mentor to Earp. His philosophy “was to bring in young folks, train them, then push them out of the nest,” Earp recalls.

In 2006, after two years in Ennis, Earp left the nest to become assistant city manager in Kyle, Texas, a town of around 18,000 people at the time and where Earp would spend the next 16 years becoming an expert in city government, helping to oversee the town as its population tripled.

Then, in 2022, Earp landed his role as city manager for Hutto, with a population of more than 36,000, and got to work righting what he viewed as “a sinking titanic.”

‘Making the basics basic’

When Earp walked into his role in Hutto, what he saw was an organization in a state of disarray.

“There was a lot of turnover and not a lot of institutional knowledge,” Earp recalls. “Systems didn’t work or didn’t exist.”

Earp faced the chaos by opening lines of communication with his staff to get to the root of myriad problems and begin to rebuild. Four months into his role, he hosted a retreat with senior leadership.

“We synthesized things down to a rallying cry: ‘Making the basics basic,’” Earp says.

Earp concentrated perhaps most of his efforts on the people around him.

“Developing the people, helping them succeed, it’s really what city managers ought to be doing,” Earp says. “I also certainly spent time with my council, meeting every week—I think that’s been critical to my continued success.”

‘People over position’

One of the first initiatives Earp enacted as Hutto city manager was the creation of “Hubs,” themed work groups made up of city employees from across departmental lines.

“In the Hubs, you could have department heads or front-line employees,” Earp says. “There’s no rank or file; everyone is equal in the Hub.”

Earp attends a Block Party Bash in Hutto, where he’s served as city manager since 2022.

Each Hub was given a particular theme, such as “strategic operations and innovation,” “accountability and compliance” or “community engagement and experience,” to name a few. The groups would meet regularly to discuss theme-related problems, solutions and ideas.

“My style is generally not to dictate,” says Earp, “it’s generally to say, ‘Hey, I’ve given you this thing, what are you going to do with it?’”

Yarbrough, Hutto’s chief of police, praised the Hubs for fostering inclusivity and building a sense of ownership among the city’s employees.

“This approach has dramatically improved morale and cooperation within the city government, resulting in a more cohesive and motivated workforce,” Yarbrough says.

The Hubs are self-sufficient, and Earp continues to maintain a hands-off approach, being available for questions if they arise. Members hold each other accountable, according to Earp.

“I believe in people over position,” Earp says. “Whenever you embrace that and you deal with the heart of people, I feel like you get so much more authentic return.”

Adding ‘value in the proposition’

When it comes to working with the public and budgeting, Earp finds that “cost is always an issue in the absence of value.”

“Most people, if you asked them if they would like to pay more in taxes, their answer is no,” Earp says. “If your question is, ‘Do you want to pay more in taxes to get certain things?’, then you’ve added in the value proposition.”

To help residents have a clear picture of that value proposition, Earp launched resident workshops, where city employees walk Hutto residents through the ins and outs of the budgeting process. During the workshops, city projects are hung up on the wall and residents vote with stickers on which should be prioritized in the budget. The wall also contains information regarding all the city’s expenses and the average homeowner’s monthly income, along with what raising taxes would (or wouldn’t) look like.

The public is encouraged to pitch ideas for what they would like to see from the city, and the sessions have led to public-generated initiatives such as trail interconnectivity in the parks and more adult programs in the library.

“This level of community involvement in the budgeting process has never been seen before in our city,” Yarbrough says.

The meetings have averaged a steady 15–25 participants, but Earp is hoping positive word-of-mouth will continue to increase turnout in the years to come.

“You see participants changing the way that they’re thinking about things during the sessions,” Earp says.

Championing continuing education

Earp believes education has the ability to empower his staff, as well. At the time of Earp’s interview with AC&C, 10 of his staff members were taking part in executive leadership development programs.

“The kind of attention to ensuring that everyone who works for James is developing and growing is just not something you find in many city managers,” says David Amsler, director of strategic operations for Hutto.

Earp encourages his staff to hone “the Three Ps,” which include “Principles,” “Priorities” and a “Purpose statement,” in order to establish a compass for their work and careers.

Earp has also played an active role in the Texas City Management Association, where he has helped craft professional development programs and opportunities for the next generation of city managers, including a manager-in-residence program that has become a staple for the association.

“This was a way to provide opportunities to see, meet and come to know students who are coming up,” Earp says.

Earp speaks at a Fourth of July event in Hutto in 2023.

‘I allow the work to speak for itself’

One of the biggest challenges faced by city managers today, says Earp, is a political climate that views city government as an adversary.

“My peers, what we’re seeing are more and more people being elected to office because they’re popular on social media for throwing mud,” Earp says. “All they want to do is embarrass government whenever they can.”

What can a city manager do in the face of that?

“I allow the work to speak for itself,” says Earp. “Because it’s very easy to get drawn into the drama.”

A city manager in general needs a good amount of resilience and humility, adds Earp, who credits his Christian faith for helping him remain even keeled on the job.

“You’re in a position of extreme authority,” he says. “It’s best to think of yourself as a steward. Many people can get into the mindset of being the king of the community. That’s a mistake.”

The best use of time, Earp advises, is to focus on the people.

“Lift up the people that are behind you,” Earp says.

‘The ship is righted’

Two years after walking into the Hutto city manager’s office, Earp is encouraged by the number of leaks he and his team have been able to plug. This past April was the first month he really noticed the impact of the groundwork he’s been laying.

“The ship is righted,” Earp says. “It’s not taking on water anymore. Things are starting to happen organically without me being the one that’s pushing.”

At a time when staffing shortages are reported in cities nationwide, Hutto has improved its ability to recruit and retain more talent. And while it wasn’t a straight line to being a city manager himself, Earp is more than ready to sail his righted ship toward success.

“Hutto is not an easy political environment,” Earp says. “But people are seeing the work we’re doing from the outside and wanting to be a part of it—and that, to me, is the biggest testimony.”