About Jan

Jan Perkins has over 30 years of management experience in local government. She served in several California and Michigan jurisdictions, including as City Manager in Fremont and Morgan Hill, California. She also served the cities of Santa Ana, California as Assistant City Manager; Grand Rapids, Michigan in various analyst roles and Deputy City Manager; and Adrian, Michigan as Community Development Director and Assistant City Administrator.

Jan is an expert facilitator and organization development consultant. She provides consulting assistance to government leaders in organizational analysis, leadership development, facilitation, strategic planning, teambuilding, executive performance evaluation, and policy board/staff effectiveness.

Jan has held leadership positions in professional associations, is a frequent speaker at professional conferences and has received awards from professional and civic associations. In 2016, Jan was honored by ICMA with its Distinguished Service Award, received the Lifetime Achievement Award from Women Leading Government, and a Lifetime Achievement Award from her MPA alumni association, the KUCIMATs. She has authored a number of articles on leadership, executive performance evaluation, ethics and successful hiring strategies.

Jan holds an undergraduate degree in sociology and a Master’s of Public Administration from the University of Kansas. She completed the Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government from Harvard University and is an ICMA Credentialed Manager. She is a founding board member of Women Leading Government, assisted in recruiting the women in public administration conferences at the University of Kansas, served on and chaired ICMA committees, was President of the Alameda County City Managers Association, is a Past President and current member of the California City Management Foundation, and is a Fellow with the National Academy for Public Administration.

Jan’s personal objective is to help local government leaders be their best, encourage young people to enter local government as a career and thrive in it, and to foster good governance at the local level. Jan believes in valuing all individuals, doing our best in all we do, collaborating with others to solve problems, and planning for the future.