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BY HARRY JONES

Shortly after I was appointed Mecklenburg County manager in October 2000, I changed the tag line that appears on the bottom of our letterhead. This change added the word "Partnership" to three other Ps -- "People, Pride, Progress" -- that had been Mecklenburg's motto for several years. Symbolically, I was communicating to the Board of County Commissioners, Mecklenburg County employees, area businesses, other government organizations and to Mecklenburg residents that our collective success as a community occurs through productive partnerships. I also was demonstrating that one of the key roles for the county manager is developing and fostering these partnerships.

One of the most important partnerships is the working relationship between the elected board of county commissioners and the appointed county manager. Until relatively recently, this was something of an exclusive partnership between the board and the county manager. In the "old" days before e-mails, Blackberrys, and blogs (which was not that long ago), a county manager had what would now be considered a luxurious amount of time to research and communicate facts and recommendations to the elected body.

In many cases, this would constitute almost the full extent of the information available to the governing group. In today's world of instant access to information, elected officials often receive a barrage of data and opinions that may or may not be accurate or valid, but are, nonetheless, provided with the intent to influence decision-making. As a result, today's county manager must be in a virtually (no pun intended) constant communication mode. Although every Tom, Dick and Harry can now provide his version of the truth to elected officials, this Harry's job is to make sure elected leaders have the full and accurate information they need to make informed decisions.

More than half the members of my board use laptops during our board meetings. This allows them to be "green" by eschewing a paper agenda in favor of online access. It also enables them to send and receive e-mails during the meeting, if they wish. The other members have this same access through cell phones or other portable devices. This makes it possible for constituents, advocates and others to communicate with board members during the meetings.

Without judging the appropriateness of such behavior, it clearly presents different challenges for the appointed manager, in terms of keeping up with the information board members have to make decisions. In short, technology has expanded the partnership that once existed mostly between the board and its appointed manager to include anyone with an e-mail account or a cell phone.

I learned early in my career that the community belongs to the people and their elected representatives. My role as public administrator (regardless of position) is to help the elected body make informed decisions by providing choices and consequences. Although this role hasn't changed, the way we carry out this role has certainly evolved. It's part of the process and progress of servant leadership.

The writer is county manager, Mecklenburg County.