City and county managers walk one of the most precarious tightropes in public service. Tasked with implementing policy, managing municipal operations, and navigating a complex web of competing interests, they often find themselves in ethically fraught situations.

Developers want speed and flexibility. Community groups demand accountability and inclusion. Elected officials pursue political agendas, sometimes at odds with public interest or long-term sustainability. In this politically charged landscape, managers must balance legal authority with ethical clarity, a task as difficult as it is vital.

At the heart of this challenge lies the need to manage conflicts of interest, whether real, perceived, or potential. These conflicts are not always about personal gain; more often, they involve pressure to act expediently rather than making principled decisions. A city/county manager may be urged by an influential councilmember to fast-track a zoning change for a well-connected developer. At the same time, community residents protest, fearing displacement and environmental degradation. Herein lies the ethical tension: uphold the civic process and long-term equity or appease powerful interests for short-term harmony.

To navigate such terrain, managers should adopt a deliberate framework for ethical decision-making. This begins with clarity of values. Colin Powell, in It Worked for Me: In Life and Leadership, emphasized the importance of a moral compass: “Have a sense of purpose and a sense of integrity. Never let your ego get so close to your position that when your position goes, your ego goes with it.” This underscores the manager’s imperative to distinguish personal identity from professional responsibility, especially when decisions may alienate powerful allies or disrupt one’s career trajectory.

Equally important is transparency. Ethical leadership thrives in sunlight. Managers must ensure that decision-making processes are open and inclusive, particularly when multiple stakeholder groups are impacted. Engaging early and consistently with community members, hosting public forums, and publishing clear rationales for policy decisions build trust and mitigate accusations of bias or collusion.

Yet ethical clarity does not mean absence of conflict. As James Baldwin so powerfully said, “Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.” The ethical manager doesn’t flee from difficult conversations; she steps into them. When developers and environmental activists clash over land use, or when equity demands challenge budget constraints, city/county leaders must act as honest brokers, not political weathervanes.

Here, Ryan Holiday’s The Obstacle Is the Way provides an apt lens: “The obstacle in the path becomes the path. Never forget, within every obstacle is an opportunity to improve our condition.” Ethical challenges, rather than detours, are the very terrain through which a manager’s leadership is forged. When elected officials push narrow interests, managers must anchor themselves in process and policy, using the moment as a severe test for stronger governance structures and ethical clarity.

One practical tool for navigating competing interests is the “four-question ethical test”:

1. Is it legal? The baseline for public service, yet not always sufficient for ethical integrity.
2. Is it transparent? Would the public understand and accept the rationale behind the decision?
3. Is it fair? Are all stakeholders being considered, particularly those without power or voice?
4. Is it aligned with long-term public interest? Does the decision support sustainability, equity, and civic trust?

In situations where these questions yield conflicting answers, managers must lean on professional standards and peer consultation. Organizations like ICMA provide ethical guidelines—the ICMA Code of Ethics—that reinforce the manager’s responsibility to the public over personal or political loyalty. Mentorship networks and ethics committees also offer invaluable sounding boards when faced with difficult scenarios.

Perhaps most importantly, city/county managers must cultivate courageous patience, the ability to endure short-term backlash for the sake of long-term good. As Powell observed, “Being responsible sometimes means pissing people off.” Ethical leadership often requires weathering the storm rather than steering around it. Integrity is not proven in moments of consensus but in the crucible of controversy.

This courage also involves recognizing systemic inequities and working actively to correct them. In urban planning, law enforcement, public health, and economic development, the status quo often benefits the powerful. Ethical city management demands both the willingness to challenge unjust systems and the humility to listen to those most affected by them.

The ethical tightrope of public leadership is not a path to be avoided; it is the very measure of effective local government management. Balancing competing interests requires not only technical skill and political savvy but deep personal integrity. City/county managers are not just administrators; they are stewards of effective governance, entrusted with setting standards and overseeing the daily operations that uphold transparency in public service.

And in the words of James Baldwin, their task is as profound as it is difficult: “The world is before you and you need not take it or leave it as it was when you came in.” Ethics is not the avoidance of pressure; it is the ability to stand within it, make principled decisions, and leave the community better than you found it.

MAURICE S. JONES, ICMA-CM, is deputy city manager of Springfield, Missouri, USA.