Palo Alto, CA -- Palo Alto City Manager Frank Benest has been awarded the 2003 Clarence E. Ridley Memorial Award from the International City/County Management Association (ICMA) for his work in the area of employee training. The award is presented to the administrator who has developed and implemented highly effective in-service training programs for local government employees.

Promoting employee learning has been a long-time passion for Dr. Benest. In 2000, he published a guidebook entitled Commit to Learn - Transforming Government From the Inside Out, and has conducted numerous workshops on employee learning strategies for ICMA, the Innovation Groups, and other professional organizations.

Dr. Benest has partnered with City of Palo Alto training manager Charlotte Carlson to initiate or enhance a number of programs, including the following:

• City of Palo Alto Training Center: Extensive employee training program, located at the Cubberley Community center; includes, in collaboration with Foothills Community College, a state-of-the-art computer training lab
  
  
• Safety Training: Incorporated into the training program a three-times-a-year "Safety Summit" with four basic classed offered (hearing protection, hazardous waste management, blood-borne pathogens and respiratory protection). Eighteen other classes are offered throughout the year.
  
  
• "Growing Our Own": Recognizing the difficulty of recruiting talent in the high-cost Silicon Valley, Palo Alto started a program to promote upward mobility through management and supervisory academy and certification programs, as well as an innovative Tech Academy for highly specialized technology positions. Other certification programs now lead to Customer Service, Lead Worker, Business Writing, and Web Design certificates.

In addition to increasing employee skill levels and productivity, in-house training has an economic payoff as well. In part because of safety training, active workers compensation cases have declined, with a reduction in the severity of work-related injuries and a decrease in the incurred claim costs of $592,000.

The ICMA Annual Awards are the preeminent recognition for excellence in local government management. In 1997, Dr. Benest was also recognized by ICMA for outstanding achievement in intergovernmental relations when he led the effort to save the public landfill system in Orange County from being sold to private interests.

According to Mayor Dena Mossar, "This honor reaffirms Frank's status as a world-class City Manager. His dedication to staff development and training pays off every day in City staff dedication and professionalism."

The mission of the International City/County Management Association is to create excellence in local government by developing and fostering professional local government management worldwide. ICMA has more than 5,000 members in the U.S.

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