Thomas Walkington, Consultant
Dr. Thomas Walkington’s experience in strategic thinking, planning and management spans more than 25 years in public, nonprofit and post-secondary education. Tom has led change management initiatives and the development of enterprise strategic management frameworks to strategically plan and manage the organization effectively, and budget for results, in large and small organizations. He has managed budgets of $100 million USD. His expertise includes strategic planning and management, enterprise performance management and the application of e-government, using technology and social media to improve organizational effectiveness, engage citizens and improve public value.
Tom works with governing boards, senior leaders, mangers, and staff to think, plan and manage the organization strategically, aligning everyone in the organization with the desired results. He helps organizations assess the changing environment; identify unique opportunities, and re-frame the current state to meet the needs of customers in a changing environment. Tom coaches leaders and managers in managing strategically; measuring performance, integrating strategy with managing and doing, and using data to support decision-making planning and budgeting at all levels of the organization, changing the way they manage. As an international resource on public management, he approaches initiatives with openness and collaboration. Dr. Walkington’s client’s say:
“As Director of Human Resources at the Carlson School of Management I sought out Dr. Walkington’s expertise in helping me implement the School’s five year strategic initiatives. Building discipline into strategic objectives is difficult at best and almost impossible in turbulent times. Dr. Walkington is currently working with the Carlson School of Management as our chief consultant. He is working with the administrative services program helping us build strategic mechanisms that ensure the strategic objectives are executed, aligned, and coordinated with other programs. We are currently using strategy maps created from our strategic plans, alignment techniques, identifying measures to create alignment and sustainability.” Mychal Coleman, Director of Human Resources/ Sr. Lecturer, The Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota.
“I have worked with Tom in strategic planning sessions from the beginning identification of the goal, strategies and brainstorming, measuring and tracking. I have worked under his leadership in both small and large groups and find that he has a strong understanding both of planning techniques and interpersonal skills necessary for keeping a group on track and handling sensitive situations. I would recommend him highly for anyone going through a process. He also cares and will follow up.” Margaret Gillespie, Manager, Hennepin County (MN) Library System
“Tom Walkington worked with St. Louis County (MN) Commissioners and Department Heads during a key stage in our strategic business planning cycle. He and his colleague helped us create a set of key priority areas that we could use for structuring our department-level business plans, our key performance indicators and our budgets. Their work has been very useful and we are well positioned for future planning efforts.” Linnea Mirsch, Deputy County Administrator
Dr. Walkington is actively engaged in advancing the field of public management nationally, and internationally. He is a former National Council member of the American Society for Public Administration where he currently serves as Chair of the Strategic Implementation, Monitoring and Alignment Task Force advising the National Council on achievement of its Strategic Imperatives. Tom holds appointments as Adjunct Professor of Public Administration at Hamline University School of Business, Center for Public Administration and Leadership; the University of Electronic Science and Technology, China (UESTC) School of Political Science and Public Administration, Sichuan Province, P.R. China, and Associate Professor at St Mary’s University Graduate School of Business and Technology in Organizational Leadership. His current research includes e-government and the application of results-oriented management systems to improve organizational effectiveness.
