Figone's management style: Bottom-up
By Nathan R. Huff
Having worked her way through the ranks of public administration, new Town Manager Debra Figone comes to Los Gatos with a wide range of city government experience and a "bottom-up" management style.
Figone, a lifelong San Jose resident who married the boy next door, started her tenure as town manager on Nov. 13, replacing interim Manager Les White. Los Gatos' assistant town manager from 1986-1990, Figone had most recently served in the same capacity with the city of San Jose.
Figone, who took a $5,000 a year pay cut to take the town manager position, said it was a decision that required a lot of thought. "It's worthwhile because I get to have my own city, and a city that I would say is the most beautiful in Silicon Valley," Figone said. "It has a lot of challenges, which is stimulating from a professional perspective, and it's a community I'm very proud to be associated with."
Figone spent the first week in Los Gatos meeting with department heads, council members, and council members-elect, preparing a council packet, and attending a planning commission meeting. She was also handed her first hiring challenge, following Paul Curtis' announcement that he is resigning as community development director to take a job in Kansas. But having served as assistant and interim city manager in San Jose, following the election of a new mayor and two new council members, Figone isn't a stranger to challenge.
Assistant and interim city manager were just two of many hats Figone wore in San Jose. After receiving a degree in French from San Jose State University, Figone chose to forgo a career in teaching and, instead, took a job as a community center director in San Jose starting in 1969. Once inside city government, Figone worked as a personnel and budget analyst, as well, while taking night school classes to complete her master of public administration degree.
Once she finished her graduate work, Figone sought an administrative position, which led her to Los Gatos where she was hired as the assistant town manager under Debra Acosta. Acosta is currently the city manager of Pleasanton, the same city where former Parks and Public Works Director Scott Baker moved last year.
After a four year stint, Figone went back to San Jose where then-San Jose City Manager Les White appointed her as the assistant director of general services. Two years later she was appointed as San Jose's first female director of general services, an experience she said was invaluable.
"I was really embraced, which was nice," Figone said. "I found I bonded with the department very quickly, but of course I had to learn about vehicle maintenance, building maintenance and communication systems."
She said that the depressed economic times made the experience that much more challenging, as she was forced to cut back positions and downgrade services. "It was a real challenging time, a growth experience for me, and very rewarding professionally," Figone said.
Building teamwork and improving the internal processes were her major focus at the time, and something she said is indicative of her general leadership attitude. Figone describes herself as a coach, who pushes cross-departmental communication, progressive thinking and employee participation.
"I'm not hierarchical in my orientation," Figone said. "I'm very open and participatory, although I can make the tough decisions and will."
San Jose City Manager Del Borgsdorf, who replaced Figone following her stint as interim city manager, said Figone spearheaded a number of cross-departmental initiatives in San Jose.
"I think the first comment anyone would make about Deb is she's personally extraordinarily competent, and she's good at involving other people," Borgsdorf said. "She's good at bringing the best out in other people."
Figone said she is eager to tackle the challenges facing Los Gatos. "I want to help the council and the community get their goals accomplished," she said. Among those goals are addressing downtown parking, traffic, the backlog in capital improvement projects and establishing an implementation schedule for the new General Plan.
Additionally, Figone said she wants to concentrate on making the town more efficient in its delivery of services to the public.
"I really want this organization to function like a well-oiled machine," she said. "I want it to be viewed as a customer-friendly business that has 30,000 customers."
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Los Gatos, California Since 1881
