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Start At Zero
Start At Zero episodes
- A Day In The Life Of A City Manager With C. Seth Sumner
The job of a city manager, for the most part, goes unsung when talking about the scene of local government, but their impact is much greater than people tend to give them credit for. Their invisible hand guides steady progress in a city and makes sure that the day-to-day operations of a city go as smoothly as possible. C. Seth Sumner is the City Manager of Athens, TN. He sits down with Abhijit Verekar to talk about the responsibilities of a city manager to the people of their city. Learn more about this important profession that makes sure the government is always doing its best to help the people.
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41 min - Leveraging Technology to Enhance Communities, with Theogene Melancon, City Manager at Dayton, TX
Internet and information technology are key factors that cities these days must possess. From various city departments to residential areas, the need for connecting everyone to the web has become a necessity. In this episode, Abhijit Verekar interviews Theogene Melancon, the City Manager of Dayton, Texas. Intending to use tech to make smarter decisions and processes for their city, Theogene talks about how they are taking cybersecurity to the next level, how they are hiring more employees for tech support, and how they are educating all departments about it. Be inspired by how Theogene weaves IT into their city’s growth as he shares their strategy for viable long-term IT.
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34 min - Providing A Higher Level Of Service Through Innovation With Bob Wilson, Assistant City Manager, City of Johnson City, TN
More than helping you become more efficient and get a lot of work done, innovation is all about providing a higher level of service to others. In this episode, host Abhijit Verekar invites Bob Wilson, Assistant City Manager of the City of Johnson City, TN, to discuss how a smart city needs only to do that and not necessarily by having the latest and most advanced technologies. Here, they talk about how Bob is bringing forward innovation to the city, sharing how he deals with vendors when finding the software that fits their needs as well as translating his vision to his team and the citizens. He also talks about the ever-expanding role of IT officers and directors and being able to confront that as we move towards the technological future. Moreover, Bob taps into how he is adapting to the coming of the new generation in the workforce and how he keeps himself motivated after years in public service.
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21 min - Implementing Virtual Court Systems With Tom Hatcher, Circuit Court Clerk For Blount County, Tennessee
The term circuit court is usually applied to trial courts of general jurisdiction. Its core concept requires judges to travel to different locales to ensure wide visibility and understanding of cases in a region. However, with the current lockdown procedure right now due to the COVID-19 pandemic, physically meeting in court poses a challenge. Joining Abhijit Verekar and co-host Mike Caffrey on today’s show is Tom Hatcher, a Circuit Court Clerk for Blount County, Tennessee. Tom has been in the judicial system for 26 years. Today, he talks about how Blount County blazed the trail for many other courts in implementing virtual court systems or virtual arraignment systems. He also discusses how other county courts can get creative and partner with computer vendors so they can do what they need to do within their reach.
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56 min - Building A Smart And Innovative City With Brian Platt, City Manager, City Of Jersey City, NJ
A city that thrives is a city that knows how to innovate. In this episode, Abhijit Verekar talks with Brian Platt about how he is fulfilling his role as the City Manager/Business Administrator and the Chief Innovation Officer for the City of Jersey City, New Jersey. He talks about what innovation means for cities and shares some of the biggest successes in his municipal career. Putting technology at the heart of it, Brian discusses how he stays on top of technology while maintaining a more collaborative approach with the residents and his team. He also gives his definition of a Smart City, along with his take on the fundamentals of long-term IT strategy, cybersecurity, and more.
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30 min - The Smart City: How Technology Can Be Utilized In Public Service With Rick Cole
In this technological world, the public sector should find the smartest ways to leverage the latest technology in its efforts to extend quality service to its constituents. What differentiates a smart city from others is not its possession of the most sophisticated technological advancements, but its way of figuring out how to efficiently use what is available to it. In this episode, Abhijit Verekar taps into Rick Cole’s rich experience as a public servant in California for many decades. Rick served as the City Manager for Santa Monica from 2015 to 2020. He has held other public posts, including that of Deputy Mayor for the City of Los Angeles from 2013 to 2015 and Mayor of the City of Pasadena from
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1 hr 1 min - Enhancing The Level Of Service To Build A Great Community With Eric Stuckey, City Administrator, City of Franklin, TN
City managers and administrators are the key people who connect elected leadership and professional staff to serve a community well. That is why taking on this job is no easy feat. Fortunately, with great people on the position, the vision to serve and build a great community is within reach. Eric Stuckey, City Administrator of the City of Franklin, TN, speaks with host, Abhijit Verekar, about the things they have been doing at Franklin. He talks about his thoughts on innovation and keeping up with the newest technology, especially with making services more accessible to the community. On handling his people, Eric shares his leadership style and the way he drives his vision forward and translates it to the language of different teams. He then shares his definition of a smart city, highlighting the use of technology not for technology’s sake but for delivering a higher level of service and building a great community.
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35 min
About Start At Zero
From the publisher's feed
Start at Zero is a conversation-first podcast about what it actually takes to modernize technology, build a business from scratch, and make sense of AI without the hype. Episodes range from focused…
15-minute interviews with government leaders and tech founders to longer deep dives where I walk through what I'm building in real time - the AI agents, the automation stack, the hard lessons from 20 years of consulting.
The tone is direct and honest. I don't do scripted questions or softball setups. I want the story behind the story - what went wrong, what you'd do differently, what nobody in the room was willing to say. Guests should expect a conversation that feels like two people working through a real problem together, not a performance.
Topics include government technology, AI in the real world, entrepreneurship, consulting, procurement, and the messy intersection of all of them. Some episodes are interviews, some are just me thinking out loud about something I built or broke that week.
If you've got a real story - something you built, something that failed, a lesson that cost you - you'll fit right in here. I'll send a loose topic outline beforehand, but the best episodes happen when we go off-script.