California City Management Foundation

What California City Management Foundation does

The California City Management Foundation (CCMF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1985 and headquartered in Ladera Ranch, California. It operates as a membership-based professional association exclusively serving city managers, assistant/deputy city managers, and retired or in-transition municipal executives across California's 480+ incorporated cities and towns. The foundation was established in response to shrinking city manager tenures and focuses on three missions: strengthening the city management profession, improving city management education, and promoting the council-manager form of local government. CCMF delivers programming through signature workshops (New & Future City Managers Seminar and the new Mid-Late Career Workshop), annual events (Annual Member Appreciation Dinner, Golf Tournament, Regional Lunches), scholarship and grant programs (Executive Education Grants up to $10,000, Wes McClure Scholarship, Judy L. Kelsey Memorial Fund), career support services (Managers In Transition, resume review, online professional toolkit), a member job board, and free mental health services via the Doxy.me telehealth platform delivered in partnership with Beverly Foo-Colon, LCSW.

The underlying technology is a conventional WordPress-based membership website at cacitymanagers.org offering a members-only portal, searchable peer database, interactive member map, training materials library, and the proprietary Model Employment Contract that has become the de facto industry standard in California. CCMF's revenue model combines annual membership dues ($400 standard, $150 retired/in-transition), four tiers of corporate sponsorships ($2,000 to $15,000), event fees, workshop tuition, job board transaction packages, and fee-based professional services including the Online Professional Toolkit ($850 to $2,750). The organization is governed by a 15-member Board of Trustees and led by Executive Director Ken Pulskamp (since 2014) and President Ken Striplin (City Manager of Santa Clarita), with key academic and industry partnerships spanning the Rose Institute at Claremont McKenna College, Saddleback College, MuniServices (PRA Group), the League of California Cities, and ICMA.

Name

California City Management Foundation

Legal name

California City Management Foundation

Website

https://cacitymanagers.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The California City Management Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit membership association founded in 1985 that supports California city managers and assistants with professional development, peer networking, scholarships, career transition services, and mental health support across all career stages.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Ladera Ranch

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership fees from city managers, assistant city managers, and retired/in-transition managers. Standard membership is $400/year, with retired/in-transition members paying $150/year.
2. Corporate Sponsorships: Four tiers of corporate sponsorship: Premier ($15,000), Foundation Circle ($10,000), Corporate Benefactor ($3,500), and Corporate Member ($2,000) per year. Sponsors receive benefits including event attendance, advertising, and directory listings.
3. Event Revenue: Revenue from Annual Member Appreciation Dinner (attendee fees), Golf Tournament (sponsorship and attendance), and other regional events. Plus-one attendees pay $95, Corporate Benefactor sponsors can purchase additional dinners at $265 each.
4. Job Board Fees: Fees for posting job listings: Package A (listing + eNews) at $220 members/$330 non-members; Package B (eNews only) at $165/$220; Package C (listing only) at $110/$165.
5. Online Professional Toolkit Services: Fee-based online reputation management services for members: Jump Start ($850), Tune Up ($1,100), New Ride ($2,750 plus annual hosting fees).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

CCMF is a nonprofit professional association that delivers career-lifecycle support to California city managers through annual memberships ($400 active, $150 retired/in-transition), peer networking, signature workshops and seminars, scholarship and grant programs, a job board, mental health services, and an online professional reputation toolkit. The organization supplements membership with corporate sponsorships and event-based revenue to fund its mission of strengthening the city manager profession.

Product overview

California City Management Foundation operates as a membership-based non-profit organization offering a comprehensive suite of professional development services for California city managers. The core offering consists of Standard and Retired/In-Transition Membership programs ($400 and $150 annually), which provide access to member-only resources including the Model Employment Contract and training materials. Supporting these memberships are specialized scholarship and grant programs: Executive Education Grants (up to $10,000), Wes McClure Scholarship ($2,500 to three recipients), and Judy L. Kelsey Memorial Fund ($5,000 grants for two cities). CCMF delivers professional development through signature events including the New & Future City Managers Seminar (NFCM), the new Mid-Late Career Workshop, Annual Member Appreciation Dinner, Regional Lunches, and Golf Tournament. Additional member services include Job Board listings, Mental Health Services with free therapy sessions, Online Professional Toolkit with social media reputation management, and Professional Resume Review. The organization also produces the annual California City Management Survey in partnership with the Rose Institute at Claremont McKenna College.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $250,000 granted via Awards and Scholarships programs since 2011
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Rose Institute at Claremont McKenna CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025CCMF partnered with the Rose Institute to develop comprehensive reports on the city management profession, including the 2025 California City Management Survey: A Profile in the Profession. The partnership provides data-driven insights for the profession and enhances CCMF's research capabilities.
• Beverly Foo-Colon, LCSWcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2025CCMF collaborated with psychotherapist Beverly Foo-Colon to launch free mental health services for members. Services include personalized initial evaluations and 3-6 free individual therapy sessions via Doxy.me tele-therapy platform, addressing the demanding nature of city management roles.
• Municipal Management Association of Southern California (MMASC)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017CCMF partnered with MMASC to offer scholarships for the 2017 ICMA Annual Conference, providing $1,500 awards to qualifying members for travel and lodging expenses.
• Municipal Management Association of Northern California (MMAN-C)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017CCMF partnered with MMANC to offer scholarships for the 2017 ICMA Annual Conference, providing $1,500 awards to qualifying members for travel and lodging expenses.
• Saddleback CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016CCMF partnered with Saddleback College and MuniServices to develop and deliver the Municipal Financial Management Certification Program. The program provides aspiring municipal leaders with education in strategic financial administration, tax policy, accounting, budgeting, and leadership.
• MuniServices (PRA Group)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016MuniServices partnered with CCMF and Saddleback College to develop the Municipal Financial Management Certification Program. MuniServices provides industry expertise and serves as the educational platform for the certification courses.
• International City/County Management Association (ICMA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016CCMF works with ICMA to establish ethical standards in the city management industry. The organizations collaborate on professional development, research, and advocacy for the council-manager form of local government.
• Tripepi SmithcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2016Tripepi Smith provides the Online Professional Toolkit service for CCMF members, offering Jump Start, Tune Up, and New Ride packages for online reputation management. The service helps city managers control their online presence for professional purposes.
• League of California CitiescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2015CCMF collaborates extensively with the League of California Cities, hosting panels at their conferences, organizing the Annual Member Appreciation Dinner during their City Managers Department Meeting, and co-hosting educational events.
• Tripepi Smith Talent SolutionscoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2014Tripepi Smith Talent Solutions provides free expert resume review services for CCMF members, offering personalized feedback and guidance for career transitions in city management.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• International City/County Management Association (ICMA): National professional association for city and county managers. ICMA serves the same professional population as CCMF but at a national scale, offering overlapping credentials, ethical standards, and conferences. The two organizations explicitly partner on ethical standards and ICMA membership coexists with CCMF membership.
• Municipal Management Association of Southern California (MMASC): Regional professional association for Southern California municipal managers. MMASC directly overlaps with CCMF's California scope on the southern half of the state and is a formal CCMF partner (joint ICMA conference scholarships).
• Municipal Management Association of Northern California (MMANC): Regional professional association for Northern California municipal managers. MMANC complements CCMF at the regional level and is a formal CCMF partner, making it a structurally comparable peer in the same geographic and professional market.

Emerging players

• International Institute of Municipal Clerks (IIMC): Professional association for municipal clerks — an adjacent municipal profession. IIMC provides a structural template for a profession-specific association with certification, conferences, and peer networking similar to CCMF's offerings.
• Alliance for Innovation: Transformative government-focused association affiliated with ICMA serving innovative local government leaders. Adjacent peer in the city management professional development space with overlapping conference and recognition programs.
• Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA): Professional association for state and local government finance officers. Adjacent to city management but specialized in the finance function; provides a comparable model of credentialing, training, and conferences that CCMF partially emulates via its Saddleback/MuniServices Municipal Financial Management Certification partnership.

Broad incumbents

• League of California Cities: California's broad municipal advocacy and member-services organization representing all 482 California cities. While not a city-manager-only association, the League hosts CCMF's signature annual dinner and serves overlapping city government stakeholders.
• National League of Cities: National advocacy and member-services organization for city governments across the U.S. National counterpart to the League of California Cities; broader than CCMF but addresses similar municipal leadership audiences.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/cacitymanagers
• Xx.com/cacitymanagers
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cacitymanagers

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about California City Management Foundation