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Administrative Services
The Department of Administrative Services is responsible for the centralized functions for the City of Albany, providing oversight of the day-to-day management of city government. Administrative Services ensures that all City departments have the resources and support they need to provide high quality, valued services to the public. The Department is comprised of the Offices of Budget, Human Resources, Innovation & Performance, Information Technology, Purchasing, Payroll, Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO), Civil Service, Public Records, Energy & Sustainability, and Cultural Affairs.
In addition to serving as the administrative backbone of the City, the Department seeks continuous improvement in the way government works by finding efficiencies and increasing productivity. The Department oversees the evaluation and evolution of City-wide policies and processes, resulting in consistency, cost savings, and the ability to offer enhanced services. The Department also manages the continued implementation of new technology.
Offices Managed by Administrative Services:
- Budget Office
- Cultural Affairs
- Human Resources
- Energy & Sustainability
- Equal Employment Opportunity
- Minority/Women-Owned Business Enterprises (MWBE)
- Payroll
- Purchasing
- Information Technology
- Innovation & Performance
Administrative Services Launches new #JoinAlbany Recruitment Campaign
Energy Manager Jason West Leads the Charge to Launch New Electric Vehicle Charging Stations
Commissioner Rachel McEneny appears at The Atlantic Festival to Discuss how the City of Albany Survived a Ransom Ware Attack
Deputy Commissioner Ann Marie Salmon named "Innovator of the Week" by Bloomberg Philanthropies
COVID-19 Response
- Rapidly supported the expansion of technology required for 30% of the workforce to telecommute effectively and for City departments to hold public meetings via video conference for the first time.
- Centrally managed the purchase, inventory, and distribution of over 250,000 items of personal protective equipment (PPE) and cleaning supplies for the City’s workforce.
- Implemented spending control measures to maintain the fiscal health of the City and continuity of operations.
- Oversaw the City’s FEMA reimbursement application, becoming the first New York State municipality to be approved for reimbursement.
- Developed the City’s first-ever Telecommuting Policy and work from home resources portal.
- Published a daily COVID dashboard to track employee COVID cases, workforce attendance, and PPE inventory.
- Supported employees and managers through the COVID-19 crisis by deploying emergency leave and paid sick time, conducting a needs assessment survey, connecting employees with physical and mental health resources, sending weekly employee communications, and hosting webinars on evolving policies and procedures.
- Oversaw City Hall Reopening: implemented and managed the City Hall Ambassador program to assist members of the public with accessing services; adjusted office layouts to accommodate social distancing requirements; and deployed new SOPs, signage, and health screening protocols.
Training and Professional Development
- Completed a Citywide rollout of LinkedIn Learning, a best-in-class online professional development and training program with thousands of course offerings to upskill our employees.
- Implemented annual workplace violence prevention, sexual harassment prevention, and diversity and inclusion training for all city employees.
- Hosted departmental training and listening sessions on race.
Technology and Innovation
- Digitized forms and applications including the marriage license application, Summer Youth Employment Program application, CDBG funding application, and other internal forms to reduce in-person interactions and drive efficiencies.
- Improved Citywide network security by implementing several layers of defense, including intrusion-prevention systems and advanced next-generation firewalls in front of critical servers and email security software.
- Implemented new City Website and Intranet to go-live in late 2020.
- Continued to expand the City datacenter resources to include cloud-based infrastructure to provide for improved resiliency, availability, and disaster recovery.
- Upgraded over 250 desktops to the latest operating system.
- Upgraded multiple departmental IT systems to leverage the latest features, tools, and enhanced functionality.
- Implemented online benefits enrollment for employees.
Cultural Affairs and Virtual Event Programming
- Produced the first-ever Virtual Tulip Festival, Virtual Live at Five concert series, Palace Sessions, Virtual Jazz Festival, At-Home Entertainment Channel, Podcasts, and Capital Covers videos.
- Launched Albany Cares: a healthcare drive to collect money and donations for Albany residents in need of help during the pandemic.
- Reimagined Fallbany, Cash for Coats, the City Hall Tree-Lighting, and Last Run 5K to continue with cultural programming and events during COVID-19.
Sustainability Initiatives
- Continued converting all 10,800 City streetlights to energy-efficient LED technology, with anticipated completion by the end of 2020.
- Led a multi-agency task force to secure outside funding for the purchase and installation of 10 electric vehicle dual charging stations.
- Completed the City’s first Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory since 2012, which will provide a baseline for measuring future emissions reductions.
- Conducted a pilot air quality study in City Hall.
- Revised the bylaws of the Sustainability Advisory Committee to become more streamlined and effective.