Tom Kennedy
General Manager at a Municipal Water District
Rainbow Municipal Water District (RMWD)
Fallbrook, CA USA
“Make something better than it was when you started at the job.”
Milestones
My road in life took a while to figure out.
First, I grew up in a large family so it helped a lot with gaining a chaotic tolerance, which helped later in life with management and juggling life.
I finished high school in 3 years and headed off to college at age 17 to learn how to build rockets.
After my undergrad studies, it took nearly 3 years to find a really good job due to the lack of jobs in my field. Once I got one, I worked hard and began getting regular promotions.
Then I met the woman who became my wife, who instilled confidence in me that I could do even more—that is when I enrolled in graduate school for my MPA.
I spent over 5 years taking MPA classes one per semester while working and starting a family.
As upward mobility at one agency was looking less favorable, I sought out new opportunities. I also wanted to get out of the LA area, as I did not want to raise my kids there.
I left a great public sector job to help start up a new tech-related business for a few years. It was a gamble, but I learned a lot. I actually got hired back by the agency I had left!
When a GM job at a poorly-regarded agency came open, I knew I could turn it around, so I took the leap and by all accounts have accomplished my mission.
Keep following my journey
Education
High School
St. Don Bosco Technical Institute
St. Don Bosco Technical Institute
Career
General Manager at a Municipal Water District
I oversee all aspects of water and wastewater service delivery in our service area.
Career Roadmap
My work combines:
My work combines:
Government
Politics
Problem Solving
Day to Day
My typical days are mostly filled with meetings (now via Zoom). I check in on my departmental managers often to keep in sync with their progress and resource need. The things that come across my desk are those that could not be resolved at a lower level, so they are usually not easy. I also spend more time than I prefer dealing in politics.
Advice for Getting Started
Here's the first step for everyone
Push yourself onto bigger and better projects and jobs. Always try to fix something and make it better than how it was when you started found it. Find someone with experience to teach you and give you smaller jobs to get a handle on things. Always keep learning and gaining knowledge about different areas in your field of work.
Recommended Education
My career is related to what I studied. I'd recommend the path I took:
Hurdles
The Noise I Shed
From Myself:
"I worked through the ranks for a long time and how misplaced priorities can destroy an organization and especially how to help elected officials understand what is actually possible for the team to achieve."
Challenges I Overcame
Financial
Career Change
Interviewed By
Anonymous Student
Student at CSUF
