Lakeland did not have to look far to fill its city manager position.
On Thursday, Aug. 11, the Lakeland Board of Commissioners (BOC) unanimously approved Michael Walker for the role, removing the interim tag he’s held for the past two months following the departure of former city manager Shane Horn.
Walker says “never in a million years” would he have guessed back in 2014 when he began working on Lakeland’s audits as a CPA and senior manager with Watkins Uiberall, PLLC, that he would one day end up the city manager of Lakeland.
“I would say I was still a little full of myself then, but a lot has changed in these eight years,” Walker said. “I’ve learned to focus more on service than career advancement and have learned that doing the right thing is always the right thing. When I’m doing the right thing, I’m at peace. I’m at peace with taking on the city manager role. I don’t think I could have said that back in 2014.”
Since joining Lakeland in late 2019 as finance and human resources director, Walker has received high praise for his performance from elected and volunteer officials.
“I think Michael Walker is a great fit for Lakeland,” Lakeland Commissioner Wesley Wright said. “He has already displayed incredibly great care for our finances and a focused appreciation for organization, efficient communication and fresh ideas. I’m elated to see him serve as city manager.”
Mayor Mike Cunningham calls Walker’s promotion, “well deserved,” praising how he “picked up right where (Horn) left off” without missing a beat.
Walker recalls when Horn announced to the city’s directors back in April that he was leaving, that Horn expressed his desire that one of the existing staff members step up as the interim city manager.
“I felt like he was speaking directly to me at the time, and afterward he privately confirmed that he was hoping I would take the role,” Walker said.
As soon as it became clear that he would be chosen as the interim city manager, Horn and several commissioners began to ask Walker if he was considering staying on without the interim tag.
“I knew even then that I’d be honored to serve the city in this way, but I hedged and said, ‘give me 60 days, because I don’t know what I don’t know,’” he said. “While I still don’t know what I don’t know, I do know that with the support from the Board and all the great staff at city hall, we’re ready and willing to continue serving the city and making Lakeland the best place to work, live and raise a family.”
His focus and that of the team at city hall is on carrying out the vision and priorities of the BOC.
“The board had strategic planning sessions early in 2021 and again in 2022, and in those sessions set the five priorities that we are all working toward,” Walker said.
One of those priorities currently underway is developing a new comprehensive plan to guide the city’s path for the next several years.
“My focus will be on advancing this plan with community involvement, so that (it) captures the proper vision of what Lakeland should be going forward,” Walker said. “The challenge then is to ensure that once the plan is in place, the board supports it in legislation, and we all carry it out operationally.”
Walker graduated with a BBA in Accounting from the University of Central Arkansas in 1999 and has been a CPA since 2001, first in Arkansas and then in Tennessee. His career has involved auditing municipalities for many years, as well as serving in leadership roles in private businesses.
With Walker officially assuming his new responsibilities, a new finance director will be hired as soon as possible to relieve him of those duties.