The City Manager is appointed by the Mayor and City Council to manage the day-to-day operations of the City and to advise the City Council about these operations when they set policy. The City Manager and their staff oversee all City departments and functions to help serve the community efficiently and effectively. In Phoenix, the City Manager is in charge of more than 13,000 City employees and oversees more than 30 departments, providing crucial City services and managing the finances and budget of the City.
The Mayor is elected at-large, which means the Mayor is elected by people all over the City. The Mayor is in charge of City Council meetings and is looked to as the leader of the whole City.
The Phoenix City Council is made up of the Mayor and eight councilmembers. Each Councilmember is elected by the people from an area of the City called a Council District to represent the people of that district.
The Mayor and councilmembers have the job of setting policy for the City. Setting policy means making decisions about what is allowed and what is not allowed in Phoenix, what new services need to be provided to the people, and how to solve problems that concern citizens. The Mayor and City Council are able to set policy because they listen carefully to what the citizens of Phoenix say is important. As elected officials, their expertise comes from having been active in their communities or neighborhoods through Block Watch, neighborhood associations, and other civic involvement or because they are interested in government.
The following organization chart shows reporting responsibilities for the more than 30 departments and functions in the City of Phoenix.
