The military would say that no plan survives first contact with the enemy.

Mike Tyson eloquently quipped that everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.

Cybersecurity incident responders likewise have similarly colorful language rooted in a career’s worth of wisdom derived from the lived experience trying to identify and mitigate risks. With another major breach of US federal government systems fresh in our minds, it is natural to start thinking about cybersecurity, incident response, and planning. Many cybersecurity professionals make the mistake of a myopic view of the specific technical vulnerabilities, the zero day, and the potential for state actor involvement. But there’s another vulnerability, one that cyber hammers overlook because it doesn’t look like a cyber nail. It’s Fred.

In our October 13 post, we asked a better version of “Are you prepared?”: Prepared for what, and how do you know? The K–12 cybersecurity readiness pilot hosted by Sourcewell from January through September 2026 gave us an opportunity to put that question into practice. Fractional Source designed and facilitated the pilot, while Sourcewell supported its hosting, focus groups, and marketing. For each participating district, we first performed a high-level preparedness analysis that considered the cyber risks most relevant to the district and the capabilities it could bring to bear if those risks became real. The results helped shape the scenarios and injects used in each tabletop exercise, grounding the discussion in the district’s own circumstances rather than a generic cyber event. The analysis helped identify where to look; the exercise helped participants see what could happen when the pressure was on.

Are you prepared?

Well, that is a loaded question.

To answer it honestly, you need to know two things: What risks are you likely to face, and what are you actually capable of doing if one of those risks becomes real?

Risk and capability must be considered together. That is what preparedness is really about.

Think about planning a hike. You could face bad weather, an injury, wildlife, getting lost, or running out of water. Simply listing those possibilities does not tell you whether you are ready.

Across the utilities that kept service running during this summer’s attacks, four capabilities stand out. Each applies to any system a local government operates, from water and wastewater to buildings, traffic, and power.

The first is knowing what is connected. The attackers went after controllers that could be reached from the internet, often through cellular modems or remote access tools set up for convenience. Plymouth, Minnesota stopped the attack by disconnecting the cellular equipment at its towers and lift stations, which was possible because staff knew where that equipment was. Federal guidance since then has been direct: take controllers off the open internet, and where remote access is necessary, run it through a secure gateway with multifactor authentication.

Over the last weekend of July, water and wastewater utilities across the country started reporting the same kind of problem. Automated controls stopped responding, operators were locked out of equipment, and in some places pumps and treatment plants went offline. By early August, incidents had been reported in at least 12 states.

The details varied from place to place. In Georgia, the Clayton County Water Authority saw a pressure drop that led to a boil water advisory for its 300,000 customers, with service restored within hours. Michigan’s environmental agency confirmed that nine municipal water systems had reported activity matching the federal warnings. In Minnesota, more than 30 community water systems were targeted over two days, and in the small city of Braham the attack briefly shut down the well and treatment plant before public works crews had it running again in about two hours.

For years, those of us working in and around local government have known that fractional leadership works, that a talented executive working a few days a month can move an agency further than an empty chair ever will. Now there’s data to back that up.

Fractional Jobs, a talent marketplace for part-time senior leaders, released what it describes as the largest study ever conducted on fractional work, drawing on a survey of more than 1,700 fractional professionals, over 44,000 candidate profiles, and roughly 1,400 job postings. The headline number is remarkable: demand for fractional hiring grew 149% year over year, and there are now an estimated ~150K fractional professionals working in the US. Finance, marketing, and engineering roles make up nearly 60% of that demand, and the growth is being led by early-stage companies that need senior expertise but cannot justify a full-time executive.

I’m not using AI to write this post.

To be clear, I use AI *all the time* in my professional life. It’s improbable at this point to think anyone doesn’t use it. In the past two years, the technology has enjoyed exponential adoption in the private sector, even when people claim they don’t use it. I’m not ashamed of it. AI has accelerated my ability to take on new projects with increased output. And while some people may think that’s a lazy approach, let me remind you: I’m a consultant. I say things like, “Well, [so-and-so customer], it’s not the cost of doing business that’ll kill you, it’s the cost of not doing business.”  Coming up with gold like that all day isn’t as easy as it sounds. Of course I’m going to use AI.

This week, I want to talk about how Drones as a First Responder (DFR) programs will become the norm in local communities and why this is a positive development. Having started my career as a firefighter, paramedic, and police officer, I am familiar with public safety and emergency response systems and have seen how they have evolved over the past thirty-five years. In my view, DFR programs represent the most significant strategic shift in emergency response during my lifetime.

Public sector agencies can’t afford to wait. The retirement wave is real and thousands of public sector employees are approaching retirement age. Like many people functions, HR in state and local governments face mounting pressures to modernize how they attract, engage, and retain talent.

Think of your workforce as a relay team, each member carrying forward strategy, culture, and service. When one prepares to step away, it’s not just a transition, it’s a test of preparedness. Without a trained successor ready in the exchange zone, the handoff falters, and organizational momentum slows. Succession planning isn’t just smart; it’s mission critical.

A few years ago, I had the opportunity to meet the CEO of a large consulting firm in Washington, DC, just as Sam Altman delivered his now-famous testimony on Capitol Hill. That event was widely regarded as the starting gun in the escalating race for AI development. At the time, conversations within consulting circles inevitably turned to AI, the new elephant in the room.

The government response apparatus across Federal, state, and local emergency management operates like a software stack, where each layer provides services to the layer above while depending on the layer below. The federal government serves as the application layer, providing specialized resources and coordination. State governments function as the middleware, translating federal guidance into regional action while coordinating local efforts. Local governments operate as the foundational layer, providing direct services and first response capabilities.

Part Two: Creative Solutions, Implementation, and Building Long-Term Resilience

When funding disappears, local governments must find creative alternatives to sustain essential programs. Fractional experts, drawing from experience across sectors, can identify opportunities for public-private partnerships, alternative funding models, and new service delivery mechanisms that maintain program quality while reducing costs. Resource reallocation is critical, and fractional CFOs can help redirect savings from operational efficiencies to protect high-impact programs like emergency management, healthcare or school nutrition. Their expertise in financial modeling and strategic planning enables agencies to make data-driven decisions about which programs to sustain, modify, or eliminate, ensuring that cuts are made strategically rather than indiscriminately.

Part One: Navigating the Looming Budget Crisis

State and local governments are facing a pivotal moment as they prepare for the largest federal funding cuts in decades. With more than $207 billion in proposed reductions affecting programs like emergency management, fire training, Medicaid, education, and infrastructure, officials are under pressure to maintain essential services while managing shrinking budgets. In this challenging environment, fractional expertise is emerging as a vital resource. These professionals deliver specialized leadership and proven strategies for cost optimization, change management, and innovative program delivery, all without the expense of permanent hires.

This week, I had the opportunity to sit down with my friend Kevin Sofen for a podcast conversation that cut through a lot of the noise around technology in the fire service. Kevin’s path is anything but conventional. He started at Darley, a 117-year-old Midwest manufacturing powerhouse that’s a household name in the fire service, but from day one, it was clear he wasn’t going to fit any mold. If you’d met him back then, you’d have seen what I did: someone who would approach the job and the industry a little differently.

As state and local governments face mounting pressures around budgets, staffing shortages, and the difficulties involved with finding specialized expertise, many are turning to the fractional executive model for leadership solutions. We’ve talked about this here frequently, and the more people I engage on the subject, I find myself having to dispel a couple common myths.

Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming state and local government, moving from pilot projects to operational deployments that are reshaping how agencies serve their communities. In 2024, a survey by the National Association of State Chief Information Officers found that more than half of state CIOs reported their employees were using generative AI tools in their daily work, underscoring how quickly these technologies are becoming part of government operations. A separate June 2024 survey of 355 state and local government professionals found that 51% were using AI daily, most commonly for tasks like summarizing information and brainstorming, with nearly three-quarters reporting improved efficiency and time savings as a result. Are you embracing AI and empowering your teams to use it today?

This will sound obvious: Long-term strategy is the backbone of effective state and local governance, providing a clear vision that aligns resources, guides decision-making, and ensures communities are prepared for both challenges and opportunities. When governments look beyond immediate pressures and daily operations, they can build resilient and fiscally responsible organizations that serve citizens better over time.

In the coming months, many state and local government leaders will face the difficult task of finding new revenue sources to fund programs and services that were traditionally subsidized by the federal government. The most conventional solution, raising taxes, is also the least satisfying, both politically and economically. At every level of government, the question isn’t “if” we’ll need to raise taxes, but “when”, and ultimately, “who” will bear the burden? This is a topic we’ve been discussing at Fractional Source for months.

State and local governments are under constant pressure to deliver better services, often with limited budgets and increasing expectations from the public. One of the most effective ways to meet these challenges is by simply improving an organization’s internal processes. As with most things in government, that sounds easier than it is. Even when process reviews are prioritized, agencies still struggle to find the right expertise or resources to lead these improvements, especially when hiring full-time executives is not feasible. This is where the concept of a fractional source becomes a game-changer.

State and local governments face mounting pressure to deliver modern, efficient, and secure public services. Yet, despite the rapid evolution of technology in the private sector, government procurement and budgeting processes often remain stuck in the past. This disconnect makes it increasingly difficult for public sector organizations to keep pace with the marketplace they operate in and to meet the expectations of their communities.