PSHRA's Public Eye Podcast

Wally Bobkiewicz is the city administrator with the City of Issaquah, Wash. He is also spearheading Local Gov 250, a national effort to honor and elevate the role of local government as the United States celebrates its 250th anniversary in 2026. 
 
Wally recently joined the Public Eye podcast to talk a bit about this initiative—which PSHRA is proud to be a partner on, along with a number of other organizations—and what it has in store for the rest of 2026.

Amanda Hecker is a retired teacher who has provided diversity training and education since leaving the classroom in 2024. Amanda is also a transgender woman, one of roughly 2.8 million individuals in the U.S. who identify as transgender, according to a 2025 estimate from the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law.
 
Amanda recently joined the podcast to discuss the topic of gender transition in the workplace and provide answers to some common workplace-related questions regarding transgender individuals.

Kelli Bentley, human resources director with Anniston Water Works & Sewer Board, in Anniston, Ala., recently joined the Public Eye podcast to offer an overview of the organization’s Cultivating Leadership, Excellence and Resources (C.L.E.A.R.) initiative, a three-session program designed to prepare the agency’s employees for career advancement in more senior roles.

The Public Eye podcast’s newest episode features Melissa Barker, vice president of practice development, with special expertise in recruiting, government and public sector organizations, at Duffy Group, a global recruitment firm based in Phoenix, Ariz. 
 
Melissa recently sat down with us to talk about “turnover at the top.” Our chat touched on what’s driving turnover at the senior levels of public sector organizations, the importance of “telling the agency’s story” in attracting the talent government agencies will need to keep its leadership pipeline flowing, and much more.

Jeanette Hamilton, director of human resources at North Valley Hospital, Okanogan County Public Hospital District #4, recently joined the Public Eye podcast for our first-ever episode with a live audience! 

Jeanette sat down with us on Sept. 30 at the Hilton Cleveland Downtown, site of PSHRA's 2025 national conference, to share her thoughts on the event, and talk about how she and her "scrappy" HR team are overcoming the biggest challenges facing them at the moment.