A new city report finds that Austin's communications work is decentralized, with 28 departments, 176 staff members, and over $10.4 million in marketing and communications spending over two fiscal years. The report is part of City Manager T.C. Broadnax's citywide Shared Services Optimization initiative, which aims to examine whether internal city functions can be delivered more consistently and cost-effectively.
The communications report does not recommend layoffs or attach a dollar figure to potential savings but describes a decentralized system where departments set their own marketing budgets, define campaigns differently, use inconsistent performance metrics, and often buy and track advertising independently.
The city's communications system is currently split across departments with varying levels of staffing and funding. Austin Communications and Engagement (ACE) leads citywide communications policy and supports the City Manager's Office and 13 departments that do not have dedicated communications staff.
The report found that departments led over 200 public-facing communications and marketing initiatives in fiscal years 2024 and 2025. Departments reported budgeting about $10.38 million for marketing and communications activities during that period.
The report says the city does not have a consistent way to judge those efforts across departments. Some campaigns track reach and impressions, while others measure attendance, website visits, survey responses, or behavior changes. The report also found that departments do not use a shared definition of what counts as a "communications campaign," making it difficult to compare outcomes or set citywide benchmarks.
The city's next steps include creating standard definitions for terms such as campaign, reach, engagement, outreach, and impressions; establishing minimum performance metrics tied to campaign goals; and creating guidance documents for communications staff across departments.
Communications is one of several internal city functions Broadnax has identified for review, along with human resources, building management, financial services, budget, fleet, grants management, and equity and inclusion.
For now, the report gives the city a clearer map of where its outreach dollars and communications staff are spread but not yet a specific savings target.