Given his past leadership positions in local government, it would be easy to assume that the new executive director of the Alliance for Innovation (AFI) has a central focus on public safety. His first public sector job was with the police department in Jefferson County, Kentucky, and at various times in the last twenty years he has served as Public Safety Director and Chief of Police in Denver and Public Safety Director and Chief of Police in Indianapolis.

But Troy Riggs’ background and interests are far broader than that. While he started his public sector career as a police officer, he moved from there to become press secretary for the Jefferson County Judge Executive Rebecca Jackson in the late 1990s.

How did that unusual job shift occur?

“I had a radio job before policing and the police department had sometimes asked me to do some media for local newscasts,” says Riggs. “The county judge executive was looking for a press secretary and she asked newsrooms who they trusted and they all said me, which was a complete honor. And that’s how I ended up working for the county in a very different role.”

The Judge Executive became a mentor for Riggs, intent on helping him to learn broadly about government operations at a time when the county and the City of Louisville were considering consolidating into a single entity. Under her guidance, he learned everything he could. “She put her trust in me let me sit in on major decisions,” says Riggs. For example, “She’d ask ‘What do you know about economic development? And the only thing I could say is, ‘I think I’m for it’ and she then took me to every economic development meeting and before the year was over, I had a pretty good handle.”

High level executive roles in both the public and private sector have continued to add to his skills and interests in procurement, budgeting, human resources, technology, data use and innovation – all of which make the job he just took on in January a natural fit to run a flagging organization that underwent a significant change three years ago when Ron Holifield took on the role of interim director.

 “If it had not been for Ron stepping into that role, this organization would not exist today,” says Riggs. “I’m grateful that he saw such value in AFI and honored that he asked me to take on the executive director position.” 

Q. As the new director of the Alliance for Innovation, what do you have in mind for its future?

AFI had about a forty-year history. It had some very good times and it had some tough times. We’re not focused on building AFI to where it used to be. We’re focused on building it to where it needs to be. Government changes over time. Technology changes. Innovative practices and methodologies change. So, we’re really focused on what our membership needs.

Q. What are you hearing about local government needs?

Even though we’re not in a recession, it kind of feels like that to some of our local governments. They’re realizing how grant-funded they are and some have already lost a grant or they know they could lose grants. We’re hearing about DOGE and tariffs and they really want to talk about AI and how they can get their governments ready to move forward implementing AI and using it in a professional, productive way.

Q. You’ve been executive director for about five months. What attracted you to this job?

I think AFI with its innovative mindset can help people identify the right technologies, but also make sure that their workforce is ready for the challenges of the future – especially the challenges that new technology is going to bring to their decision-making.

Q. What have you been most excited about so far?

If I had to point to our two major successes that we’ve had in our first quarter, TLG – our Transforming Local Government conference in April  -- was one. We had about 300 people there and 66 presenters. It was a phenomenal event.

Q. Can you describe a few of the high points of the conference?

I think the big message from the conference is that AFI is back. It’s got some momentum now. There was a new level of excitement regarding AFI and during that time it was really important for me to sit down with our membership and take a couple of hours each day to ask for their input and to hear what they want us to lean into, and to tell us about the ways we’ve let them down in the past.

We continued to hear about how valuable the sessions were this year. We saw firsthand how the sessions continued informally during lunch, dinner, and breaks. It was encouraging to see leaders from the government and technology sectors interacting to find solutions to complex problems facing communities.

I believe these conversations were significantly enhanced by including non-traditional AFI members, such as municipal leagues, NIGP: The Institute for Government Procurement; NCTCOG (the North Central Texas Council of Governments), and a local Economic Development Corp.

Q. What changes are you planning? 

We’ve started to really expand. We have about 130 plus members now, which includes cities as large as Phoenix and as small as Alice, Texas [about 20,000 population]. But we have hundreds of other cities we’ll be reaching out to and sharing information with over 2025 and 2026 and we’re planning more of an outreach to counties. That’s one of the things we heard at TLG and that’s near and dear to my heart because I came up in a county form of government.

In the past, we’ve also overlooked special districts. So, we’re expanding there and we’re expanding to nonprofits that support local government. We’ve just onboarded our first foundation, the Indianapolis Public Safety Foundation and we’d like to be the umbrella organization for foundations that are working with local governments. They’re a natural fit for AFI.

Q. What’s your vision for how AFI operates in the future? 

I think one of the differences people will see is that we will move fast. That’s my history. Our membership is working 24/7 and we need to be available to them and available to help with the challenges they’re facing. 

Currently, we have completed our strategic plan and budget for the remainder of 2025.  We are now putting the final touches on our budget and strategic planning for 2026.

Q. What benefits do governments or other organizations get from becoming members and how does that work?

We have a membership fee that’s based on the size of the government, so that varies. Our members get a big reduction in training costs, as well as our reports, our comprehensive strategic foresight studies, 24-hour access to us and an online membership network community with resources focused on anticipatory leadership in government.

But we also have an associate membership that’s free that includes access to our newsletter and to our partnership with Civic Marketplace.

Q. How much will your member governments help to chart your course?

We want to listen to our membership first. Right now, they’ve been very clear that they need a lot of information quickly and they need information that is easy to absorb and understand. 

In the past, we’ve had voluminous reports, but no executive summary. We haven’t said “Here are three things you can do right now.” Or “here are the pitfalls.”

We’re restructuring our reports. We’ll still be talking about the future, but also about what they can do right now.

Q. What else are you hearing about what local governments need?

Obviously, the financial landscape is changing dramatically, so they need help there and they need somebody that’s going to be moving quickly. There’s also a lot of talk about the lack of mid-level managers who are seasoned – who have the expertise necessary for their jobs, which is critical if you’re facing financial uncertainty. And, of course, implementing AI and using what AI gives you rests on the shoulders of mid-level managers and communities are finding they’re not ready.

Q. Given all your experiences, what are the aspects of government you get most excited about?

My experience includes working in three major US Cities.  As I grew in my understanding of government by being a member of a County Judge’s executive team, and a member of three Mayoral Cabinets, I have become passionate about the quality of life of residents.

Very often, economies grow, technology increases, and while there is much to celebrate, some people are left further behind. In my previous work in various cities, I had the opportunity to examine data from 50 of America’s largest cities. In each, I discovered an unpleasant truth: every major American city has pockets of acute poverty. In fact, the troubling data—poverty levels, unemployment rates, etc.—rivals and exceeds those of the Great Depression.

While I don’t believe the government can provide all the answers, it can be a catalyst for change. Simply sharing data, utilizing new technology, and regularly convening non-profits, community groups, and faith-based organizations to develop strategies will result in substantive change.

My passion for government stems from my belief that our municipalities and nation will not reach their true potential until every citizen has the opportunity to participate and thrive.  

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