How to Address a Town Manager or Administrator
How to Address a City, Town or County Administrator
How to Address a City, Town or County Manager
—-Envelope or address block on letter or email:
—-—-Mr./Ms./etc. (full name)
—-—-(Office held)
——–(Address) How Address City County Administrator
—___-—-Which looks like:
—————-Mr. Robert Dillon
—————-Hartford Town Manager
—————-Town Hall
—————-Hartford, New York 98765
—————-(Address)
—————-Mr. Kurt-Owen Richard
—————-Washington County Administrator
—————-Municipal Center
—————-Fort Edward. New York 12345
—————-(Address)
—-Salutation:
—-—-Mr./Ms./etc. (Surname)
Robert Hickey author of “Honor & Respect”
—-#1) These professional managers are hired by the local elected municipal councils. Not elected by the citizens – the idea is they work outside of the political realm to keep operations running smoothly. {NOTE: Another similar sounding position County Executive frequently is an elected official. For that office see the next post on this page.}
—-#2) As a hired professional, a county/city/town manager/administrator doesn’t have an elevated form of address. Address as Mr./Ms. (Name) – (whatever honorific to which he or she is entitled) and identify by their (office). How to Address a City or County Administrator
—-#3) Administrator and Manager are used after the name in an introduction or on a business envelope for identification, but is not formally used as an honorific.
—-For comparison see also Mayor of a U.S. City
– Robert Hickey How to Address a City or County Administrator
Robert Hickey author of “Honor & Respect”
How to Address a County Executive?
#1) In some jurisdictions the county executive is elected in a general election by the citizens. This official is addressed as:
———–The Honorable (Full Name)
———–County Executive
———–XYZ County
———–(Address)
#2) In other jurisdictions, an official with the same title might be appointed/hired by the county board/county council. Appointed county officials are not the Honorable (Full name). They are simply:
———–Mr./Ms. (Full Name)
———–County Executive
———–XYZ County
———–(Address)
Robert Hickey author of “Honor & Respect”
So – you will have to find out how your particular county executive got into office!
Use the same formula (without the street address. of course) in a formal introduction: (Honorific)(Name)+(Office Held)
In conversation, an informal one-on-one introduction, and a salutation both elected and appointed county executives are addressed as Mr./Ms./Dr./etc. (Surname) – use whatever honorific to which they are normally entitled. County Executive is not formally used as an honorific in front of a name in writing. Although someone might say (oral reference), “County Executive (Surname) will be here in five minutes” – that’s not a form of address. It is referring to an official in the third person so the listener understands the situation who and what.
— Robert Hickey How Address City County Administrator
NOTE: Administrator, Executive and Manager are used after the name in an introduction or on a business envelope for identification, but are not formally used orally or as an honorific.
For comparison see also Mayor of a U.S. City
Robert Hickey author of “Honor & Respect”
When Should You Use the Forms on this Page?
You can use these forms of address for any mode of communication: addressing a letter, invitation, card or Email. (If there are differences between the official and social forms of address, I will have mentioned the different forms.) The form noted in the salutation is the same form you say when you say their name in conversation or when you greet them.
___What I don’t cover on this site are many things I do cover in my book: all the rules of forms of address, about names, international titles, precedence, complimentary closes, details on invitations, place cards, all sorts of introductions, etc. I hope you’ll get a copy of the book if you’d like the further detail.
Not Finding Your Answer?
—-#1) At right on desktops, at the bottom of every page on tablets and phones, is a list of all the offices, officials & topics covered on the site.
—-#2) If you don’t see the official you seek included or your question answered send me an e-mail. I am pretty fast at sending a reply: usually the next day or so (unless I am traveling.) Note: I don’t have mailing or Email addresses for any of the officials and I don’t keep track of offices that exist only in history books.
—-#3) If I think your question is of interest to others, Sometimes I post the question – but always change all the specifics.
— Robert Hickey
Robert Hickey author of “Honor & Respect”
Recommended Resources: The Protocol School of Washington (PSOW) and Protocol and Diplomacy International – Protocol Officers Association (PDI-POA) For more information see the Protocol Resources page.