ORLANDO, FL, December 18, 2025 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Leadership strategist and long-time municipal executive Gilmore has just published his latest book, Competent Leaders Know How to Succeed. The second in his well-respected series on leadership draws on his decades of public-sector experience to deliver truly useful tools for today's leaders. At its heart, the book makes the case that true leadership competence is founded on integrity, careful planning, and the courage to challenge complacency.

Building on this two-decade-old philosophy, Gilmore demonstrates that leadership is less the result of charisma or positional authority than strategic foresight, ethical discipline, and transparency. Drawing on real-world case studies and hard-won experience, he shows leaders how to alter the trajectory of organizations by combining deliberate planning with moral courage.

At the heart of this book, Gilmore embeds his key argument: leadership without planning is management by chance. He outlines the essential tools of a competent leader, including personal planning agendas, third-party evaluations, and data-driven decision-making, while underscoring that budgets and policies are moral documents reflecting institutional values.

"Integrity is the bedrock that holds everything together," Gilmore writes. "When leaders embrace transparency and strategic planning, real reform becomes not only possible, but inevitable."

From chapter to chapter, Competent Leaders Know How to Succeed covers the realities of public governance, including managing councils and boards, eliminating complacency, aligning staff through training and communication, and building proactive cultures resistant to political manipulation. The case studies in the book, from uncovering corruption on the local level to modernizing utility governance, are uncommonly instructive regarding the resilience needed to lead under political pressure.

Rich with actionable guidance, the book serves as both a manual and memoir, inviting readers into the author's lived experiences confronting entrenched systems while championing ethical governance. Whether a city manager, board member, executive, or emerging leader, readers will find a roadmap for planning boldly, acting ethically, and driving lasting organizational renewal.

Competent Leaders Know How to Succeed is now available in print and digital formats through Parker Publishers.

About the Author

Gilmore is a respected municipal leader, consultant, and author whose career has been devoted to ethical governance, strategic planning, and sustainable reform. His leadership series equips current and future leaders with the tools, insight, and moral clarity needed to transform organizations and serve the public with integrity.

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