The California Joint Powers Insurance Authority (California JPIA) congratulates Alexa Davis, assistant city manager for the City of Rolling Hills Estates (RHE), who received the 11th annual Capstone Award at the California JPIA’s Annual Risk Management Educational Forum in Indian Wells.
“Alexa has been instrumental here in the City of Rolling Hills Estates in advancing risk management,” said Rolling Hills Estates City Manager Greg Grammar. “When we had an incident in the city, her first thought was to make sure that life and property were protected, and then she contacted the Authority to make sure they were aware of any exposure the city may have.”
In July 2023, land movement caused the City of Rolling Hills Estates to red-tag homes, requiring residents to be evacuated. City staff, led by Davis, instantly sprang into action to protect residents, prioritizing their immediate needs while researching long-term solutions.
“Rolling Hills Estates has strong pre-planning, comprehensive MOUs, and other essential preparations in place, and I believe that’s one of the city’s key strengths,” said California JPIA Senior Risk Manager Melaina Francis. “Alexa has been instrumental in leading this effort, so they are highly prepared in an emergency.”
Davis is a risk management champion widely respected by her peers within the organization and the risk management profession. The strategic mitigation strategies she implemented to reduce risk exposure were critical in the fast deployment of resources when land movement occurred within the city in 2023.
“This is the biggest local disaster that I’ve experienced in my career and most likely the largest to affect the City of Rolling Hills Estates,” said Davis. “Messaging is a key component of risk management. Knowing what, where, when, why, and who our internal and external stakeholders are important to ensure we are framing that message correctly.”
“Alexa is a great person and takes risk management very seriously,” said Francis. “Any city having crisis situations with someone like Alexa on staff will prevail every time.”
The Capstone Award is presented annually to an individual at a member agency who exemplifies the practice of risk management by supporting or improving risk management efforts within their agency, influences others in developing or maintaining positive risk management efforts, and coordinates support systems that serve the members risk management goals and needs.
The 2024 finalists also included:
- Dorna Farhadi, Human Resources Manager, City of Laguna Niguel
- Manuel Enriquez, Parks and Recreation Director, City of Duarte
- Mary Kingman, District Arborist, Rossmoor Community Services District
“I am really honored to receive this recognition. This achievement reflects the support from Authority for its members and the dedication of the RHE team and the leadership of my City Manager and City Council,” said Davis. “Our commitment to prioritizing risk management demonstrates the care and concern we collectively have for our community and each other.”
Providing innovative risk management solutions for its public agency partners for more than 45 years, the California Joint Powers Insurance Authority (California JPIA) is one of the largest municipal self-insurance pools in the state, with more than 125 member cities and other governmental agencies. Members actively participate in shaping the organization to provide important coverage for their operations. The California JPIA provides innovative risk management solutions through a comprehensive portfolio of programs and services, including liability, workers’ compensation, pollution, property, and earthquake coverage, as well as extensive training and loss control services. For more information, please visit the California JPIA’s website at cjpia.org.
