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Nicole Martin Keeps Herriman Moving Forward

Jul 15, 2015 03:15PM ● By City Journals Staff

Nicole Martin and her daughter proudly accept her reward at the Utah Business Awards Ceremony

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It takes less than 60 seconds with Nicole Martin to get to know her passion for three things: her city, communications and a good challenge. These three things combined made a run for City Council the perfect next move in her career.

Martin worked in the private sector for 15 years before becoming the Economic Development Director for Herriman City. Martin’s utilization of non-traditional methods of communicating with the residents of Herriman not only set her apart as a game changer in her field, but also set the city of Herriman apart as an example for other cities to follow.

The main event that led others to see the kind of impact social media can truly make was the machine gun fire in 2010. Martin utilized the city’s Twitter account to alert the residents about evacuations, road closures and places to stay. After this, the Utah Division of Emergency Management even referred to Herriman as a “prime example” of how to put social media to good use.

Martin was recently named one of the Utah Business “30 Women to Watch,” for daring to step outside of the norms and take on the task of making government communications both interesting and effective. She adds this honor to a “Best of State” award and a “Communicator of the Year” award.

When asked why she felt she was a good candidate for City Council, Martin responded;

“I think that I bring an institutional knowledge of government. I bring the ability to communicate municipal issues to the residents. I bring a strong economic development background and a really expanded network across the state that can help the city move forward, [as well as] legislative experience. These five things made me feel like I was certainly a qualified candidate to sit on the City Council and move Herriman forward.”

Keeping her city moving forward was the resounding theme as Martin spoke about why she was running for City Council and what she hoped to accomplish.

“We are a growing city; we don’t have time to have dysfunction and to not move forward. We need to be growing our city. If you’re not growing your city in a smart way, you’re stuck with it for 50 years until it’s time to redevelop. The decisions that are made today are absolutely vital [to] keep Herriman moving forward.”

Not only has Martin worked in communications for both Herriman and Sandy City, she also works with the Utah League of Cities and Towns, serves on the marketing committee at the Economic Development Corporation of Utah, and is on the board of Mountain West Small Business Finance.

She personally established the Herriman Economic Development Committee and successfully ran it during her time working with the city, as well as serving as the Herriman City liaison to the Southwest Chamber of Commerce.

Martin’s abilities in communications and her willingness to do things that a city government is typically afraid to do have made her an incredible success. When asked what her favorite part of her job is, she replied without hesitation, “The challenge.”

“For me, it’s the ultimate challenge to first have a thorough understanding of the issue at hand and then find a creative and unique way of communicating…that’s a challenge that I face every single day and I love it because it makes my job interesting.”

Martin has certainly set herself apart as a strong candidate for a seat on the City Council as well as a role model for other women who may shy away from political positions. When asked what advice she would give to other women, Martin said;

“Try it. Why not? Life is short … I would say that the opportunities are there for every single woman and the sky is the limit. The only thing holding back women is themselves and thinking that they can’t do it.”

Martin sites enthusiasm, flexibility, and a strong work ethic as her personal recipe for success and encourages anyone, male or female, looking to make a difference to always bring those traits to the table.

You can learn more about Nicole Martin and follow her candidacy on her Facebook page: facebook.com/nicolemartinforherriman