George M. Burgess has served as Miami-Dade County Manager since June 2003. In this position, he reports directly to Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Alvarez. Together, they lead the day-to-day operations of a government with nearly 30,000 employees and a budget of  $7.4 billion.

As a public servant, Mr.  Burgess has been the driving force behind numerous signature projects including the launch of a new baseball stadium in Little Havana, construction of the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Miami and winning voter approval of the $2.9 billion Building Better Communities Bond Program. Mr. Burgess has brought corporate-style strategic business management to County government and introduced a nationally recognized results-oriented government model to guide the operations of more than 60 County departments and agencies that provide services to the County's 2.4 million residents. He led creation and implementation of the County's first strategic plan and, according to independent surveys, dramatically improved residents' perceptions of the government and its services.

Prior to his appointment as County Manager, Mr. Burgess held senior roles with both the County and Miami-Dade Public Schools. As Chief Financial Officer for the school system from 2002 to 2003, Burgess was responsible for all budgetary, financial, procurement and risk management functions for the fourth-largest school district in the United States.

Previously, Mr. Burgess served for four years as an Assistant County Manager responsible for the oversight of the financial, budgetary, management, performance and efficiency activities of County government. He was involved in many crucial issues, including reforming the County's procurement policies, formulating and implementing a comprehensive annexation and incorporation policy for the County's unincorporated area, supporting an extensive review of the County's Home Rule Charter and the formulating Charter amendment recommendations.

Earlier, Mr. Burgess served as the County's Director of the Office of Management and Budget, Deputy Budget Director, and Capital Budget Coordinator. He began his career with Miami-Dade County in 1982 as a management trainee.

Mr. Burgess holds a bachelor's degree and a master's degree in public administration from the University of Maine. In 2007, he received the Distinguished Public Service Practitioner Award from the American Society for Public Administrators Southeast Conference.