For the second time in as many years, Johnson County has won the “Leading the Way Award” from survey company ETC Institute.

As a recipient of the award, Johnson County ranked in the top 10% of communities of more than 100,000 people regarding their composite performance in three core areas measured by ETC Institute’s DirectionFinder® Survey:

• Satisfaction with overall quality of services.
• Satisfaction with customer service provided by employees.
• Satisfaction with the value residents think they receive for taxes and fees.

County Manager Penny Postoak Ferguson said the award reflects the teamwork and level of commitment of everyone in Johnson County Government.

“To win this award for a second time is an honor, and we thank the residents who took time to provide the feedback for this survey,” she said. “With the guidance and support of the Board of County Commissioners, the county was able to provide the high level of service delivery necessary to achieve the results that it did in the 2022 survey.  This is also a reflection of the hard work and dedication of our county staff who work each day to make Johnson County a desirable place to live, work and raise a family.”

To rank in the “Top 10% of Large Communities,” a city or county must have scored at least 190 total points. Johnson County scored 198 points, which was 26 points higher than average composite score of 172 for all communities in the United States.

The excellence threshold of 190 points was established using the results of surveys from more than 400 communities that have participated in ETC Institute’s DirectionFinder® Survey over the past two years. Since 1999, ETC Institute's DirectionFinder® Survey has been administered to nearly two million residents in all 50 states, but the company only began awarding top performers in 2020.

Survey respondents gave high marks for the county’s quality of life, services and programs, and 91% of respondents said they were satisfied or very satisfied with the quality of life in Johnson County.