Success built on balance

For Lesley Doyle, the world has always made the most sense when things balance. Not just ledgers and budgets, although those certainly do.

The City of Las Cruces finance director laughs when she admits she actually enjoys accounting, a profession many people would rather avoid. But what drew her to it wasn't simply math. It was structure.

"I think it's probably the black and white of it," Doyle said. "Things need to balance. You've got to have your debits equal your credits. The end."

That same appreciation for order has quietly shaped nearly every step of her life, from raising three children to leading finance operations for universities, school districts and now the City of Las Cruces. It also helps explain why, barely a year after arriving at city hall, Doyle has received one of the profession's highest honors.

The Government Finance Officers Association recently named Doyle a 2026 recipient of its Recognition for Outstanding Public Service, a national award honoring exceptional contributions to public finance. The recognition came after Doyle led the city through one of its most challenging financial moments, helping close a projected beginning balance shortfall of more than $10 million while preserving essential services and strengthening trust throughout the organization.

For Doyle, though, the recognition feels less like the result of one difficult budget season than the culmination of a career built on solving problems by bringing clarity where others see confusion.

Raised in Ruidoso, she discovered accounting while studying business at New Mexico State University. She found herself drawn to the discipline almost immediately.

"I knew I wanted to do something in business, and I took my first accounting class and realized I really liked it," she said. "As I took more classes, I realized I was actually good at it."

There was another practical consideration. Her husband worked shift work in law enforcement, and she wanted a career that would allow them to build a family together.

After graduating from NMSU with an accounting degree, Doyle worked in financial operations there, eventually becoming director of accounting and financial reporting. Much later, with three children at home, she decided to return for her MBA. Her son graduated from high school just days after she earned the degree.

"I told my husband I didn't need to walk because I'd already done it once," she recalled. "He said, 'No. The girls need to see you walk across that stage.'"

Within weeks, she accepted the chief financial officer position with Deming Public Schools, where she inherited an organization still recovering from an embezzlement case and multiple audits.

"It wasn't so much that the budget was tight," she said. "There just weren't processes or procedures for anything."

That would become something of a recurring theme. When Doyle accepted the finance director position with the City of Las Cruces in February 2025, she quickly discovered that accounting itself wasn't the challenge.

"Accounting is kind of accounting," she said. "What I had to learn wasn't how to do things. It was how we did things here."

Sometimes, she decided, that wasn't good enough.

"I finally joked in a meeting that if one more person told me, 'We've always done it that way,' they were fired," she said with a laugh. "We're going to do it my way. And if it doesn't work, we'll go back."

Instead, many of those changes worked. Doyle credits much of that success to people who were willing to challenge ideas rather than simply agree with them. She believes leadership depends on inviting honest feedback and making sure people understand not only what decisions are made but why.

"I don't want to pretend I have all the answers because I don't," she said. "I want people who will tell me, 'That's a stupid idea. Don't do it.' Those relationships are really important. I want people to know why I'm making the decisions that I am and that I'm not making them in a silo."

That philosophy proved critical when the city discovered the projected multimillion-dollar budget gap. Rather than soften the message, Doyle chose complete transparency.

"There was a lot of bad news that I had to share," she said. "The numbers don't lie. I wasn't telling people what they wanted to hear, but I felt it was important for them to know why we were where we were."

She believes trust grows from consistency.

"The information doesn't change regardless of who I'm talking to," Doyle said. "I want to make sure everything I tell the city manager is also what council is hearing. I don't want there to be two different messages. The message needs to be the same across the board."

City communications director Mandy Leatherwood believes that approach explains why Doyle earned confidence so quickly.

"Lesley's done a really good job of building trust in the finance department, but also with the organization as a whole," Leatherwood said. "When you're dealing with financial management, especially during a budget crisis, knowing she's got the organization's best interests at heart makes her team want to work with her. It makes the rest of the departments want to work with her."

Her colleagues have all certainly noticed. Josie Trevino, assistant finance director, credited Doyle with building a culture of trust and collaboration between the Finance Department and other city departments from the beginning of her tenure.

In her first year, she met the challenge with confidence, emphasizing open communication, transparency, and proactive problem-solving. Her leadership has helped strengthen relationships across the organization while fostering a positive and supportive workplace culture.

“The balance of technical skill and genuine care for people is what makes Lesley’s leadership unique,” Trevino said.

Doyle is quick to point out that the work isn't finished. Budgets will continue to evolve, procedures will continue to improve, and difficult conversations will never disappear from public service.

But the principles that have guided her career remain remarkably uncomplicated. Tell people the truth. Explain why. Build systems that make sense. And, of course, make sure everything balances.