Gary Weiers came before the Cook County Commissioners on November 12 to discuss the process of filling the opening left by cook county administrator Jeff Cadwell who moved recently to take a similar job in Mahnomen County.
Weiers works for DDA Human Resources Inc., the firm selected by the county to help in its job search.
Before working for DDA, Gary spent 11 years as the county administrator for Rice County, where he managed 16 departments with 350 employees and had an annual budget of $50 million. Since joining DDA in 2013, Gary has conducted more than 70 executive searches and assisted with dozens of organizational projects.
After the introductions were over, Weiers presented the county board with the most aggressive hiring timeline possible, but added, “My timeline is irrelevant, yours is relevant.”
First, said Weirs, he will gather information about the community to build a community profile. He will also meet individually with commissioners, meet with county department heads and staff, striving to get a significant amount of background information so the county board will feel comfortable moving ahead with the search.
“The interview process is customized for every search,” he said.
Next, DDA will advertise for prospective candidates in Minnesota, neighboring states, and nationwide.
Once a group of finalists is selected, an extensive background check that includes criminal history, civil court, credit history, etc. will be conducted along with a thorough employment reference check of all finalists before the interviews. Also, employment and educational credentials are verified by DDA.
“Theoretically,” said Weiers, “You could begin advertising (for candidates) before Christmas, but I wouldn’t recommend it.”
Instead, Weiers proposed that the board wait until January to start soliciting for candidates.
Commissioners will be invited then to look over the best candidates and select, say five to interview, Gary said. From that point on, Gary said he would “help you facilitate your decision and select your final candidate.”
But first cook county commissioners must decide what type of position to search for. Weiers said the county has three types of leaders, administrators, managers, or coordinators to select from.
Larger counties sometimes select a manager, he said. In that model, commissioners would have little to say about how the county is managed, and have no authority in hiring or firing.
Smaller county’s sometimes have coordinators, said Weiers, but fewer and fewer county’s are hiring coordinators.
Coordinators, primarily coordinate, assemble board packets, and have no authority over department heads or the budget, said Weiers.
Statewide there is a movement away from coordinators, particularly when a change is made, he said.
Board Chair Ginny Storlie told Weier that many people wonder why Cook County needs an administrator or any other type of head.
Weier asked what the county budget was and how many employees work for the county. He was told $26 million and 150 people. “With a $26 million budget, you are a pretty significant organization. Find another similar public or private business that doesn’t have a CEO with a budget that high. And at 150 employees, you must be one of the largest employers in the county,” he said.
Dave Mills said, “We need some longer-term planning. Our seats can turn every four years. We need someone with professional expertise and some experience.”
Because commissioners wanted to learn more about the three types of county leaders, Weier said he would send them more detailed descriptions of the three positions. He also asked to take back with him some county job descriptions and a range of the county wages.
Commissioners will review the administrator, coordinator, and manager descriptions before December 17. Mills said he leans towards hiring an administrator, but admitted it was important to look at all of the options.
Commissioners agreed to wait until January to start advertising.
County attorney Molly Hicken reminded the board to pass a resolution authorizing the hiring of DDA at a cap of $20,000.
Mills made the motion to hire DDA for up to $20,000, and the board voted unanimously to hire the job search firm.
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