At the invitation of Cook County commissioners, Association of Minnesota Counties Executive Director Jim Mulder came up from St. Paul to discuss at the December 22, 2009 county board meeting the possibility of hiring a county administrator, something Mulder openly supported.
The board started talking about hiring an administrator after passage of the referendum authorizing a countywide 1% sales and use tax, which will fund up to seven capital improvement projects.
Thirty-one of Minnesota’s 87 counties have county administrators. Another 30 have either a coordinator or manager whose duties are not outlined in as much detail in state statute. Twenty-three counties (26%) have no administrator, coordinator, or manager.
Back in the 1850s, Mulder told the board, the function of county government was mainly to collect taxes and create and maintain roads. Counties were run by the auditortreasurer, the county attorney, and the sheriff, all elected positions.
In the 1950s and ‘60s, counties began hiring more professionals to carry out county responsibilities, Mulder said. At that time, Minnesota counties had seven elected positions. “The nuance of multiple people giving direction was not good,” Mulder said. “It was challenging.”
Some elected positions, such as county assessor, eventually became hired positions. County auditortreasurers took on administrative responsibilities that sometimes became “too much to expect,” Mulder said. In the 1980s and ‘90s, he said, county government expanded greatly as health and human services programs grew.
Having an administrator allows the board to focus on vision and goals, Mulder said. He called such a structure “the Jean-Luc Picard school of administration,” referring to how Star Trek Captain Jean-Luc Picard would give general instructions and direct his first officer to “make it so.”
A county administrator reports to the county board, and all other hired positions report to the administrator.
One advantage of having a county administrator is that the board is relieved of direct personnel responsibilities. The human resources role is big, Mulder said, and small mistakes can lead to big consequences. An administrator would probably be better trained to avoid mistakes in management protocol.
A county administrator would also bridge departments, Mulder said, weighing, for example, all department requests when proposing a county budget. Right now, each Cook County department head advocates independently for his or her department’s needs.
An administrator works for the county board, Mulder said. “If you don’t like them, you should get rid of them,” he said. Qualifications for the job are likely to be a bachelor’s degree with some relevant experience or a significant level of either education or experience.
“This has all come about since we have all these projects with the 1% tax,” Commissioner Jan Hall said. She expressed concern that an administrator would shield commissioners from information regarding various departments. She said she thought the board was originally just considering hiring someone to help coordinate the 1% projects.
Mulder said commissioners could still act as department liaisons and attend meetings with department heads. “I would encourage you not to give that up,” he said. “It gives you a sense of due process. Sometimes the link between a department head and a commissioner can be an impediment because sometimes people may be afraid to tell you the rest of the information. …They may tell you what you want to hear.” The administrator’s job, he said, is to “ferret out” the rest of the information.
“You don’t want a system where an administrator filters everything you get,” he said.
Commissioner Bruce Martinson said he has talked to constituents who support hiring an administrator. An administrator would provide more consistent leadership, he said, since commissioners’ styles vary so much.
Mulder recommended that the county board get outside help if they decide to hire an administrator. Commissioners don’t always have the human resource experience needed to choose the best candidate. Sometimes commissioners fail to communicate expectations adequately or don’t research candidates’ backgrounds well enough, Mulder said.
Commissioner Martinson recommended that they wait for the right candidate rather than picking from a single roster of candidates. Mulder said the application process does not have to have a closing date.
About three-fourths of Minnesota’s county administrators operate under a contract that must be renewed regularly, Mulder said, giving county boards an easy way to get rid of someone who doesn’t meet their expectations.
Commissioner Martinson suggested that an administrator could start out managing 1% projects and the Superior National golf course along with overseeing county departments and then phase into personnel duties when Personnel Director Janet Simonen retires.
The county should not expect someone to come in and do everything at once, Mulder said. He recommended that priorities include oversight of the 1% projects, human resource management, and budgeting. “You are hiring an administrator. You’re not hiring a god.” Some administrators have seen themselves as gods, he said, but they need to be great team workers who are good with people.
Commissioner Bob Fenwick said county commissioners tend to try to persuade others to join their points of view. Administrators, on the other hand, tend to present both sides of an issue, he said.
A good administrator, Mulder said, can argue all sides of an issue but still be willing to go with the decision of the board.
Sometimes commissioners avoid asking questions they fear will make them look stupid, Mulder said. An administrator asks those questions. “One of the goals of an administrator is to create a culture within a county,” he said. “That culture, if you get the right person, …can be a really, really positive experience.”
Commissioner Jim Johnson said that while he has heard support in the community for a county administrator, he made a campaign promise two years ago not to hire an administrator. He said he has been hearing from some people who think the board should be doing the work rather than hiring someone else to do it.
Mulder wrapped up his visit by stating that the state is looking at a $4-8 billion deficit for 2010. The Association of Minnesota Counties believes the state’s way of doing business and delivering services is “unsustainable,” he said. Consolidating across governmental agencies – such as cities and counties sharing highway departments – might be necessary.
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