The Select Board will meet on Wednesday December 10th at 4PM in Town Hall room 301 to discuss the method for hiring a new town administrator. Here is the selection method for which I will advocate.
First, the Select Board will identify and interview personnel recruitment companies. The company chosen will develop a timetable for the recruitment effort, develop a list of required experience and professional qualifications for the position, advertise for and recruit applicants, review and rate resumes, perform background checks of selected applicants, assist in interviewing potential candidates.
The Select Board should ...
...form a committee to do preliminary interviews with prospective candidates. That committee to consist of one member of the Personnel Board, one member of the Finance Committee, one representative of town employee unions and two members chosen from the public. This committee will work with the recruitment company to narrow the list of prospective candidates to two individuals who would be presented to the Select Board for their choice.
Finally, the Select Board will negotiate and execute a contract with the selected individual. What are your thoughts on this proposal?
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Where do we go from here?
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42 comments:
ds like a good plan to me, especially the involvement of those committees and departments with which he will be working and a couple from the public. Question: Will the public persons be chosen via "name in the hat" from interested voters?
Bill, this sounds well thought out. Will the board vote on this selection process?
It sounds fair and has a well rounded group being represented.
I assume this will all be discussed at the next board meeting. Good Luck. And thank you for keeping your cool through a rough time.
I think the two members chosen from the public should have experience in town (not Dartmouth) or private business management. Maybe a CEO. From all the misinformation and confusion I have seen out there from the general public I think it is imperative not to have your "average Joe" choosing our executive administrator. This is not meant to be an insult. We need people who have the knowledge and experience to review candidates for merit and capabilities based on rational thought.
Bill, if I read this correctly the SB would not be part of the committee itself - the committee would report their findings to the SB.
Should the SB be represented on the committee by a person or persons?
In response to the comments, this is my idea of how to proceed. The Select Board as a group will have to discuss and decide which, if any, of the ideas that I presented here will be pursued.
The Select Board would not be represented on the selection committee. I think that having a Select Board member on the search committee might lead to charges of favoritism.
The community members on the board would be chosen by the Select Board. How that selection is done is up for discussion as well. Personally, I would favor those with experience in this sort of process in either the public or private sector. Former or current executives, HR professionals, and financial managers would rank high on my list for inclusion. Some of these individuals may perhaps also qualify as average joes.
One aspect which I have considered is asking for participation from UMass Dartmouth. They have a lot of smart people over there. I just haven't figured out a mechanism to tap into that expertise in this instance. Anyone have thoughts on what they might be able to contribute and how?
I think you need a panel like said but add 3 more community members to equal five--one regular professional, one elder, one parent (all ages and thinking)?
What is going on with this recall? Will Sutter get involved more. If Gagne sues he has no class by the way.
Anonymous 11:09, good idea!
What does age or parenting have to do with hiring an executive admin.? When hiring someone who is responsible for managing a multi-million dollar budget you don't ask your grandfather or Sally and Jim from across the street who they think will be good for the job. This is the kind of thinking that puts non-qualified, inexperienced people in high ranking positions which in turn leads to financial disaster.
Ya know a cross-section of people, different ages and work experiences should contribute to this selection process. Just like these people are represented on Fin Com or Select Board or any other democratic body. It need not be composed of 5 men who are GM EXECS (or own restaurants/or small town businesses)! Fine, put Lang on the committee, but not five people that thgink the same way--different perspectives and life experience.
Why is it that something this big will not be done on TV? I think every step of this process should take place in front of the cameras. I am sure DCTV can cover any meeting at anytime so that if the public can not be there they can at least see the whole process. If you need to hide at a "public meeting" during the day, when most residents can not attend, then you can at least televise it. If this board is truly not trying to hide anything then let DCTV at least videotape ALL the meetings that have to do with hiring a new person. This will at least show us residents that the Select Board is really trying to have an OPEN process and that no one person as been hand picked to replace Mike. If this does not happen then the majority of the board is just as bad as pass Select Boards and also are not supporting a "true and open forum" of government which is what at least two of the majority ran on during their campaign.
This is funny. Bob Miller's candidate, Horan Maclean, is the one who started the afternoon work sessions for the select board. Now Bob is trying to make it look like the current majority is operating in the dark. Why wasn't he complaining about these sessions before?
How ironic is it that the same people who are getting rid of Mike Gagne for not giving them a "plan" ask the Finance Committee for thousands of dollars to do a search, having never discussed the request at a Select Board meeting.
I can't help but wonder if they discussed the request for funds somewhere other than a Select Board meeting.
There goes that forensics data analysis program again. Anonymous 2:13am---96.2% probability match for Bob Miller.
Image the uproar of the old power structure if the select board had discussed anything about the process for hiring a new administrator before completing the process of not renewing Gagne's contract. The select board is again following proper procedure only to have the old boy network complain in order to hinder progressive change.
plesae anon 4:57, how can anyone justify asking the FinCom to fork over $7,500 to hire a consultant without even discussing this request among themselves at an open meeting of the Select Board. I also find it odd that Bill discusses his thought that a consultant needs to be hired then Joe behind the scenes puts a request on the FinCom agenda asking for the same thing. FinCom meetings should be televised as well. If Mr Friedman, Diane and Bob did not do the right thing here we'd have pissed away another $7,500. Remember the $7,500 peer community analysis that was being done that never did see the light of day? Where did that study go? Was that money well spent? What a circus this town has become.
Good Morning Dartmouth, According the substandard times, it appears that we have a town counsel who approved and signed off on contract clauses that "were clearly not in the best interest of the town." According to Bob Carney he is the lawyer we should use because he has malpractice insurance. It looks like he is going to need that insurance.
To anon 7:07,Where did that study go? Ask Mr. Gagne.
I think it was premature to ask Fin Com for money before the SB took a vote, but the vote is probably going to be 3-2 anyway. Maybe one of their afternoon meetings at 3pm on Friday would be a good time to vote.
I suppose the Gagne fan club won't like the fact that the SB has afternoon meetings (public is invited)but these have been going on even with the previous board.They call them workshops.
I have to laugh, people want to know about 'the direction' of the town ,but complain when the SB wants to start a search for a replacement which will be part of that new direction.
I don't think you could ever please this group!
The S-Times talked with Mike & Ed regarding the Savistano letter.
I have a couple of questions:
Why did the SB feel this group needed protection like union workers?
Did Bob Miller see the writing on the wall (his regime was coming to an end).
Why only this group?
There is one difference with Gagne's contract: in the town charter, it clearly states that the exec. admin. contract is for THREE years. A revolving contract for Gagne is not legal and can not be compared to ones in R.I. or Fall River as the paper printed.
Of course, lawyers love lawsuits$$$$$$$$$
I agree with anon 7:40, The town charter states that the executive administrator's contract is for 3 years. There is a reason why it is not a life time appointment. It is clearly to protect the town.
It seems like the previous board wanted to protect Mr. Gagne and give him a life time contract which is not legal in our charter.
Let's see if I have this straight. The town was paying legal fees to Mr. Savastano to protect the town's best interests. Mr. Savastano approved of and signed off on contracts that not only violate our town charter but as he states himself are clearly not in the town's best interest. How much did we pay this guy to set us up for a potential lawsuit when a SB tries to do what IS in the best interest of the town?
How ironic that some people on this blog are complaining about transparency and public meetings. Are you as concerned about the executive session minutes that have not been released to the public for years? This issue has been tossed around for quite some time now. So much so that the gravity of the situation has been lost. The town administrator is required by "open meeting laws" to make them public as soon as the matter has been settled. I find it hard to believe that not one issue has been settled in Dartmouth for years. Is it because they do not exist which is a clear violation or is it because of what they may contain? I didn't think it could get any worse than the 2007 override but I was wrong. There are some very angry people out there including John George and Bob Miller who are fighting to protect the network they built. I wonder if the execuive session minutes would shed any light?
anon 7:29 - where did that study go? The SB requested it yet it's not available fro Gagne or the SB
Sorry got cut off. The study should have been available months ago whether from Gagne or the SB - I see that as a problem for sure but its asa if it's fallen off the face of the earth. Now we want another $7,500 for a head hunter. Maybe we need that, maybe we don't if we can find a few volunteers with experience in this sort of thing that are willing to donate their time. Once again thought, the process that would keep things open and transparent has not been followed. INstead we have a letter to the FinCOm chair asking for a transfer without so much apparently as a conversation between members of his own board. What's that all about?
concern is expressed about transparency, which certainly is legitimate. i am concerned that a majority of the sb have a plan they are choosing not to share. i believe they are keeping it quiet because it is unpalatable to the public (given the economy it is no surprise) . however, how are they going to be able to implement a plan if they alienate the voters that keep them in office and town meeting members who fund their ventures. i want a bos that can make tough decisions, but i need a bos that is honest AND forthright. sometimes we the public need time to adapt to change, new ideas, so put them out there and let me start adapting.
First, it is common/accepted practice for a municipality to seek out a research team who is impartial and experienced in this area when hiring management. It is not an innovative idea or a backroom antic. There are many resources from the state to help in the process.
FinCom meetings are open to the public but unfortunately are not televised. The SB can request a transfer from FinCom. Perhaps Mr. Michaud's intention was to put it on the agenda so they COULD discuss it. Since he was not in attendance, we don't know if that was the case.
We cannot wait until town meeting to appropriate money for this. The process should begin immediately and as stated earlier, the SB is not out of line to request a transfer of funds. If the plan is to acquire a qualified individual to manage the town, then let's do it right. Make the initial investment for the town's future.
I dont see hiring a search firm as a back room tactic at all either just once again the way this has been done makes me wonder if some on our SB have a clue about openess and transparency. Why did Mr Michaud not enlighten his fellow board members first? Is $7500 enough for the task? Has the SB reached out to the state or the Mass Municipal Association to seek guidance since the SB are volunteer lay people in this arena? That's what I would hope be done at a minimum if we are talking about doing things correctly and not continue in a haphazard, careless fashion. Is that too much to ask?
Additionally at least even Bill asked for some feedback from the readers on this blog to help him come to some understanding of the task before him. I have not been on the same page as Bill on most things but asking about this proces on the blog so far has been the best use of information technology that I've seen here to date.
Bring in an attorney whose firm is from outside the Southeast location. The attorneys firm should have no ties to local municipal workers contracts, no ties to wind turbine contractors proposing work in Dartmouth and no former UMass graduate with friends at the local newspaper.
Hire the new attorney for a very short period to review how the executive town administrators contract evolved to where it is now or ask the District Attorney to review the evolution of the contract. Then make public all the executive minutes from 2004
Start with a clean slate. How did Dartmouth really get in this mess? You have to ask!
The transfer request for the monies to hire a firm for the search for Gagne's and Iacaponi's jobs should not be approved by the FinCom as it does not fall under the guidelines as "unforeseen".
The Board knew as far back as August, maybe longer, that this was going to happen and any expenditure for this process should come directly out of their oen budget line item.
It is not like they up and quit and left the Town high and dry.
Who said the SB knew this back in August? Just because they wanted to look into the legality of those contracts, that doesn't mean at that time they were focused on one contract.
These contracts (all of them) have been a sore spot in town for some time and I think the SB wanted to address them in general. That's my opinion anyway.
The Fin Com would be the body that they would get funds from for a search, but nice try...
What does something like this cost - any idea? More curious than anything as I think it needs to be done.
If it is a fact that eight employees have renewal-for-life provisions in their contracts then wouldn't it also be true that the current town attorney has the automatic renewal clause also .
So Bill why not answer the questions? Will you or will you not make a motion to have DCTV cover every public meeting that the Select Board will discuss the Executive Administrator replacement? I would think that you want to show everyone in town that you are for an open government and also not trying to hand pick a replacement. Also if a sub committee is formed and they have open public meetings this should also be included in your motion. Finally this motion should be made during a televised meeting so that the public can hear what each board member has to say on the subject.
Before people say that I am Bob Miller make it know that this is not Bob and I am in not a former Select Board member I just want to see this process look like an open process for everyone not just the few who can make a meeting at 4pm.
I agree that the select board "work sessions should stop and that all their meetings be televised." This was a practice started by the old select board and I opposed it then. Also, the new executive administrator should not be someone from within. Ther are too many structural changes needed that will affect employees. It would not be in the town's best interest to have a new executive administraor with ties to them. Let's have an objective outsider make the changes. I think that time will disprove the theories that this is all a plan to get Shareck or Gilbert the job.
Dartmouth General Bylaws-
SECTION 2. SELECTMEN'S MEETINGS-The Selectmen shall meet every Monday night at seven-thirty o'clock, excepting holidays, to pass upon all bills and transact such other business as may properly come before them, and they shall also meet in the afternoon of the first and third Friday of each month, whenever necessary or advisable.
Thanks for the charter quote poor policy. They haven't been following the charter since well before the last election. I guess those work sessions are o.k. twice a month but they don't meet every monday.
Good Morning Dartmouth,
Just read the s-t and laughed so hard, I had to pick myself up from the floor to type this. Brilliant Bob Carney is heading up a drive to change the charter. He is trying to circumvent the charter reform process but will still need an act of state legislation to do it.
Earth to Carney, why don't you just create a charter reform commission so that while you are at it, we can change our form of government.
Great idea. Carney should use those signatures to change our town govt.
Dartmouth has outgrown town meeting. We need an elected town mayor or town manager. With term limits!
If Mr. Gagne wants to run for mayor, he should. See if the town elects him at the voting booth! It would be very interesting, for sure!
It is interesting that the ballot last April was supposed to have what was necessary to impanel a Charter Commission, to discuss the possible changing of our form of government. This was a follow-up to something the late Greg Tougas had asked the SB to do over a year ago. Somehow it was "forgotten" when the ballot was constructed.
SECTION 6-7: zPERIODIC REVIEW, CHARTER AND BY-LAWS
(a) Charter Review - At least once in every ten years, beginning in 2010, and thereafter in each year ending in a zero, a special committee to consist of nine members shall be established for the purpose of reviewing this charter and to make a report, with recommendations, to the town meeting concerning any proposed amendments which said committee may determine to be necessary or desirable. The committee shall consist of nine members who shall be chosen as follows: the select board, the finance committee and the school committee shall each designate two persons, the planning board shall designate one person, and two persons shall be appointed by the town moderator. Persons appointed by the said agencies may, but need not, be members of the agency by which they are designated. The committee shall meet to organize forthwith following the final adjournment of the annual town meeting.
Bill, Any thoughts as to whether that is calender year 2010 or fiscal year 2010. I assume it to mean calender year in which case, those approximate 3000 signatures would be required to form the committee in the next year. Either way, we WILL be getting a charter reform committee by 2010.
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