Select Board agrees on hiring process for town manager

Date: 2/20/2012

Feb. 20, 2012

By Chris Maza

chrism@thereminder.com

LONGMEADOW — The Select Board agreed upon a process through which the town will hire its next town manager at its Feb. 15 meeting.

Current Town Manager Robin Crosbie announced her intentions to seek employment elsewhere to the Select Board in October 2011. Her final day of employment will be June 30.

The board voted to retain the Edward J. Collins Jr. Center for Public Management at University of Massachusetts Boston to recruit candidates for the position.

Selectman Marie Angelides, who has been in charge of researching options, suggested the use of a recruiter after attending Massachusetts Municipal Association meetings, speaking with some recruiting firms and attending a South Hadley Select Board meeting at which candidates interviewed for their town manager opening.

She suggested the Collins Center as one of three recommended firms, with the other two being the Massachusetts Municipal Association and a company called Municipal Resources in New Hampshire. All three firms quoted Angelides a price of $13,000 to $15,000 for their services.

Selectman Robert Aseltine made the motion to retain the Collins Center.

"We do know them. They've done work with them before," he said. "I know the Finance Department was pleased with the human resources audit that they performed recently for the town. I think they really know their way around the state and I don't see a real advantage from either firm."

Included in the contract with the Collins Center will be a deadline of May 15 for candidate recommendations.

Angelides also suggested based on her research and suggestions from the Collins Center that the Board form a seven- to 10-member committee to screen the candidates and present four or five to the Select Board for final interviews.

Select Board Chair Mark Gold suggested a representative from the town's unions, as well as a representative from the department heads should be on the committee. Aseltine concurred, adding that the School Committee and Finance Committee should also be represented.

"Those are the other two major boards in town that have to work with the town manager and their departments do as well," he said. "They should offer some insight to us as to what they would like to see through the screening process."

Who the remaining members on the committee would be was a source of debate. Angelides reported that the Collins Center suggested no more than two members of the Select Board be on the committee and that the other two members of the board could appoint a committee member.

Selectman Paul Santaniello took exception to the idea of Select Board members not serving on the committee having the opportunity to make an appointment of their choice.

"The other two [Selectmen] who are not on [the committee] should not be allowed to appoint a surrogate. If you're doing that, just serve on the committee," he said. "By appointing a surrogate ... basically you're putting someone else on there who's going to vote the way you want to vote."

The idea of an application process for the remaining empty seats was discussed, but it was decided to be too inefficient.

Aseltine then made a motion to create a committee consisting of one union representative, one department head, one member of the school committee, one member of the finance committee, one Selectman and three members appointed by the non-participating Selectmen.

He then altered that motion to include two selectmen and two appointees after Gold stressed the need for strong Select Board representation on the committee. The motion passed 3-1, with Santaniello issuing the negative vote.

However, the vote was later voided after Aseltine made a motion to nominate Gold and Angelides to the committee and Gold said he would not have the time to serve. Santaniello also declined to serve, citing time constraints.

Therefore Aseltine was forced to make his original motion again, which again passed 3-1.

The board then unanimously voted Angelides to be the board's representation on the committee.