Great reporting on this topic in this article:
In the job posting, it states that a college degree is not required.
Equivalent to a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university with major course work in public administration, business administration, or related field. An advanced degree in public administration or related field is desired but not essential.
The City of Camas is a $100M+/year enterprise, with hundreds of employees and a room full of high level payrolled managers and experts. You can't teach a second grade art class without a Bachelors degree and a teaching certificate at our local elementary school. But the highest paying job in Town, and essentially the CEO of the entire business that is Camas, Washington- doesn't require a college degree?
What other $180K City Administrators in Washington don't have a college degree? Are there any?
What were the education requirements in the job posting 5 years ago when Pete Capell was hired? Or before him after Lloyd Halverson left?
Finally, how could you not want anything but the VERY BEST candidate, in times that we KNOW are going to be among the most difficult that municipalities have faced in decades? It sure doesn't feel like they're looking for a strong, experienced, educated applicant with an independent voice and his/her own proven track record of success. Instead, our consultant-captured City Council appears to find it easier to manage less sophisticated candidates who can better take direction than make direction.
Interesting. I took a look at the Yakima CM position on the City website. Three (3) questions jump out right away:
Has anyone from Camas contacted Yakima re sharing the applicant pool information so that BOTH cities end up with the best qualified person ?
Look at the flyer for the the Yakima CM position that SELLS the job!
Why does everything about the Camas website still look like 1995? I know that an easy conversation could be had with the web developer from Yakima and jumpstart the NEW Camas Website into the 21th century.
Then again there are the many questions raised about the entire hiring process for the City of Camas position. Is Camas intentionally not trying to hire the BEST and MOST CAPABLE person?
Anyone who has ever been involved in hiring personnel can see the game being played here...the job posting was absolutely written with a specific candidate in mind, not to recruit the superior candidate. For shame! How is that good for Camas? How is the brand new mayor without prior government experience okay with it? Why wouldn’t he want the very best candidate AND an outsider just like him who will bring fresh eyes to how the City of Camas has been and should be run in a very uncertain future. Barry can hire whomever the hell HE wants. He gets to decide who the next City Manager is and it’s beyond comprehension that he would not choose the best possible candidate over the entrenched city employee deemed next in line. If Barry McDonnell was genuine about being the change agent he held himself up to be he needs to hire a person with a phenomenal curriculum vitae who will partner with him to run this city the way the citizens want and deserve and help him develop into the mayor Camas actually needs instead of depending on the members of the club who only want to teach him how to do their bidding.
David Scott, Washougal City Manager, has a BS in structural engineering and a Masters in Public Administration.
Vancouver’s City Manager has a couple.
”...A native of the Pacific Northwest, Eric holds both a bachelor of arts in planning, public policy and management from the University of Oregon and a master’s of public administration from Lewis & Clark College...”
Yakima, Washington is also seeking a City Manager right now. They start with a friendly preamble that seems to really set the table for great applicants.
Yakima requires a master's degree for their city manager along with a background investigation regarding applicant's aptitude, character, judgement, credit, driving record and criminal history. Seems like they're serious about this position.
Here is the entire job posting:
"Opportunity in sunny Central Washington!
The City of Yakima is offering a great opportunity to a City Manager looking for a new community to call home.
Located within a 2 hour drive to Seattle and 3 hours from Portland, Yakima is a diverse community in the wine and hop country of Central Washington. Strategically nestled in the rain shadow of the Cascade Mountains, Yakima enjoys nearly 300 days of sunshine per year with four separate and distinct seasons, offering a multitude of outdoor activities from hiking and fly fishing, to nearby skiing and snowboarding.
Yakima is seeking a knowledgeable leader who is approachable, fair, organized, and progressive for the position of City Manager. The ideal candidate will be visionary, yet has practical business sense and experience. The City desires a candidate with a heart for a community invested in agriculture and hometown values of integrity, hard work and service to others.
This position reports to the City Council and is responsible for the administration and daily management of the municipal government of the City of Yakima including, but not limited to, the supervision and direction of department directors and other staff.
It is expected Yakima’s next City Manager be respectful of council, staff, and the public while encouraging an environment where creativity flourishes, and results and accountability are prioritized. Other important characteristics are experience managing in lean times, the ability to anticipate and resolve issues before they escalate, and the foresight to look to the future for growth and development.
QUALIFICATIONS:
Top qualifying candidates will possess a master’s degree in Public Administration, Business, Law, Political Science or closely related field and a minimum of five (5) years’ experience as a City Manager, Assistant City Manager, exempt level department head or other senior administrative officer.
The successful candidate must have outstanding interpersonal and communication skills.
Must pass a background investigation regarding applicant's aptitude, character, judgement, credit, driving record and criminal history.
COMPENSATION & BENEFITS:
The City of Yakima offers a competitive salary and benefit packing including annual salary range between $175,000 and $195, 000; Medical/Dental/Vision coverage; FREE healthcare clinic; Paid Time Off (PTO); Membership in WA State PERS Pension; Car allowance; reimbursement for moving expenses; and more!
APPLY:
Applications must be submitted online at www.yakimawa.gov prior to 5:00 PM June 3, 2020.
All applications must be completed in full AND have the following attachments to be considered. (Resume may not substitute for work history information required in the application)
• Letter of interest and resume
• Name and complete contact information for five (5) references including at least one current or previous supervisor"
Not good.
The way I read that job listing it starts out with a disqualifying statement for 95% of applicants when the reality of the position is you can literally be anyone.
I hope Barry isn't giving away this hiring process to a committee. This city admin is supposed to be his right hand person to turn his nice sounding campaign promises into actual lasting law and policy. He didn't have government experience, which was fine for most obviously, but the remedy for that lack of expertise is a city admin that can expertly translate an empty promise of, "I stand for transparency" into 10 different REAL policies that fundamentally change the way this city communicates with its citizens and vice versa for decades to come.