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<br />come up through the ranks they would like them to have experience with economic <br />development and some familiarity with different funding sources. The individual should be <br />able to work with federal and state agencies and with the developers so they can manage the <br />growth. The last thing that is wanted is for things to get out of hand so that the city grows <br />but does not end up as happy as they would like. The individual needs to be able to balance <br />that. <br />2. Ms. Sims stated this would not likely be the situation. Waters Consulting Group tries not to <br />over-saturate. She would be handling this and it would be the only city manager scarch she <br />would be running. She is at this time running an assistant city manager search for a larger <br />firm in the Mid Atlantic area. If she had a candidate that wanted to be considcred for scveral <br />searches she would look at the individual's background to determine 'INhere she thinks the <br />best fit would be. <br />3. Ms. Sims stated most likely she \vould be the lead; it would be a lead consultant like herself. <br />She reviewed the support staff located in tbe Dallas office. Sbe stated Waters Consulting <br />Group has three levels of interviews. Referencing is done \vhen they get to the finalists with <br />a 360 degree review. <br />4. Ms. Sims stated the candidates arc given a questionnaire, which in addition to a short <br />telephone interview \vill provide the first insight into the candidate's background. In addition <br />to this there is a second round interview which is either by video conference or face to face; it <br />is a more intense interview making certain the individual has the skill sets they are looking <br />for. The candidates participate in an electronic assessment tool with various questions sllch <br />as how they manage difficult situations, how they handle management issues. and how they <br />work with councils. This tool has been validated in a number of areas. especially for city <br />managers. It is a tool that has been validated for smalL medium. and large organizations. It <br />determines strengths and \veaknesses and gives feedback as to \vhat type of development or <br />environment the candidate would work best under. Once the candidates have been reduced. <br />the career navigator report is analyzed to make a recommcndalion on which candidate may <br />work best for this style of community. This is not recommended as the sole tooL but it is <br />another tool that can be used. Similarly. they complete a thorough referencing. Candidates <br />are asked for 12 to 15 references, of which 5 to 7 are checked. The references would include <br />people the individual has \vorked for, people who have \vorked for the individual. and peers <br />in the industry in order to get a good 360 degree review. <br /> <br />Follow lip question: Do you also ask for references that likely would not speak very highly of <br />the candidate? <br /> <br />Ms. Sims replied with the number of references requested it is difficult for the individual to <br />provide all good references. Confidential references arc promised, and weaknesses arc followed <br />up on. Waters Consulting Group wants to be sure if there is a weakness that the organization <br />would know about that ahead of time. <br /> <br />Sa. Ms. Sims stated Waters Consulting Group would put together a broehure that is fi.lirly <br />detailed and a good marketing tool for the City of Ramsey. They would have direct mailings <br />to eity managers and assistant city managers. They also advertise in professional <br />organizations such as lCMA (International City Manager Association) and the PMA (public <br />Managers Association). They would also focus on Mid\vest and T\vin City organizations. <br />Waters Consulting Group has a good database, but also creates a specialized mailing list for <br />the type of searches they undertake. <br />City Council \Vork Session / February 6, 2007 <br />Page t J of 14 <br />