Council to find new manager

First Ward Alderperson David Jacobson said potential city manager needs to be part of the DeKalb community by living in it. 

By Batul Cutlerywala

DeKALB — City officials will have a city manager proposal written before Friday that will be sent to a seach agency once approved by the council members.
 
The City Council discussed the search for the next city manager during Monday’s Committee of the Whole meeting.
 
Council members discussed the desired qualifications and residency requirements for the next city manager. 
 
Mayor Jerry Smith said the council wants the search to be a transparent, community effort.
 
Human Resources Director Cris Randall said the position profile is a document that will outline all of the expectations the city of DeKalb and the council has for the potential city manager, consisting of skills, education and leadership style.
 
Randall said there are three elements to the city’s recruitment process: how long it takes to conduct the recruitment, how much money it is going to cost and the pool of available candidates.
 
Using an external recruiter gives the city access to a larger pool of candidates and will eliminate any possible perceived conflicts of interest, Randall said.
 
“I was leaning toward external to get the broader range of candidates,” said Sixth Ward Alderperson Mike Verbic. “I think we will end up with a better candidate pool to choose from.” 
 
Randall said the council decided to use a steering committee to conduct an effective and expedited recruitment process, which would consist of the mayor, individuals from the human resources department and one council member.
 
First Ward Alderperson David Jacobson said constructing a position profile right away is not the best way to go because of  past interview experiences where those who had viewed the profile knew what they city was looking for. 
 
“It was clear in the past, from those that had done their homework and read what we wanted to see, they basically regurgitated it back to us,” Jacobson said. 
 
Relocation expenses for the next city manager will be negotiable depending on the range distance with the council’s consensus, Randall said. 
 
Gaura was required to move to DeKalb within a year of beginning her position and was granted $3,000 in moving expenses, Smith said.
 
“In order to be successful in this role you need to be here,” Jacobson said. “You need to be a mesh in this community; you need to be engaged in this community.”