TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
FROM:
John Jalili, Interim City Manager, and Cathy A. Hanson, Human Resources Director
SUBJECT:Title
Solicitation of Proposals for Retention of an Executive Search Firm to Assist in the Recruitment and Selection of a City Manager and Appointment of an ad-hoc Council Subcommittee (Interim City Manager Jalili and Human Resources Director Hanson).
APPROVE
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Recommended Action
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that City Council approve the use of an executive search firm to assist in the recruitment and selection of a City Manager and appoint an ad-hoc Council Subcommittee.Body
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None at this time. The cost will be determined through the request for proposals for recruitment services and the firm and process which the Council chooses. Funds for these services are available in the City Council contingency fund.
BACKGROUND:
The City Council is embarking on a process to recruit and select the next City Manager for the City of Manhattan Beach. The goal of the recruitment and selection process is to identify the best available candidates and to ensure that candidates are a good fit for the community. It is considered a best practice for a City Council to engage a professional recruitment firm to assist the Council with recruiting and selecting a City Manager. In addition to the firm ultimately selected, the Council will have the assistance of the Interim City Manager to guide the process.
DISCUSSION:
A request for proposal process for executive search and recruitment services will be the first step in this important task. The advantages to using a professional recruitment firm and recruiter include:
· Experience in assisting City Council's in developing a consensus as to the qualifications, characteristics, and qualities desired in a City Manager;
· Existing relationships with City Manager candidates who may be a fit for the Manhattan Beach profile but may not be aware of the opportunity. The executive recruiter will contact potential candidates not in the job search market and encourage them to apply.
· Experience with City Manager candidates from other recruitments and knowledge of their strengths and weaknesses.
· Knowledge of the best practices for recruiting and hiring City Managers as well as contract and compensation expectations.
· Commitment of both resources and time to conduct an intense professional recruitment and to evaluate the candidates in-depth to ensure they have the required qualifications and characteristics to succeed in Manhattan Beach.
While there are many options for the elements of a selection process, a professional recruiter can provide information regarding what other cities have recently done, opportunities for community involvement, and will make recommendations for what might work best in Manhattan Beach. In addition, they are able to give their undivided attention to this recruitment.
Once engaged, the selected firm will facilitate the Council's and community's identification of desired qualifications, characteristics, and qualities being sought in a City Manager as one of the first steps in the process. The balance of the recruitment process will be defined by the City Council and the selected firm.
A Council Subcommittee will work with staff and the Interim City Manager to evaluate the proposals received as a result of the RFP process and will recommend an executive search firm to the City Council.
CONCLUSION:
Staff recommends that City Council consider use of an executive search firm to assist in the recruitment and selection of a City Manager and appoint an ad-hoc Council Subcommittee; staff will then solicit proposals from qualified executive search firms.