With my retirement coming up next summer, efforts to hire a new Town Administrator are getting underway. It will be 12 years since I came to Manchester, and the time has come for me to hand the position to someone new. I admit I am both excited and panicked about the prospect of retiring after working a 40+ hour a week job for over 40 years.
The Select Board is responsible for hiring Manchester’s Town Administrator. The Board has contracted Community Paradigm Associates to help with the recruitment process. Paradigm is a leading recruitment firm working for Massachusetts communities to fill key leadership positions.
In this early stage, Paradigm staff are meeting with Select Board members and department leaders to gain insights into what qualities are needed in a new administrator. A profile of the position, the Town and its challenges will be crafted to be used as part of the recruitment process. Interested candidates will be sought in earnest during the month of January.
A Preliminary Screening Committee will be formed to conduct the initial screening of candidates. The committee, to be appointed by the Select Board, will consist of the chairpersons of the Finance Committee, the Planning Board and the School Committee, two former Select Board members and two citizens at large. Former Select Board members and residents interested in serving should submit letters of interest to the Select Board’s Office over the next couple of weeks.
The initial phase of candidate screening is done confidentially by the screening committee. This maximizes the number of potential candidates by allowing candidates to step forward to see if Manchester is a good fit for them and vice-versa while still comfortably maintaining their current position. The consultants will assist the screening committee in narrowing the list of candidates to three finalists. Once the finalists are identified, the Select Board will conduct public interviews and make a final decision. This is a similar process that was used in my hiring.
The screening committee will be active mostly during February and into March. Final interviews by the Select Board are likely to take place in March or April. The goal is to have a new Town Administrator under contract come May with a probable start date later in the summer as it often takes a few months before a new person can start.
A review of operations and our structure also is taking place over the next few months. The Select Board chose Capital Strategic Solutions, a municipal consulting firm, to conduct an operations audit to see what improvements might be possible in the delivery of town services and in the organizational structure we have. As part of this review, the consultants will be looking at the use of technology to see if there are new tools that could improve services and efficiencies.
In addition to hearing from department leaders and the Select Board, the consultants would be interested in hearing from residents as well. Feel free to send to the Select Board Office suggestions for service improvements and insights you might have regarding how the Town can operate more efficiently and we will be sure to pass along your thoughts.
This grant-funded effort should identify changes that we can make both in the short-term (through the upcoming FY26 budget process) as well as longer-term by providing an assessment of current operations and a solid roadmap for a new Town Administrator to follow. I am not done yet! I will continue to work to serve the Town’s best interests as we prepare for several transitions that are coming during the new year.
