Discussion Regarding the Process to fill the Pending City Administrator Vacancy

As the Council is aware, City Administrator Kurtis Ulrich is retiring after 42 years of public service in public administration, of which, fourteen of those years were with the City of Ramsey.  Administrator Ulrich’s last date of work in the office will be May 6, 2022.  Dr. Ulrich is the longest serving City Administrator in the history of the City of Ramsey. 

At the February 8, 2022, City Council meeting the Council accepted Dr. Ulrich's resignation and called for a special session this evening to discuss the process to fill the position. 

Staff  is seeking feedback from the City Council as to if they would like to outsource this recruitment to a professional search firm, direct staff to conduct an in-house recruitment, or an alternative approach.   At the time of this writing, staff solicited five proposals from search firms.  The status of those requests is as follows:
 

Firm	Cost	Timeframe	Proposal Status
Baker Tilly	$24,500	16 Weeks (2 consultants)	Pending
DDA Human Resources, Inc.	$22,000	16 Weeks (Mark Casey)	Attached
Gov HR USA	$23,500	16 to 18 weeks, approximately	Pending
The Mercer Group	$17,500- $21,500	16 to 18 weeks, approximately	Attached
Public Administration Association, LLC	NA	Unable to provide services at this time	N/A

Once received, staff will attach the remaining proposals.

The consultant proposals outline the process that those firms recommend and have used in other communities to find and vet candidates for this important position.  The Council can discuss which of these recruitment activities seem important and consider both internal staff resources and consultant services for filling this position in a timely manner.


 

Up to 30 minutes.

To be determined.

Colleen Lasher, Administrative Services Director

Based on discussion.