Discussion Regarding the Police Chief's Retirement and Process to Fill the Position

The purpose of this case is to provide the City Council with information related to Chief Jim Way's upcoming retirement, to provide staff insight on the pending recruitment, and to seek direction on filling the position.  

Retirement
As the City Council is aware, after almost 30 years of service,  Chief Way has submitted a letter of retirement dated Monday, August 4, 2014.   In the letter, Chief Way stated that his last day of employment with the City of Ramsey will be January 31, 2015.  By that date, Chief Way will have served the City of Ramsey as a sworn officer for 30 years.  Chief Way's announcement has a significant impact on the City and staff is committed to filling this position with the best possible candidate, a candidate that demonstrates the qualities necessary to meet the City's mission, core values, and guiding principles as identified in the adopted Strategic Plan.  

Survey
Staff plans to conduct an internal survey with the Police Department, the management team, and possibly the City Council - if so directed.  Staff will be seeking feedback regarding  what qualities would be most important in the City's next Chief of Police.   This survey will provide important feedback regardless of whether an internal promotional process is conducted or an external process.

Interview Panel
Regardless of whether an internal or external recruitment is conducted, staff will be looking for a recommendation of no more than three non-employee panel members to participate in the interview process as required by City policy.  Due to the critical nature of this position, the full Council may choose to participate in the final interview(s).  Panel members may also be from outside of the community (e.g., a Police Chief from a neighboring city).

Start date
In an effort to retain as much institutional knowledge as possible and depending on the type of recruitment that is conducted, staff will also be seeking direction on a start date and a corresponding training period -- allowing time for Chief Way to work directly with the new Chief.   
 
Position Qualifications
 The Police Chief position requires the following minimum qualifications:  Seven years of proven experience in a law enforcement agency and as a patrol officer and at least three years of formal supervisory experience and training of uniformed officers. Must be a licensed as a police officer in the State of Minnesota or able to obtain a license upon hire.  Desirable Qualifications include:
A bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university with coursework on criminal justice, political science or related field. Completion of advanced management training such as the FBI National Academy, NW Traffic or Southern Police Institute is desired.

Promotional Process / External Recruitment
As a result of mindful succession planning within the Department, there is one internal, promotable candidate that exceeds the minimum and desired qualifications of the position. Staff will be prepared to discuss this candidate and his qualifications at the work-session. If the City Council so directs, an external recruitment process would be conducted. Regardless of the type of recruitment that is conducted, staff will not be seeking assistance from an external recruitment firm.  

 

This case is expected to take 15-20 minutes

There is no funding required at this time.

Colleen Lasher, Human Resources Manager

The intended outcome of this work-session is to provide staff, by consensus, direction as to how to proceed with filling the Chief of Police position;  to identify the non-employee interview panel members, and to approve a training period based upon an anticipated start date.