Suggested Interview Questions

Please give us a brief opening statement (not more than 5-8 minutes in length) recapping your career highlights and why you feel you are well suited to the position of Public Works Director/City Engineer for the City of_______________________.

1. Please describe the most significant organizational change that you have introduced into an organization? Was it successful? Why?

2. Give us an example of when the policy makers in your organization prescribed a course of action that you disagreed with. How did you react? What did you do to convince them to accept your desired course of action? What was the outcome?

3. What procedures will you introduce to staff to fully utilize their talents and focus their efforts on the most important and urgent projects? How do you monitor staff and also ensure a high-quality and timely outcome?

4. Describe characteristics we would hear from your staff regarding your management style?

5. The City uses a committee for project development. The Committee is comprised of department heads. At times, there may be a disagreement in terms of the conditions needed or other pertinent information that leads to controversy within the group. In your position as Public Works Director, how would you facilitate this process and build consensus?

6. Briefly, please highlight the most controversial public works project you have dealt with.

7. The City of ___________________ prides itself on being at the forefront of water reuse and reclamation. What specific experience do you have in this area?

8. How do you ensure that contractors and consultants are delivering as per the agreed upon scope of work? What specific systems do you use to monitor their progress and performance?

9. Most governmental entities need to do more with less. Please describe your experience in dealing with these issues. What approach have you used successfully?

10. Have you had to prepare a cost-benefit analysis on the delivery of public works related services? What was the outcome?

11. As a manager, what is your strength in the area of financial management? What is the area of least exposure dealing with municipal finance as it relates to a public works environment?

12. What will you do to build effective relationships with your staff?

13. What is your approach in dealing with the development community? What can the City expect in this area?

14. What is your experience dealing with the community related to growth issues? How much direct exposure have you had in this area?

15. How do you communicate your values, strategies, and priorities to other staff?

16. If a letter to the editor appeared in the local paper specifically criticizing you for the lack of timely response to citizen complaints, what would you do?

17. Please share with us, the most difficult situation dealing with a Council member that contacted you directly?

18. If you could pick only three words – used in any order, sequence or combination – what words would you use to describe yourself?

19. You previously received a copy of the five-year CIP and the current budget. Based on your review, what is your impression of the challenges facing the City in the future?

20. How does this position fit into your career plan?

21. Why do you want this position (may have been previously answered in the opening statement)?

22. Is there anything further you would like to tell the Panel in a closing statement?

Please describe your approach to decision-making. What decisions do you prefer to make yourself? What decisions are you most comfortable in delegating to others?

Please describe the steps you take in analyzing a public works related issue that involves a public process and culminates with a presentation to elected officials and the community.

Briefly, give an overview of the most difficult personnel management decision you have made in recent years. Reflecting on the situation today, would you have done anything different?

What do you expect to accomplish in the first 100 days in this position?

1. Can you provide us with a couple of examples of how your leadership has made department operations more efficient or effective? (change to a system or process, implementation of technology, etc.)

2. Getting things done in Public Works requires substantial interaction and partnerships with other entities. How do you work with other City departments and outside agencies on major projects?

3. _______________________________ residents have very high expectations of City services. (a) How do you evaluate customer service in your current agency?

(b) Assuming than this City’s constituents are more demanding that what you are accustomed to, how would you make that philosophical transition to ensure that our stellar reputation is maintained?

4. (a) What experience have you had with the development and implementation of a major capital improvement program?

(b) Based on your experience, what are the most important elements of a sound Project Management System?

5. Water is a good part of the Public Works operations in _________________ and it is certainly an important issue statewide and regionally. We’re interested in learning more about your experience with water and how you might go about getting up to speed on the critical aspects of the industry. (question will be modified for internal candidate)

6. (a) How familiar are you with the newer wastewater and stormwater regulatory and reporting requirements?

(b) Since this is such a dynamic issue, how do you go about keeping abreast of such changes at the state and federal levels?

7. Let’s assume for the moment that you are appointed the new Director. (a) How would you approach the first six months of the transition?

(b) After two years under your leadership, what will the City Manager be talking most about when it comes to Public Works?

Public Works Director

Panel Questions (DRAFT)

1) Please take a couple of minutes to provide us with an overview of your career and identify what it was that attracted you to this particular opportunity?

2) Can you provide us with one or two examples of how your leadership has made department operations more efficient or effective?

3) If you were to leave your current job in a couple of months for another opportunity, what will your legacy be in that organization?

4) What challenging “people management” experience have you encountered that you hope to never have to face again and is there anything you would have done differently?

5) What type of experience do you have with long-range planning? Follow-up: (a) Do you have specific experience with long-range transportation planning? (b) What is the “secret” to ensuring that such plans remain active and actually get implemented?

6) Describe some of the larger capital projects you have overseen and identify the types of funding sources that were utilized.

7) How do you think you could help to ensure the county sales tax initiative passes next time around? Follow-up: (a) What type of related experience do you have that might strengthen our chances for success next time around? (b) How do you go about educating the public regarding such complex matters?

8) Getting major projects done in Public Works often requires partnerships or cooperation from other government agencies and contractors. How would you describe your department’s efforts in developing and maintaining effective working relationships along these lines? Follow-up: What role have you played in such efforts?

9) If you were appointed to the Public Works Director position here, where would you want to focus your attention and energy during the first few months of your tenure and how would you go about establishing yourself as the new Director?

10) Continuing to assume that you are candidate selected, let’s fast forward a couple of years to the fall of 2009. What will the City Manager be talking most about with respect to Public Works? Follow-up: What might be different in the Department and/or community?

11) What would you need to be successful?

FACTOR I: JOB RELATED EXPERIENCE & TRAINING

1. We’ve reviewed your resume; however, please provide us a brief summary of the highlights of your career to date that you feel are relevant to this position.

2. What has been your experience in overseeing a Public Works Department?

3. Describe your experience in dealing with the public, City Councils, commissions, and/or committees.

4. Describe a situation where you faced multiple conflicting deadlines on projects/assignments and how you resolved these conflicts.

5. What specific things did you do in your jobs to improve your effectiveness?

6. In your opinion, what are the most important attributes of a successful municipal Public Works Director?

FACTOR II: SUPERVISION

7. How do you set priorities and organize the work of yourself and those who report to you? How do you think your subordinates perceive you?

8. Give us an example of how you have been successful at empowering either a person or a group of people in accomplishing a task.

9. What have you done to train, motivate, and develop the staff that works for you in order to develop their potential and assume greater responsibility?

10. How do you effectively develop and facilitate a team environment among your staff? What are specific actions you’ve taken to do so?

FACTOR III: INTERPERSONAL SKILLS

11. Describe your approach in communicating an unpopular decision to your subordinates. . .to your supervisor.

12. What has been the most difficult challenge that you’ve experienced in interacting with a City Council, Board of Supervisors, or other elected official?

13. Tell us about the most awkward and difficult situation you’ve ever encountered. How did you deal with it? What would you do differently if given a second chance?

FACTOR IV: MANAGEMENT

14. What is the ideal relationship between the Public Works Director and the City Manager? With the City Council? With other Department Directors? With the community?

15. Describe an innovative or progressive management program or approach that you’ve introduced to your organization.

16. What do you think will happen over the next five years that will significantly impact municipal Public Works arena?

17. What have you done to instill an exceptional “customer service” focus with other departments and the community, and to minimize bureaucracy within your organization?

18. How would you go about ensuring that the City Manager and City Council are receiving timely, completed staff work, with sufficient information to assist them in their decision making process?

19. What would your former (or present) City Manager or CEO, City Council or other elected officials and other department directors, collectively, say about you – both the upside and the downside?

What interests you about coming to _____________ the Public Works Director? What is your initial impression of the City – both positive and negative?

In closing, please share with us why we should recommend you as the Public Works Director.

Do you have any questions?

1. We have all had an opportunity to review your resume. Please explain, from your perspective, how your background prepares you for this position.

2. Describe your experience analyzing and restructuring department and division operations. How do you determine which business units to review? How do you determine the criteria used to analyze each functional unit?

3. What is your core management style/philosophy? How do you adapt your style to the current organizational culture and how do you enlist your team to understand and adapt to your style?

4. Please describe your experience with the following:

a. Large-scale capital improvement engineering projects

b. Public works maintenance

c. Private development

d. Water, wastewater, and sewer operations

e. Refuse, water and wastewater rate setting and implementation

5. How do you develop and maintain partnerships with the public, peers in the industry and other regional, state and federal agencies?

6. What major issues do you look at in the delivery of infrastructure design, planning, financing and construction?

7. What is your experience planning, preparing and overseeing a multi-divisional department budget?

8. What is your vision of the future of water and wastewater services? What do you see as the emerging trends in public works maintenance and engineering? Which key issues will be in the forefront five and ten years from now?

9. What is your role in the recruitment and retention of public works staff and professional support services? How would you go about crafting a workable succession plan for the Public Works Department?

10. Complete this phrase: City council members tend to _____________________ when it comes to public works and engineering projects.

11. Please describe what you have done to prepare yourself for this interview in terms of understanding the community and the issues?