Process and General Timeline for City Manager Search and Selection Process

Process and General Timeline for City Manager Search and Selection Process

Advertisement & Application Process (May 19-July 7)

The City of Charles Town will advertise and accept applications for the position of City Manager from approximately May 19-July 7. Applications received after the July 7 deadline may be considered at the discretion of City Council.

All qualified candidates who wish to apply are encouraged to do so and must submit a resume, letter of introduction, a minimum of three professional and/or personal references, and current salary and/or salary requirements to: City of Charles Town, Attn: Personnel Committee, PO Box 14, Charles Town, WV 25414 as posted in published advertisements. Or, should you wish to email your application information, please send it to: . Candidates should indicate if you wish your application to remain confidential.

All materials submitted will be reviewed by the City’s Personnel Committee using criteria and evaluation materials previously approved by City Council.

Applicants will receive a letter from the City stating that their resume has been received and is under consideration. Interested applicants will also have access to a packet of information, via the City’s website, that includes: 1) City Manager Profile; 2) Job Description; 3) An overview of the hiring process; and 4) Any other information contained on the City’s website or available to the public upon request.

Every effort will be made to keep the names of applicants and any materials submitted by applicants confidential at this stage in the process. Members of the City’s Personnel Committee, Council Members and City staff shall treat applicant information as confidential. No current member of City staff who applies for the position shall have access to any information submitted by applicants.

Resume review is intended to be completed and reported on by the Personnel Committee to Council on or before its August 7, 2017 meeting.

Deadlines and procedures may be adjusted to accommodate unforeseen circumstances. Every effort will be made to inform those who apply of any changes in the timeline or application, review and interview processes. City Council will receive regular reports at each of its meetings from the Personnel Committee on how the application and review process is progressing.

Determining Finalists (week of July 24, 2017)

During this period, the Personnel Committee, along with the Mayor, would take a lead role in narrowing the field of qualified candidates to determine finalists for interview with the full Council. We would keep the Council fully informed of the options considered and logic used in identifying suggested finalists, basing recommendations on criteria previously establish by the Council.

Assuming the field of candidates needs to be further narrowed to identify approximately 3-5 finalists for interview (with some possible backup candidates), reference and background checks of candidates still under consideration may need to be performed at this stage.

Candidates no longer under consideration at this stage will receive notice as such from the City. Candidates who are still under consideration will be contacted to obtain permission to proceed with reference and background checks or, possibly, to schedule a phone or pre-interview with the Personnel Committee or other persons designated by Council.

At this stage, it may no longer be possible to keep the names of applicants fully confidential though every effort will be made by the City to do so and to accommodate any individual applicant’s wishes with regard to contacting, for example, current or former employers.

Ideally, finalists would be determined and reported on to Council on or before its August 7, 2017 meeting to allow for scheduling of interviews with the full Council within a week to 10 days. A group of backup finalists may also be presented to allow for situations in which a selected finalist has become employed and/or is no longer interested in the position.

If it is necessary for Council to discuss individual applicants and/or their qualifications, this should be done in an executive session.

Interviewing Finalists (second week of August)

Finalists will be contacted and an interview scheduled with the full Council. Finalists will receive a packet of information from the City that includes: current budget and financial reports; organizational chart; personnel policies; list of Council Members, their occupations and current terms; minutes of recent Council meetings; land use map; economic development strategic plan, etc. and/or links to where such documents and plans are available on the City’s website or web portal.

Candidates who are not determined to be finalists or designated as backup finalists, will receive notice as such from the City.

Finalists who do not reside within a 200-mile driving distance from the City of Charles Town may request reimbursement for travel expenses up to a maximum of $500. Reimbursement may be sought for the following expenses: round trip mileage, one night’s hotel accommodation, round-trip coach airfare and one day’s car rental. It is understood that the maximum budget for these expenditures is not to exceed $2,500 (five times $500 per candidate) unless approved by Council.

Interviews will be conducted in a format to be established by Council at a future date, using evaluation materials to be approved by Council. All interviews will be conducted in executive session.

Post Interview, Final Selection & Contract Negotiation

Dependent upon the outcome of the finalist interviews, Council may choose to select a final candidate and make a formal offer or conduct additional interviews. Every effort will be made to keep finalists informed of their status and any additional steps that may be required.