City Manager Performance Evaluation Committee

City Manager Performance Evaluation Committee City Hall Room 302A 10 N. Division Street Battle Creek, MI 49014 Monday, January 7, 2019 1:00 p.m. Committee Members Present: Commissioners Kaytee Faris, and Chris Simmons, and Commissioner Susan Baldwin Vice Mayor Sherry Sofia present via phone conference. Committee Members Absent: Staff Present: Rebecca Fleury, City Manager; Victoria Houser, City Clerk; Nancy Mullet, Labor Attorney, via phone conference Call to Order: Comm. Baldwin called the meeting to order at 1:00 p.m. Public Comment: None Approval of Minutes: A motion was made by Comm. Faris, supported by Comm. Simmons, to approve the September 17, 2018 City Manager Performance Evaluation Committee minutes. All yes, none opposed. Motion approved. Bi-Monthly Performance Review A. City Manager Report of Performance highlights and concerns Ms. Fleury stated the central focus has been addressing the budget deficit, noting she has been working with Senior Staff to present information to the Commission at the workshop on January 24, 2019. Ms. Fleury stated the Senior Staff members would be meeting on January 18th. Responding to a question from Comm. Baldwin, Ms. Fleury stated the City did not receive prior notice from the State that the reimbursement they expected or calculated on the form was to be drastically reduced. B. Commission highlights and concerns Comm. Baldwin confirmed that although she did not solicit the Commission, no comments or concerns were received from Commissioners. Discussion of Commission Workshop to Review Goals A. Review Draft of City Manager Evaluation Process Update Report, Goals and Measures – results from recent Workshop Comm. Baldwin, noting the committee normally meets in February, April, June, August, October and December, informed the committee that the October meeting was not held as the evaluation process was approved at the first October Commission meeting. As to the December meeting, Comm. Baldwin noted the City Manager Goals workshop took the place of the committee meeting. Comm. Baldwin recommended the committee schedule the February meeting to get back to a normal schedule. Comm. Baldwin noted the City Manager’s contract requires the Commission to adopt the City Manager goals annually, suggesting the committee make a recommendation to the Commission to set the City Manager goals for a two-year period instead. Comm. Baldwin recommended the committee review the performance objectives that were set at the December 6, 2018 Commission workshop, along with the proposed changes to the directions and suggestions. As to Areas for Improvement, Comm. Faris stated her recommendation under Areas for Improvement, item #2, was to have the IT Department review the report form to make it easier for the City Manager so that the bi-monthly reporting is not so time consuming or labor intensive. Vice Mayor Sofia agreed it would be best to improve the form, reducing the need to copy and paste items each reporting period. 1 Comm. Simmons recommended staff use One Note, stating he uses this at his job, and that it is a great collaborative tool, allowing multiple people to make updates to a document. As to item #3 Better communicate the expectation and process for new commissioners, Comm. Baldwin suggested including the document during the bi-annual commission orientation. Comm. Baldwin noted the commissioners would then be prepared for the goals workshop, recommending the workshop be held a month or two following the even year elections. Comm. Baldwin stated this should be done every 2 years, not every year, stating it is a cumbersome process, noting also few of the goals can be completed within 1 year. Comm. Faris agreed with a 2-year goal period, noting the current evaluation period is very short. Comm. Faris noted new commissioners would need to be provided time to understand their role before establishing goals. Comm. Baldwin suggested setting the goals workshop in January, stating it makes sense to set goals in January and then give two years to fulfil the goals. Comm. Baldwin recommended discussing prior year goals and process during the new commissioner orientation. Comm. Simmons expressed support of a 2-year cycle instead of an annual workshop, emphasizing the importance of adding new goals, possibly during a midpoint review, or tweaking goals, based upon local issues. Comm. Faris noted the committee had considered a place on the evaluation tool for “emerging issues.” Comm. Baldwin recommended emerging issues be brought to the committee for discussion, then present them to the Commission prior to adding them to the evaluation tool. Comm. Simmons questioned item #4 regarding the rating scales. Vice Mayor Sofia stated it was important to be clear as to the specific expectation the City Manager is being evaluated on. Vice Mayor Sofia stated the City Manager’s responsibility was to ensure services are provided to residents. Vice Mayor Sofia and Comm. Simmons agreed they evaluated the City Manager their first year by comparing her performance to how previous administrations performed. Both agreed weekly updates are very comprehensive, always providing a lot of information so that the Commissioners are aware of what is occurring in the City, which was expected in the past, but not always provided. Comm. Baldwin agreed, stating the City Manager is very involved with the community, always providing spectacular amounts of information. Committee members stated it may have been helpful to review the prior year evaluation, suggesting it be provided during the commission orientation and again when the Commission is completing the current year evaluation. Comm. Baldwin stated it has been helpful to have senior staff members review the evaluation document, and to add specific measurable for each goal. Comm. Baldwin, referring to item #5, stated discussing the process with new commissioners during orientation and providing a copy of the previous year’s evaluation should fulfil this concern. As to item #6, Comm. Baldwin noted the document does identify the outcomes, which are the different projects or processes the City Manager is required to work on. Comm. Faris agreed that although the document does focus on activities and processes, the outcomes are the headers for each section. Comm. Simmons reminded everyone that the Commission cannot hold the City Manager responsible for circumstances outside of her control, such as an economic downturn. Comm. Simmons also noted that not all Commissioners agreed upon the items placed under “Areas for Improvement,” stating individual commissioner comments were captured during the workshop. Comm. Baldwin recommended the phrase “Areas for Improvement” be changed to “Areas for Discussion,” receiving agreement from all committee members. As to item #7, Comm. Baldwin confirmed the City Manager and the Committee did re-evaluate the list of community partners every year. 2  As to item #8, Committee members noted goals that have been completed are moved to a checklist, no longer requiring reporting, but still available for review by the Commission on the checklist. Regarding specific goals, Comm. Faris, referring to page 6, section 4 Reliable and Up-to- Date Infrastructure, noted item #5 regarding the management of North Capital road diet project should be moved to the completed checklist. Comm. Faris asked if the North and Emmett safety study should remain on the list as it was completed. Ms. Fleury noted the study was completed, the staff would review and make a recommendation to the Commission. Comm. Faris stated other areas in the city should be reviewed. Comm. Faris expressed concern that placing item 4 regarding recreational marijuana, under Goal #7, Well-Planned Growth & Development may imply the Commission already supports recreational marijuana although it has not been agreed upon by Commission yet. Comm. Simmons stated it was open because staff would prepare options for the Commission to consider. As to goal #8 Vibrant Healthy Neighborhood, Comm. Faris stated she expected staff and the Commission to change things in the coming year because of the budget deficit, stating she did not expect it to be moved to the checklist. Regarding item 2 to connect service providers, Comm. Faris stated she expected that item to be moved to the checklist, thinking the check mark should have been next to item 2 instead of item 1. Comm. Simmons stated item 4 under #9 Progressive Adaptive City Government was his suggestion, stating he was asking that staff consider creative ways to deliver services differently, such as contracting services or finding different providers. Ms. Fleury suggested this item is in the Managerial Competencies under Fiscal Responsibility, noting the responsibility to ensure expenses match revenue. Ms. Fleury stated some suggestions are difficult and politically challenging, requiring more discussion. Comm. Baldwin suggested staff review best practices or processes being implemented in other municipalities or at the state level, also recommended the work “Explore” replace “Present.” Ms. Fleury noted that although the GWJ study was complete, staff were now implementing the plan. Comm. Faris requested “3D” mapping be added to the checklist, Goal 1. Economic Vitality, item #2. B. Next Steps Comm. Baldwin informed the committee that senior staff would be reviewing and providing input to the evaluation document at their meeting on January 18, 2019. Comm. Baldwin asked that the document be provided to the Commission for review. Comm. Baldwin stated she would like to have the document, and resolution, on the agenda no later than February 5, 2019. Comm. Baldwin agreed to work on the wording for the new process, specifically goal setting for a 2-year period, and communicate the suggested change to the Commission. Ms. Fleury asked if the “agenda tracking” document the Commissioners requested would be an additional part of the City Manager Evaluation. Comm. Simmons stated it would be an independent document, a tool to provide discussion, to be provided on its own, to inform the Commission of upcoming topics or items. Comm. Simmons stated the Commissioners and the City Manager could discuss the items during their one-on-one meetings with the City Manager or when the Commission meets. Committee Discussion: There was none. Next Meeting: To be determined. Adjournment: Comm. Baldwin adjourned the meeting at 2:10 pm. 3