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August 25, 2005
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August 25, 2005 |
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EDITORIAL The ideal Village manager The next manager of the Village of Yellow Springs must be able to wear many hats: budget expert; financial analyst; utility superintendent; supervisor of people; planner of projects; communicator of ideas and goals. And whoever is hired to replace Rob Hillard, whose last day as the head of the Village government is Sept. 1, will be expected to play many roles in this community. About a month after being appointed by Village Council to lead the selection of Mr. Hillard’s successor, the Village Manager Search Committee is seeking input on the characteristics that the ideal Village manager should have. The committee held two public forums on Wednesday to gather feedback from the community and collect comments on a statement describing the qualities of the ideal manager. The board is accepting comments through Friday, Sept. 26. Comments can be sent to the clerk of Council, Deborah Benning, at dbenning@yso.com or 100 Dayton Street, or dropped off at the Bryan Community Center. The search committee’s draft statement is a good one, and if the next manager has all the characteristics contained in the description, Yellow Springs will be in capable hands. Here are a few more thoughts on what the ideal manager should be like: The next manager must be someone who’s committed to being invested in the community. He or she will have to do more than live here; the ideal manager must buy in to what makes this place Yellow Springs. She or he has to be someone who’s willing to not just work for the Village, but also become a villager. Thus, the ideal manager would truly understand this place, with all its quirks and characters, its history and pride, its challenges and dreams. The ideal manager will accept Yellow Springs for what it is, while trying to improve upon the good parts and resolve some of the community’s challenges. The ideal manager will help Yellow Springs realize its potential. The ideal manager is a leader and a visionary, someone who can articulate his or her vision in a way that excites people. However, the ideal manager is also smart enough and flexible enough to know how to incorporate the best of other people’s ideas into his or her vision. He or she will tap the community’s resources and put its people and their ideas to work. The ideal manager understands that most Yellow Springs residents don’t want to read the Village budget, so he or she will find ways to communicate the Village’s financial position in fresh, easy-to-understand ways. The ideal manager is savvy enough to understand that Council is his or her boss, but brave enough to tell Council members when they’re wrong. The ideal manager embraces the principles of open government and will spread throughout the Village organization, including Council, the message that the Village respects the right of the community to know what government officials and employees are doing. The ideal manager is a champion of Ohio’s Public Records and Open Meetings Acts. Under the ideal manager’s leadership, the Village staff will have an even greater voice in internal discussions and in public debate, giving Council and the community a better understanding of what’s happening on the ground around town. The ideal manager understands that there will never be enough money in the Village coffers, but that will not stop him or her from getting things done. She or he, however, will not have to resort to scaring villagers to accomplish difficult tasks. The ideal manager checks the spin at the door, gives straight, honest answers, whether someone wants to hear them or not, and knows how to set limits. At the same time, the ideal manager is someone with imagination, who has the ability to find creative solutions to problems, who doesn’t say “no,” but says, “let’s try this instead.” The ideal manager gets people excited about the Village government and their community.
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