Pay Close Attention to What the Mayor Wants

"Being friends with the Mayor is a liability," advises a 74-page report conducted for prospective Chief Administrative Officers of local governments in B.C. 

It's apparently better to be friends after the mayor or councillor is no longer in office.
And that the alternative is "cumbersome and dangerous."

Since Mike Stamhuis' retirement from the District of Coldstream in Fall of 2013--and the subsequent move by Chief Financial Officer Trevor Seibel into that position--this primer for a new candidate to get up to snuff is likely unnecessary.  That is, if it were for another jurisdiction.

But this is Coldstream, so...

A few more (selected) tidbits:  (highlighting: blog author)

• "assess staff morale and community views;
• always clear the air and keep a professional distance;
• honesty is the key ingredient.  There is no truer adage than 'speak truth to power'.  That means telling the mayor things he doesn't want to hear.
• do not take yourself too seriously.  By nature, Mayors will tend to be quite full of themselves, especially when newly elected.  The CAO needs to be able to laugh at himself, and to keep matters in perspective, because the Mayor may not be able to.
• the Mayor will likely have substantially less expertise than the CAO in day-to-day matters.  Additionally, the Mayor will make decisions through a political filter.
• review success of projects and policies;
• take feedback from the Mayor and the public;
• ask some "what if" questions;
• council has no real expertise; use a strategic planning exercise to tell them;
• if council doesn't secure for itself the role of providing broad direction on how the community's future will unfold, there will be ample room for the CAO to step in and do it.  In many such situations, the CAO will be more influential in determining what course is taken than will the taxpayers' chosen representatives;
• come to consensus on what your community's role definitions and responsibilities should look like, and then put it in writing;
• use real examples for illustrating difficulties (from previous Council);
• discuss during yearly review of strategic plan and when a role is stepped on; 
• there are some statutory or mandatory roles and responsibilities that must be respected;
• there are many examples of "best practices" that can be drawn on and customized for each use.  Identify a few "high achieving" communities of similar size and find out what has worked for them;
• providing good advice to Council;
• councillors' undermining behaviour includes not understanding the role of the various committees relative to council and pretending that because one is a councillor one is automatically a better city builder than the planner, a better designer than the engineer, a better accountant than the treasurer and a better administrator than the CAO;
• do not allow council to put items on agenda without staff review/response;
• reports don't need to be approved by the CAO, only reviewed by him and countersigned as being reviewed.  Occasionally the CAO may write a dissenting recommendation;
• formal evaluations tend to be arbitrary and overrrated and mostly conducted by the unskilled.  You need to be very careful here;
• allow for subordinates to confidentially evaluate superior (presumably, this can be construed to mean the CAO reviews the mayor too);
• having a good labour/management committee that meets at least every other month;
• in a unionized setting, the opportunity to tailor solutions to individual needs are relatively constrained, and can be very dysfunctional;
• deception or duplicity can achieve short-term accord, but its effects will still linger 20 years later;
• political meddling;
• lack of trust #1 issue;
• if the CAO is doing bargaining (with the union), do not include councillors unless they have a particular skill or personality that will allow them to negotiate effectively;
• if Council or a councillor insists on becoming the bargaining agent for the municipality the CAO must insist on being a note taker only.  Go in, take notes and keep your mouth shut;
• brainstorm solutions from many perspectives, perform a cost benefit analysis and make a choice;
• circulate policies -- discuss with the community;
• assess impact on budget, staffing, precedence, other government relationship of any new policy and include key players and public in process;
• be sure that a full analysis of impact is done (and beware unintended consequences) that affected groups are consulted and that the 'objective' of the new policy is understood and agreed upon;
• try to deal with the public one on one in a direct, conversational and inquisitive manner;
• if it is a neighbour to neighbour dispute tell them to solve it themselves.  The CAO is not an intermediary for anyone;
• recognize that engaging the public does not necessarily or always create a healthier happier community nor does it build a better City;
• regularly spend time out in the community talking to a variety of people;
• don’t let small groups control process;
• ensure public information is public and avoid behind closed door discussions;
• meet with public;
• hold a Council open house for informal public discussion;
• neighbourhood meetings;
• the public are commentators and feed-backers, not approvers.  Don't set it up so that they are approvers or disapprovers of development projects;
• topics which are too broad based don't work with the public, nor is asking for input in too restrictive a manner;
• communicating through the media or not giving enough time (don't work with the public);
• relying on media coverage of Council meetings--the media often get it wrong, and very few members of the community bother to watch or read;
• sometimes a liaison relationship with neighborhood or community associations can work well but it is dangerous;
• get to know people—beyond just what they do;
• acknowledge they have frustrations and challenges they face in their perspectives;
• try to understand other groups structure/culture and values and issues, and challenges they face in their perspectives;
• have a relationship with the public that is not issue-specific; you'll be more effective when a particular situation arises;
• some councils are better with an informal set of three year goals and objectives.  Others need a detailed corporate vision and strategic plan.  The latter is a lot of work and only works if the CAO and the mayor "live" the vision and the plan.  It can be exhausting and confusing;
• strategic planning discourages micro-managing;
• revisit your plans regularly and amend them as necessary;
• CAO to take strategic position and Council must support;
• impediments:  empire building, fear and political interference;
• it is important to give every councillor equal time and attention in the way they wish to have it.  Not always easy or possible but it is something to strive for;
• present all options and views and share information with all of Council;
• having Councillors with a meaningful portfolio;
• staff:  create a discussion format where they can challenge each other's ideas, without personalizing the debate;
• listen and respect recommendations;
• be a good listener and don't be judgmental;
• careful budgeting prior to project commencement and ongoing monitoring;
• keep an eye on staffing;
• use brainstorming sessions and outside expertise;
• describe taxpayers money as your own and challenge to find the best and fairest deals for taxpayers;
• challenge staff and be prepared to change;
• network and find solutions within the community;
• cost effectiveness is balanced with all other strategic objectives in decision-making;
• think about what you're doing and figure out how to do it better;
• keep it simple, test, and be prepared to change;
• seek a lot of input;
• a procedure is good if it leads to the desired results, and bad if it does not;
• refer procedures to staff/council/public involved;
• have an internal audit mechanism;
• all new activities (new service, new facility, new program) are preceded by the development of specific procedures for that activity;
• talk about it ... if it is nonsense, change it;
• treated fairly is not the same as treated equally;
• it certainly can't be the most important thing in your life or your fundamental identity characteristic as a human being;
• know your council well enough to know what their expectations are;
• must be objective;
• you can't close yourself off from the community, or you'll be faceless and ineffective;
• proposed policies will be screened to assess their health impact on the community, including safety, environmental sustainability and economic impact."

Were those for Mayor?  or Chief Administrative Officer?
Could be either.
Or both.

Good luck, Trevor Seibel.

"And keep Stamhuis on speed dial," suggests Kia.