Sarasota commission opts to run city manager search without outside consultant, directs letters of interest to executive search firms

The Sarasota City Commission voted unanimously May 20, 2025, to proceed with the city manager search without hiring an outside consultant and instructed staff to solicit letters of interest from an established list of executive search firms. Commissioners approved the approach by motion and later confirmed a consensus to begin a letters‑of‑interest process using the Florida City and County Management Association (FCCMA) list of firms (one firm on the original list had withdrawn and will not be included).

City staff presented procurement constraints and options. Jennifer Jorgensen, director of governmental affairs, and Renee Hayes, manager of procurement, told commissioners that the procurement code contains a personnel exemption that cleanly covers direct hiring of an executive search firm but that hiring a separate consultant to manage the procurement is less clearly exempt and would likely require a competitive solicitation. Hayes explained the city’s competitive thresholds: purchases up to $65,000 may be procured via three quotes; amounts above that typically require a formal solicitation such as an RFP and additional evaluation steps (14–30 day posting and a valuation committee).

Commissioners said they expected the city’s procurement and legal staff to provide proposals or letters of interest from the named firms and recommended requiring that search firms’ proposals include a project manager who would assist the commission in defining the candidate profile and managing outreach. Staff said they would request letters of interest from the FCCMA list and return proposals and recommendations to the commission.

Why it matters: The commission’s choice to forgo an intermediary consultant speeds the timeline to identify and evaluate executive search firms but assigns the selection and coordination work to city staff and the commissioners themselves. Procurement rules and competitive thresholds will shape how quickly the process can move and whether a formal solicitation is required.

Next steps: Staff will send letters of interest to the executive search firms on the FCCMA list (excluding the firm that withdrew), collect responses, and return proposals and a recommended short list to the commission for direction.