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Consultant proposes managed‑services plan to recruit Fayette County 9‑1‑1 director
Summary
Barry Ritter of Ritter Ritter Strategic Services told commissioners he can perform an efficiency assessment and managed‑services engagement to recruit and onboard a qualified 9‑1‑1 director, and recommended reviewing salary/benefits and written scope before committing funds; estimated costs were described as variable, with a $150 hourly rate cited.
Barry Ritter, cofounder of Ritter Ritter Strategic Services, told Fayette County commissioners he can perform both an efficiency assessment of the county's 9‑1‑1 center and a managed‑services recruiting effort to find a permanent 9‑1‑1 director.
Ritter said the work would begin quickly and be tailored to the county's priorities. "When you contract with RSS you're buying my time and my experience," he said, adding his hourly rate is $150. He described two core tasks for the engagement: evaluating the director role (including salary and benefits) and conducting an efficiency assessment of operations, policies and staffing.
Why it matters: Commissioners are nearing a transition in 9‑1‑1 leadership and staff have limited time to stabilize operations and recruit a qualified replacement. Ritter said the position should be treated as a public‑safety leadership post comparable to a police or fire chief and recommended positioning the job to attract candidates.
Ritter said an initial recruiting/assessment example he showed Jeff was "right around $7,000," but cautioned that a managed‑services approach could exceed that once missing policies and additional deliverables are identified. He estimated typical engagements by hours and said his firm bills to milestones rather than a flat, open‑ended fee. "If we only do $5,000 worth of work, you only pay $5,000," he said.
County staff and commissioners pressed for parameters. Ritter recommended that Jeff (the department lead mentioned in the discussion) act as the gatekeeper for the scope and that any master agreement be routed through the auditor and county attorney as required. He said payment timing would likely align with the county's budget cycle, with billables beginning after appropriation in early 2026 and initial billables possible in about 90 days.
What commissioners decided: The board did not approve a contract at the meeting. Commissioners asked Ritter to send a boilerplate master agreement and a draft scope of work to Jane, the county auditor, for review so staff and counsel could evaluate cost and contract language before any commitment.
Next steps: Ritter will email the master agreement and scope of work to the auditor; county counsel and the auditor will review and the county will consider an appropriation in the 2026 budget if it wants to proceed.
