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Orting moves forward with executive search firm for city administrator after council debate over fees
Summary
Mayor Scott Brennan told the council he will proceed with a contract to hire Prothman to lead the city administrator search; councilors debated whether to recruit from inside city staff and pressed about the $18,500 professional fee and potential travel and background-check costs.
Cliff Moore of Prothman, an executive recruiting firm, presented a recruitment plan the council will use to hire Orting’s next city administrator. Moore said the firm will conduct individual stakeholder interviews, prepare a candidate profile, post the position for four to six weeks and screen applications daily, adding the fixed professional fee in the proposal is $18,500 and variable costs such as candidate travel and background checks would be billed separately.
The discussion quickly turned to whether the city should prioritize internal applicants. Council member Torres urged the council to “open it up to these gals first” — referring to current city staff — saying it could save the city money and give staff the first shot at the job. Mayor Scott Brennan and other members said they want the most qualified candidate whether internal or external and emphasized the value of an outside firm’s vetting and background checks for a top administrative post. Deputy Mayor Sproul said the firm would take a heavy burden off city HR and help ensure thorough vetting.
Moore described a typical schedule: 10–14 days to draft the profile, 4–6 weeks for the posting, about two weeks for preliminary interviews, and additional days to schedule finalist interviews. He confirmed the firm’s $18,500 professional fee is fixed; travel for out-of-area finalists and criminal-background checks (about $170 per candidate) would be extra. Council members pressed on an overall $20,000–$20,000-plus estimate that would cover travel and other variable costs; Moore said most cities cover finalist travel but could allow finalists to attend remotely.
The mayor said he would present the contract for confirmation in the business meeting and move the recruitment process forward; the council reserved further questions for the March 11 standalone item where the contract will be finalized. The council also approved a related motion to extend the interim city administrator contract (see “Votes at a glance”).
Why it matters: Filling the city administrator post is a near-term priority for Orting; the council weighed cost savings from an in-house appointment against the risk of an insufficiently vetted appointment for the city’s top executive. The council scheduled additional review and a standalone vote on the contract for March 11.
Next steps: The administration will bring the Prothman contract and final implementation details to the March 11 meeting for council confirmation.
