Scottsbluff city council interviews two candidates for city manager position, address next steps Monday

Mayor Jeanne McKerrigan announced candidate Shawn Metcalf had accepted the Hastings city manager position. The council interviewed the remaining two candidates — Kevin Spencer and Matthew Schmitz.

The council members had copies of the candidates’ resumes, applications and also read through a list of questions.

Spencer was interviewed first at 10 a.m. He shared some of his background, highlighting his role as interim co-city manager for the past six months as well as serving as chief of police for Scottsbluff Police Department. He has worked in law enforcement for 31 years.

Schmitz was interviewed at 11 a.m. He said he was happy to have the opportunity to interview for the position as he and his wife look for a place they can call home. Schmitz is also looking to advance his career, after serving as the director of community and economic development for the city of Lansing, Kansas.

Following candidates’ introductions, council member Nathan Green began the round robin of questions, asking what prompted them to apply for the city manager position and their qualifications.

Spencer spoke about being appointed and serving as the co-city manager as a rewarding experience.

“I think largely due to the guidance and direction of you guys — the council — and the department heads, along with city staff, that largely pulling in the same direction we were able to realize progress and accomplish some projects and maybe right some wrongs,” Spencer told the council. “I just want to continue on in this role and make sure that the city is headed in a good direction.”

Spencer noted that serving as a city manager was never an ambition for him, saying that he thought he would retire with the city as the police chief. But throughout his 21 years in the community, he said, he feels strongly about doing his part to make sure the city continues to grow.

Schmitz said after five years with Lansing, he feels ready to move onto the next step as a city manager. He has experience in drafting, doing a variety of project designs before working in public service. While he thought he would become a civil engineer, life took him down a path in business where he set the goal of becoming a city administrator.

“I’m well aware that I don’t have that on my resume – I don’t have experience as a city administrator or manager – so I am looking for a city that’s willing to give me a shot to do that and I think Scottsbluff looks like a good opportunity,” he told the council.

The council also asked the candidates what is the biggest attribute of Scottsbluff appealing to someone looking to relocate to Scottsbluff.

Schmitz said he is looking for a community in a nice area that has natural beauty and is close to sights. He said Scottsbluff checks off all those boxes.

“The city itself looks like a great community and I think it’s one I could certainly lend some help to in terms of helping guide and lead for projects,” he said.

Spencer said it was the hospitality of the people, who always are willing to come together in a time of need.

“I brag about Scottsbluff all of the time. We’re virtually 2 hours, 45 minutes from the Denver airport if you want to go to the city. We can go to the Black Hills in a couple of hours, we can go west into Wyoming. I think we’re in a great spot … and I think the valley is just full of great people.”

When asked what would be his strongest quality he would bring to the role, Spencer said it is his leadership experience and ability to bring people together. He also shared that he views himself as a reasonable person who has the ability to apply good logic to any situation while also being critical of himself.

“I recognize the fact that I have a lot to learn,” Spencer told the council. “I am more than willing to do that. I always hold myself to a high standard. I don’t ask people to do much that I’m not willing to do myself. I think I have a good track record as an effective leader — not a perfect leader, but an effective leader.”

Schmitz said his strongest skillset is his diverse educational background, with experience in human resources, budget analysis and on projects.

When discussing their biggest weakness, Spencer said his inability to say “no.” He said he likes to play an instrumental role in a project or supporting someone, which can cause him to take on too much. He said that could be said currently, but he said he is a hard worker.

Schmitz noted his lack of experience in the role as his biggest weakness.

“When I moved to Lansing, I was considering at that point applying to be a city manager because I had completed my MBA… but I didn’t feel like I was ready to be a city administrator or city manager because I had not spent a lot of time as a department head.”

He thought it was important to gain more leadership skills before pursuing a city manager position.

The candidates were also questioned on how they would delegate responsibilities and build trust with their staff, if chosen for the position.

Schmitz said delegation is about accountability and following up to see that projects are being completed, while also trusting people to do their jobs. One way to build trust, Schmitz said, is to delegate a project and then not micro-managing people to perform the work. However, he noted if deadlines are not being met, the city manager needs to address those situations. He said being present is important as a leader, so when questions arise, a city manager would be available to help guide and support staff.

“To build that trust, it’s a lot of working directly with them,” Schmitz said. “Interacting with them on a daily basis, of course – don’t manage from afar – and manage from the floor, so to speak, so you’re part of the team.”

Spencer talked about the importance of open communication and offering guidance to the team, something he felt is instrumental to the current success of the Scottsbluff Police Department. During his time as interim co-city manager, he also said he made himself available and if he could not answer a question, he made it a point to get back to the council.

“You build trust through communication and giving them good guidance and direction,” Spencer said. “As far as delegation, I think once you have those trusted, respected relationships, delegation becomes pretty easy.”

Spencer shared the ideal company culture for him would be a family and friendly atmosphere, especially with the size of the municipality. He would want all employees to feel valued and appreciated. He also said his role would be to hold people accountable to the rules and procedures in place while also being present in the office with a set schedule in the office, similar to other employees.

“I think people appreciate structure so they know what is expected of them and I think if we have all of those things in place — which I think we’ve done pretty good at doing that now — I think things are effective.”

For Schmitz, an ideal company culture includes trust, teamwork, communication and managing expectations, which he said has to be modeled from the top down.

“It’s a lot of modeling what you want to see,” he said. “Ethics is a big part of this by being involved in the day-to-day operations of things. Building that trust would be a critical aspect of this position.”

The two candidates also discussed how they handle communication with the council and team.

Schmitz said in previous roles he asked people how they prefer communication and adjusts his style to match the receiver’s style.

“I think as a city manager I think there’s an opportunity certainly to do weekly memos, there’s emails, but it depends on the complexity of the situation, too. Some things are better handled with a phone call or in-person conversation. I think having that constant communication with the city council is critical for success.”

Spencer said in-person communication is the best and most effective way to communicate, followed by a phone call and lastly, a tie between email and text message. He said communication is important to ensure the message is clear.

If the city council or one of its members overstepped its role and interferes with the day-to-day operations of the city and staff, Schmitz said there is a lot to be said for face-to-face conversation. He would explain the procedures and work to build trust with the council member to make those conversations easier, if they arise.

“At the end of the day, if the city council member decides that they want to continue doing that, that’s their prerogative to do that,” Schmitz said. “I’m clearly aware of the how the chain of command works in that situation and it is not my role to try to direct a city council member on how to behave or interact with anybody,” Schmitz said.

Spencer said he would have a private conversation with the councilmember where he would say they are free to communicate with employees, but they cannot get involved in the day-to-day.

The council also questioned the candidates on how they establish relationships and collaborate with outside entities like county and state governments and local schools.

Schmitz said fostering relationships is critical to success. Lansing has a high military population, meaning there are cultural differences and a migratory citizenry regularly. However, he said understanding cultural differences and appreciating those viewpoints are vital to success.

“Working with everyone equally is critical to success,” Schmitz said. “Working with other school districts, the City of Lansing and the school district work closely together, especially with our school resource officers on different things. Working with those different partners in the community is critical to moving the entire community forward.”

Spencer discussed his strong relationships with Scottsbluff Public Schools and Western Nebraska Community College, as well as their respective leaders, Andrew Dick and John Marrin.

“We were quick years ago to become involved with the school district as a captain on school safety,” he said. “School safety is huge for us. We participated in all of drills and all of their plans.”

Schmitz and Spencer also discussed their experiences with budgets and union contracts. Spencer has drafted nine or ten budgets for the police department while also being involved in the full budget process this year. Spencer added if selected for the position, the budget would be an area of focus, since there is a lot to learn.

When discussing contract, Spencer said he has sat on both sides of the negotiation table and found that it is OK for both sides to respectfully disagree during the process, but compassion goes a long way.

Schmitz said he manages his department budget and worked on the overall budget in a previous role. However, he said, he does not have direct experience with union contracts. He said he could learn quickly and is an area that interests him.

Councilman Jordan Colwell asked Spencer if the council offered him the city manager position, what would happen with the police chief. Spencer said he would like to reorganize the department, potentially creating an assistant police chief, but he would like to provide support to the department.

“I distinctly recognize the fact that I would have to minimize my role and relinquish the day-to-day operations over to captains… but I would certainly like to give that a shot.”

As a follow up question, the council asked if Spencer would inform the council if he became overstressed with the dual roles, and he said he would let them know.

“I think striking that balance between city hall and the police department, making sure I was fair to both organizations,” Spencer said of his biggest challenge.

Councilwoman Angela Scanlan asked Schmitz if he can coexist with someone who doesn’t see eye-to-eye with him. He said he prides himself on being flexible as a leader and believes he can work with anyone. If conflict arises, he would sit down with the person and discuss how they can improve and move forward as a team.

After talking to each candidate for over 40 minutes, McKerrigan thanked them for their time. She said the council would discuss next steps at the regular city council meeting, which is Monday, Oct. 3.