Eight candidates have made it to the final stages of consideration for the job of Humboldt County Administrator. The commissioners called on the State Public Agency Insurance POOL-PACT human resources (HR) department to help recruit applicants, evaluate their qualifications, and perform reference checks as well as full background checks to determine which applicants should move to the interview stage.
POOL - PACT HR representative, Jeannie Green said a screening grid was used to identify which applicants fulfilled the criteria that the county commissioners had indicated was most important for the county administrator position.
"It's a scientific process that's defensible in court, should it be challenged," Green pointed out.
POOL-PACT HR also gave the commissioners recommended criteria on which to base questions for the interview process, along with a list of questions that cannot, by law, be asked of an applicant.
"Forbidden" questions include those that have to do with health or disabilities (however, an applicant can be asked whether he or she would be able to perform a specific list of functions essential to the job).
Applicants cannot be asked any age-related questions, or whether they've been arrested (convictions are fair game).
Any questions relating to sexual orientation, family status, or children are not allowed.
Questions relating to race, national origin, or native language are not allowed along with questions relating to home ownership, military service, religion, or political affiliation.
Green gave general direction that all questions should be directly tied to employment responsibilities.
"Questions regarding how they handled a previous situation will give you a good prediction of how they will handle similar situations in the future," said Green.
The commissioners themselves will write the questions, then send them to Green and her staff who will compile them into a usable format without duplication. The day of the interviews, the commissioners will receive the questions by email.
"Any sooner than that and there would be open meeting law issues," explained Green.
Each applicant will be asked to answer the same 10 questions.
In addition, some applicants may have an individual question or two directed to them, based on the reference check or other applicable issues that come up in evaluating their application.
Green said an applicant rating guide will be attached for each person being interviewed, which will allow the commissioners to give the applicant a 1 - 5 rating on each question.
Applicants will also be rated in general on their communication skills, interpersonal sensitivity, problem solving/decision making and judgment, leadership and general knowledge.
Applicants will be given the opportunity to wrap up their interview with a short comment period at the end, and will be given an opportunity to ask questions of the commissioners or the county administrator, who will sit in on the interviews.
Although the interviews will be done in an open meeting, which anyone may attend, applicants will be asked, as a matter of professional courtesy, not to be in the meeting room during any other applicant's interview, as that might give an unfair advantage.
"You can't prohibit them from being there, but you could take it into account if an applicant insists on being present when previous applicants are being interviewed," commented Green.
Each interview is expected to take about an hour to an hour and a half. Members of the public who attend any portion of the interviews would be allowed to comment at the beginning and end of the meeting, but not during or between interviews.
After the interview day on Nov. 10, the commissioners will give themselves a few days to consider everything they heard and will then hold a special commission meeting (open to the public) on Friday, Nov. 14, to deliberate together and make their decision.
It's possible that not all eight applicants currently identified for interview will actually come to Winnemucca. POOL-PACT HR is still completing all the reference checks and paperwork for criminal, civil, educational, and financial checks on each applicant.
"If anything very negative comes out, the applicants may be dropped before they come to you," said Green.
The commissioners agreed to pay travel costs for each applicant, but only up to $450, which could also be a matter of concern to any applicant who must come a great distance.
Interested community members will have the opportunity to meet prospective county administrator applicants at a "meet and greet" to be held Sunday evening, from 5 - 7 p.m. Nov. 9 at the convention center.
The county commission interviews will be held on Monday, Nov. 10, starting at 9:30 a.m., on the regular county commission meeting day.
Commissioners will start the meeting their Nov. 10 meeting at 8 a.m., to handle any essential agenda items that can't wait until the second meeting of the month.
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