Paris assigns goals for new manager

PARIS — If the goals being considered by selectmen are any indication, incoming Town Manager Amy Bernard is going to have a full slate.

During their November 26 meeting board members set six-month goals for Bernard and discussed what they would like to see her achieve within a year.

The board also discussed Bernard's evaluation.

Vice Chair Bob Kirchherr read the board a list of six-month goals he'd prepared.

The goals included meeting with each town department and committee, effective management of day-to-day operations, standardizing the employee review process, preparing the next budget and reviewing the town's audit, road plan, capital improvement plan and employee evaluations. 

Within a year, Kirchherr said he would like to see Bernard determine staffing recommendations for each department, prepare a calendar of major town events and work with the selectboard to develop one- and five-year goals for the town.

"We don't have a vision of where we want to be in a year and where we want to be in five years," said Kirchherr. "I think that's something we need to address somewhere along the line."

Kirchherr mentioned he was sensitive to a lack of HR coordination in the town.

"There haven't been regular evaluations of town employees ... it's a bad thing not to have done, it's a good thing to get out of the way and that just needs to be formalized in some way."

In addition, Selectman Robert Wessels suggested a number of qualities and skills a manager should possess, including communication, technical and professional expertise, collaboration across organizations, development of employee talent, operating with "big picture" perspective and delivering results.

"You missed one Robert," Kirchherr joked. "You needed to put 'walk on water.'"

Wessels agreed the standards were ambitious, but said the town should aim for the best results.

He said the qualities he described could be included in the town manager evaluation.

"I think 'what' the town manager does is extremely important, but equally important and often overlooked is the 'how' it's done," Wessels said.

The goals were intended to give the town manager clear expectations of what the board expected and how she would be measured, Kirchherr said. Board members are still working out the details of the evaluation.

Board members voted unanimously to adopt the six-month goals Kirchherr described. Year-long goals are still being discussed.