Ratify consulting agreement with Prothman for professional recruitment services, 911 Communications Director. BEFORE THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
LEWIS COUNTY, WASHINGTON
IN THE MATTER OF: RESOLUTION NO. 21-428
RATIFY A CONSULTING AGREEMENT WITH
PROTHMAN FOR PROFESSIONAL RECRUITMENT
SERVICES FOR THE 911 COMMUNICATIONS
DIRECTOR
WHEREAS, Lewis County is actively recruiting for a 911 Communications
Director; and
WHEREAS, it is the desire of the Lewis County Board of County Commissioners
(BOCC) to use the services of a consultant to assist in the talent search and
expand the search globally; and
WHEREAS, Lewis County has received a recruitment services proposal from
Prothman, a professional government recruiting consultant; and
WHEREAS, the BOCC has had an opportunity to review the consulting agreement
attached as "Attachment A"; and
WHEREAS, it appears to be in the best public interest to ratify this consulting
agreement with Prothman.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the BOCC hereby approves the terms
and conditions of the attached consulting agreement between Lewis County and
Prothman to conduct recruitment services for $18,500 plus additional expenses as
outlined in the consulting agreement, and hereby authorizes the County Manager
to sign the same on behalf of the county.
DONE IN OPEN SESSION this 7th day of December, 2021.
Page 1 of 2 Res. 21-428
APPROVED AS TO FORM: BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
Jonathan Meyer, Prosecuting Attorney LEWIS COUNTY, WASHINGTON
Kevin McDowell. Lindsey R. Pollock, DVM
By: Kevin McDowell, Lindsey R. Pollock, DVM, Chair
Deputy Prosecuting Attorney
ATTEST: •'�°�NTr:"�'• Sean D. Swope
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Sean D. Swope, Vice Chair
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Rieva Lester •:Sy � . F. Lee Grose
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Rieva Lester, F. Lee Grose, Commissioner
Clerk of the Lewis County Board of
County Commissioners
Page 2 of 2 Res. 21-428
---PRCYTHIVIAN
December 1, 2021
Ms. Megan Eastman
HR Benefits Specialist
Lewis County
351 NW. North St
Chehalis, WA, 98532
Dear Ms. Eastman:
We thank Lewis County for its confidence in Prothman to assist in providing services for the
recruitment of its new 911 Communications Director. The following represents a scope of work
for these services and the associated professional fee and expenses.
Scope of Work
1. Develop a Tailored Recruitment Strategy
Project Review
The first step will be to:
• Review the scope of work and project schedule
Information Gathering and Research
We will spend as much time as it takes to learn everything we can about your
organization. Our goal is to thoroughly understand the values and culture of your
organization, as well as the preferred qualifications you desire in your next 911
Communications Director. We will:
• Meet with the County Manager
• Meet with HR Staff
• Meet with 911 Communications Staff, as directed
• Meet with other stakeholders, as directed
• Review all documents related to the position
Position Profile Development
We will develop a profile of your ideal candidate. Profiles include the following:
• A description of the ideal candidate's qualifications
• Years of related experience, education required and ideal personality traits
• Organization-specific information
• Description of the organization, position, and key responsibilities
• Priorities and challenges facing the organization
• Community-specific information
• Compensation package details
• Information on how to apply
206.368.0050 ♦ 371 NE Gilman Blvd., Suite 310 Issaquah,WA 98027 ♦ www.prothman.com
2. Identify. Target. and Recruit Viable Candidates
Outreach and Advertising Strategy
We recognize that often the best candidates are not actively looking for a new position--this
is the person we want to reach and recruit. We have an aggressive recruitment strategy
which involves the following:
• Print and Internet-based Ads placed nationally and locally in professional
publications, journals, and related websites.
• Targeted Direct Mail Recruitment Brochures sent directly to hundreds of 911
call center management professionals who are not actively searching for a new
position.
• Focused Candidate Outreach via personal emails from our database of
management professionals, as well as networking and outreach.
• Posting the Position Profile on Prothman's Facebook and Linkedln pages
and on the Prothman website, which receives over five thousand visits per
month from potential candidates.
3. Conduct Preliminary Screening
Candidate Screening
Once the application deadline has passed, we will conduct an extensive candidate review
designed to gather detailed information on the leading candidates. The screening process
has 3 key steps:
1) Application Review: Using the Position Profile as our guide, we will screen the
candidates for qualifications based on the resumes, applications, and
supplemental question responses (to determine a candidate's writing skills,
analytical abilities and communication style). After the initial screening, we take
the yes's and maybe's and complete a second screening where we take a much
deeper look into the training, work history and qualifications of each candidate.
2) Internet Publication Background Search: We conduct an internet publication
search on all semifinalist candidates prior to their interviews. If we find anything
out of the ordinary, we discuss this during the initial interview and bring this
information to you.
3) Personal Interviews: We will conduct in-depth videoconference or in-person
interviews with the top 6 to 15 candidates. During the interviews, we ask the
technical questions to gauge their competency, and just as importantly, we
design our interviews to measure the candidate's fit within your organization.
Candidate Presentation
We will prepare and send to you a detailed summary report and binders which include
each candidate's application materials and the results of the personal interviews and
publication search.
We will travel to Lewis County or meet via phone/Zoom and advise you of the
candidates meeting the qualifications, our knowledge of them, and their strengths and
weaknesses relative to fit within your organization. We will give you our recommendations
and then work with you to identify the top 3 to 6 candidates to invite to the final interviews.
We will discuss the planning and design of the final interview process during this meeting.
I R 177-1A'L4N Page 2 of 5
4. Prepare Materials and Process for Final Interviews
Final Interview Process
The design of the final interviews is an integral component towards making sure that all
stakeholders have the opportunity to learn as much as possible about each candidate.
• Elements of the design process include:
• Deciding on the Structure of the Interviews
We will tailor the interview process to fit your needs. It may involve using
various interview panels, community tours and/or an evening reception.
• Deciding on Candidate Travel Expenses
We will help you identify which expenses your organization wishes to cover.
• Identifying Interview Panel Participants & Panel Facilitators
• Background Checks
Background checks include the following:
• References
We conduct 6-8 reference checks on each candidate. We ask each candidate
to provide names of their supervisors, subordinates and peers for the last
several years.
• Education Verification, Criminal History, Driving Record and Sex
Offender Check
We contract with Sterling for all background checks.
• Candidate Travel Coordination
After you have identified the expenses you wish to cover, we work with the
candidates to organize the most cost-effective travel arrangements.
• Final Interview Binders
The Final Interview Binders include the candidates' application materials and are
the tool that keeps the final interview process organized. Each panel member
will be provided a binder.
• Final Interviews with Candidates
We will travel to Lewis County and facilitate the interviews. If you choose to
have panels, the interview process usually begins with a morning briefing where
schedule and process will be discussed with all those involved in the interviews.
Each candidate will then go through a series of one-hour interview sessions, with
an hour break for lunch.
• Panelists & Decision Makers Debrief: After the interviews are complete, we will
facilitate a debrief with all panel participants where the panel facilitators will
report their panel's view of the strengths and weaknesses of each candidate
interviewed. The decision makers will also have an opportunity to ask panelists
questions.
• Candidate Evaluation Session: After the debrief, we will facilitate the evaluation
process, help the decision makers come to consensus, discuss next steps, and
organize any additional candidate referencing or research if needed.
• Facilitate Employment Agreement: Once the top candidate has been selected,
we will offer any assistance needed in developing a letter of offer and negotiating
terms of the employment agreement.
I ROT -1 4 4N Page 3 of 5
FEE, EXPENSES & GUARANTEE
Professional Fee
The fee for conducting a 911 Communications Director recruitment with a one-year
guarantee is $18,500. The professional fee covers all Prothman consultant and staff time
required to conduct the recruitment. This includes all correspondence and on-site meetings with
the client, writing and placing the recruitment ads, development of the candidate profile, creating
and sending invitation letters, reviewing resumes, coordinating and conducting semifinalist
interviews, coordinating and attending finalist interviews, coordinating candidate travel,
professional reference checks on the finalist candidates and all other search related tasks
required to successfully complete the recruitment.
Professional fees are billed in three equal installments throughout the recruitment, at the
beginning, halfway, and upon completion of the final interviews.
Expenses
Expenses vary depending on the design and geographical scope of the recruitment. We do not
mark up expenses and we work diligently to keep expenses at a minimum and keep records of
all expenditures. Lewis County will be responsible for reimbursing expenses the Prothman
Company incurs on your behalf. Expenses include:
• Newspaper, trade journal, websites, and other advertising (approx. $1,600 - 1,800)
• Direct mail announcements (approx. $1,500 - 1,700)
• Interview Binders & printing of materials (approx. $200 -500)
• Delivery expenses for Interview Binders (approx. $175 -450)
• Consultant travel: Mileage at IRS rate, travel time at $65 per hour (approx. $250 -350)
• Background checks performed by Sterling (approx. $170 per candidate)
Other Expenses
Candidate travel: We cannot approximate candidate travel expenses because they vary
depending on the number of candidates, how far the candidates travel, length of stay, if spouses
are included, etc. Lewis County reserves the right to reimburse (or to not reimburse) candidates
for travel expenses. In the event that Lewis County so requests, Prothman will coordinate and
forward to your organization the candidates' travel receipts for direct reimbursement to the
candidates.
Warranty
Repeat the Recruitment: If you follow the major elements of our process and a top candidate is
not chosen, we will repeat the recruitment once with no additional professional fee, the only cost
to you would be for the expenses.
Guarantee
Prothman Company will guarantee with a full recruitment that if the selected finalist is terminated
or resigns within one year from the employment date, we will conduct one replacement search
with no additional professional fee, the only cost to you would be for the expenses.
Cancellation
You have the right to cancel the search at any time. Your only obligation would be the fees and
expenses incurred prior to cancellation.
I ROTHMAN Page 4 of 5
Accepted by:
LEWI CO TY PROTHMAN
12/01/2021
Date Sonjatrothman Date
ata ,ffiu.cd Vice President
Name L-
Title
ROTHMAN Page 5 of 5
BOCCAGENDA ITEM SUMMARY
Resolution: 21-428 BOCC Meeting Date: Dec. 7, 2021
Suggested Wording for Agenda Item: Agenda Type: Deliberation
Ratify a consulting agreement with Prothman for professional recruitment services for the 911
Communications Director
Contact: Megan Eastman Phone: 3607401209
Department: HR - Human Resources
Description:
Prothman proposal for conducting recruitment services for 911 Communications Director.
Approvals: Publication Requirements:
Publications:
User Status
PA's Office Approved
Additional Copies: Cover Letter To:
Kevin McDowell, Erik Martin, Chris Panush,
Megan Eastman