Stockton, ‘the largest US city to fail’ (via MikeStk)

Although a city of almost 300,000, Stockton is a place where many families have known one another for generations.

### latimes.com June 27, 2012 | 4:40 am
L.A.Now
By Diana Marcum
Stockton bankruptcy will make history; residents reeling
Officials said Tuesday that Stockton would become the nation’s largest city to seek protection under the U.S. bankruptcy code. The city stopped making bond payments, and City Manager Bob Deis said he expected to file bankruptcy papers immediately. Stockton has been in negotiations with its creditors since late March under AB 506, a new California law requiring mediation before a municipality can file for reorganization of debt. It was the first use of the law, and policy analysts who watched its torturous and tedious progress have titled their report on it “Death by a Thousand Meetings.” Mediations ended Monday at midnight.
Read more

How Stockton found itself so mired in debt can be seen everywhere in the city’s core. There is a sparkling marina, high-rise hotel and promenade financed by credit in the mid-2000s, mere blocks from where mothers won’t let their children play in the yard because of violence.

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[MikeStk at ODT Online]

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

DCC recruitment process: DVML chief executive position

UPDATED POST

Comment received.

D Smith
Submitted on 2012/06/29 at 12:16 pm

I will try and recap my initial thoughts that disappeared into cyber space…

Clearly the CEO role is a critical position that will help decided the success / failure of the stadium and the corresponding debt burden to Dunedin. Mr Davies was brought on not only due to his venue management experience but also his international contacts and networks to help put the stadium on the world event map. Trying to sell a stadium which was not built or even tested would have been no mean feat (it would pose significant risk to any promoter) and from my perspective he has done a good job in attracting credible events but more importantly it appears has opened up the right communication lines and relationships with promoters. With a credible and now open stadium / event space we should be in an even better position to attract more events to lovely old Dunedin. This position needs someone who can bring not only the management and leadership skills but the ability to bring events into the stadium nationally and internationally.

From my understanding Mr Davies was recruited through an established and proven specialist firm Sheffield who have recruited these senior roles for 30 plus years. They did an international search which included not only advertising but researching the events sector, using their contacts and headhunting appropriate people to ensure the best person for the job could be found (as per ODT article http://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/61724/finding-ceo-could-take-6-months). You see people like Sheffield and EQI continually advertising and recruiting these CEO type jobs nationally (ie the recent DCC CEO role).

It is surprising to see the current position is being advertised by a fairly unknown organisation which is part of a local blue collar recruiter. Looking at their website it doesn’t provide a strong background of delivering in this sector, how far do their contacts go, is it just Dunedin, has anyone seen them advertise roles before? Simply posting an advert will only attract people looking at the adverts, it’s a gamble to hope that the right person is looking, as opposed to someone finding the right person and then approaching them. Does this organisation have the networks and experience to research the international market like Sheffield did to find us the best possible person? In the ODT article it said it could take 6 months to find the first CEO, however the current role has a closing date of mid July?

When they are spending $50-85,000 (as per last time) on someone to find the right person is this money being spent in the right place? Did this go to open tender and were Sheffield considered as they have already researched this role 3 years ago and also maybe offer a discount as their first person is now leaving the job?

In a time when the council says they are watching consultants fees and spending one wonders if a key role for the city has been put in the right hands.

With the right CEO who knows what this could mean – positive cashflow? With the wrong person we all know what it will mean…

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Comment received.

Phil
Submitted on 2012/06/29 at 6:41 pm

I would think that they have learnt the lesson from the exercise with Sheffield. Sheffield did nothing wrong, and neither did David Davies. Sheffield were instructed to find a top candidate with experience in managing top level international venues. Which they did. David Davies biggest crime since he arrived was to recognise the venue for what it actually was, and not try and paint it as something which it wasn’t. He has probably been the only practical person in the whole process and it’s a shame that we couldn’t find a place for him within the region.

The problem was that the recruitment brief was wrong. We recruited way beyond the actual means and requirements of the position. This isn’t a stadium in Manchester sitting in the middle of a population base of 10s of millions of potential customers. It’s a rugby stadium sitting in the lower half of an island with a population of 500,000 and a realistic target population of just over 100,000. It never required, nor could it sustain, a European type management structure. Worlds apart. In terms of global sporting venues, this is a blue collar venture, and can be perfectly adequately serviced by the right person within that group. Let’s not make the same mistake as before, and forget who we are.

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Related Post and Comments:
22.6.12 DVML chief executive recruitment

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr