[{"_1":2,"_98":-5,"_99":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6510501,"mediaKeyId","5374917-bcd5664df08b17739abbe24175913ae7","parentId",5374917,"title","Tacoma panel to study council staffing structure; staff to interview council members and support staff","audioSeconds",1668,"startMs",2634000,"endMs",4302000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5374917-bcd5664df08b17739abbe24175913ae7&start=2634&end=4302","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5374917-bcd5664df08b17739abbe24175913ae7/thumbnail_2634000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6510501/Tacoma/Pierce-County/Washington/Tacoma-panel-to-study-council-staffing-structure-staff-to-interview-council-members-and-support-staff","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6510501-cc9766c21d2106bd48e6b2981f5d2625/orig.mp4?Expires=1771138007&Signature=eDHWuTn8Aua8b~qCKmv8z1fmgYRTTEmBCnHvnEjLVWkR2orn5J9UKRsZaht7I3JXda1RtX~q1-pmgYWIi8Gt9RiP01msBdvd8lvf7I2tDuL84YUEC0nLM-4-zu0IhVnVyioW4feVyUZXIZ9xBsCAyvx14XDTkrjOK6uTuT5lPeqpSLPo5J8SqXU8tax94T0wdPEa1WsrtXitxb1ojK0~GHmELxok~rskZ-DXUj8VocRgYw2vh5uy99NvRGkYHFejir8WU2rnKqAQGtIWu5sBDK~nmvFXhpHfm4w3KKqhuOjaByluzhzzYlZcpSkvxM-gpbDzTL9OhPPooOBC4SUVeg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Tacoma","date","2025-07-11T00:00:00Z","article","The Operations Strategy and Administrative Committee (OSAC) instructed staff July 11 to begin a structured review of city council staffing needs, including one-on-one interviews with each council member and current support staff, as the committee works toward recommended staffing models.

Ben, the committee's staff liaison, told members the objective is \"to design a council staffing model that meets the administrative, legislative, and policy needs of the full council in alignment with the council's values of equity, transparency, and effective governance while operating within budget constraints and responding to community expectations.\" The liaison proposed a six-step approach: individual interviews, synthesis of key themes and design principles, jurisdictional research, presentation of model options, deliberation, and OSAC forwarding a recommendation to the full council.

Members discussed trade-offs between staff who serve individual council members and staff who serve the collective council. Several members cautioned that adding independent policy staff for council members would not by itself guarantee implementation of policy outcomes — implementation requires operational staff and budget. Committee members and staff suggested producing a \"menu\" of support functions (policy analysis, legislative drafting, administrative support, constituent responses, communications, agenda preparation, research, community engagement) that council members could select from, subject to coordination to avoid duplication.

The committee also discussed the need to communicate existing supervisory relationships for council support staff. During the meeting, members asked staff to ensure the council understands that \"Lisonbee Griffith is the manager of the policy support team\" so members know where to direct performance or HR-related concerns.

OSAC directed the staff liaison to begin one-on-one interviews with council members and current support staff and to return in approximately one month with a summary of themes and proposed design principles. Staff will then research other jurisdictions, gather examples, and prepare a set of staffing model options for OSAC review.

Ending: Staff will launch interviews and synthesize findings into design principles and proposed models; the committee expects model options to be returned for deliberation and a later recommendation to the full council.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Tacoma - 20250711 Operational Strategy and Administrative Committee - Jul 11, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","OSAC directed staff July 11 to conduct one-on-one interviews with council members and current support staff to develop design principles and staffing model options that balance individual council needs and collective council functions.","taxTitle","Tacoma, Pierce County, Washington","taxId",2675,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6510508,"Tacoma committee launches recruitment framework for permanent city manager; $70,000–$75,000 budget recommended",741,725000,1466000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5374917-bcd5664df08b17739abbe24175913ae7&start=725&end=1466","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5374917-bcd5664df08b17739abbe24175913ae7/thumbnail_725000.jpg","/articles/6510508/Tacoma/Pierce-County/Washington/Tacoma-committee-launches-recruitment-framework-for-permanent-city-manager-7000075000-budget-recommended","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6510508-60f47586702b92afbd3386af03b03ac4/orig.mp4?Expires=1771138007&Signature=CbzK~rnjh50l0Fap2ilj20MWWGHDXjngTehzSpBXV2zmD6SYVe5kBhM~focAVDr6naIIFLyo6Ki~EIAimuJMa5aS1Kq7yLiZe~9Oe4SHIYxL3s474UqPQbWgK5vqD31ojEccaXRahxWIgF931gTiOdg8aaKus-V6zk4GYT7AvgeqAtJYTuoMzQH-VCjsh4j6XE7nrvwDMc0Oo94rXwB78GP-pfIZJEWdSRF6aZgUyVnINGMAqfdNeNkCAf4gOW9wJy~~rI~np5QlPSwP8HvCmUi6mKs90gFqMsM1KDAN5DZ4zpXX6TFu~Nc2GpQTv-6A7ufX2bbvGLi8s3NpOOHRoA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Tacoma City Council's Operations Strategy and Administrative Committee (OSAC) agreed July 11 to begin the process to recruit a permanent city manager and provided staff direction on a timeline, budget and community engagement approach.

Cheryl Biederman of the Human Resources Department described a four-phase recruitment framework staff recommended to the committee: a 60–90 day preparation phase (including selecting an executive recruiting firm), a candidate pipeline-building phase, a multi-stage screening and interview process, and final selection and start-of-employment steps such as negotiation, background checks and public announcement.

Biederman said the committee should expect the preparation phase to take \"about 90 days\" and said staff recommended a target appointment date for the new city manager in the February–March 2026 timeframe to allow a buffer for re-starts and notice periods. She summarized the recruitment objective as \"to develop and steward a fair, transparent, and inclusive process, resulting in the selection of Tacoma's next permanent city manager, aligning the process with council values, community priorities, and organizational needs.\" (Cheryl Biederman, Human Resources Department.)

On budgeting, staff recommended a recruitment budget of $70,000 to $75,000. That estimate includes candidate travel and hospitality expenses and an estimated $50,000 fee for an executive recruiting firm. \"We're recommending 70 to $75,000,\" Biederman said; she clarified that the estimate is based on prior searches and that actual costs will depend on factors such as the number of out-of-area candidates and whether multiple in-person panels are required.

The committee discussed outreach and community engagement plans. Staff proposed using a combination of tools including an existing biennial community survey, an additional short public survey, community events where finalists meet the public, and multiple interview panels (staff, community organizations, and general public panels). Members suggested combining the statistically representative community survey results with an open online survey to broaden input while noting the limitations and different sampling frames of each method.

OSAC members agreed staff should begin identifying executive recruiting firms, develop a detailed recruitment plan that includes interview panels and community engagement, and return with those details at a follow-up meeting. Human Resources will also review recent outward-facing executive recruitments (for example, the police chief recruitment) and bring that recruitment plan as an example to OSAC.

Ending: Staff will begin firm outreach and prepare a detailed recruitment plan for OSAC review; the committee set a target appointment window of February–March and identified a recommended budget of $70,000–$75,000 to fund the search process.","OSAC approved staff to begin a search process for a permanent city manager on July 11, agreeing on a February–March target start window and recommending a recruitment budget of $70,000–$75,000, including an estimated $50,000 for an executive recruiting firm.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":79,"_47":92,"_49":93,"_51":94,"_53":95,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":96,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":97,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6510512,"Tacoma OSAC adopts charter-style rules for committee operations, staff to align language with council procedures",574,151000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5374917-bcd5664df08b17739abbe24175913ae7&start=151&end=725","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5374917-bcd5664df08b17739abbe24175913ae7/thumbnail_151000.jpg","/articles/6510512/Tacoma/Pierce-County/Washington/Tacoma-OSAC-adopts-charter-style-rules-for-committee-operations-staff-to-align-language-with-council-procedures","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6510512-054aeed29e6f18685920667f4c86ee80/orig.mp4?Expires=1771138007&Signature=Ayz6RO0top1OHLmadSsEhkeBR5jIqj6u8zrqcC4wBxw-isdZjQzIceDMV-aPaHCan1TBYT-eaSNeZ~Ii2fxWU9MKrQdndbEzOsdGmunxd1YP27tRutmARaIrBsvWe05yScYMFouVd7YFZIiv73rZTQnYHUi1WPQcSk~Y6xd81hWS87h2N5VAme0mKr9Po73K6Gr0gQsEShMIK9MxjlcnWUh49pmTRXCq2caMrlF0KMMIl2So0mCQJWacuNn3WXXQ1XTvT9nWcb5GtgLxS9Z6bnSse8A5ZQroda-lUqfAhmxjiwVozEuGrUOkTgawcnpAClpmYY-al9~GxlN2Htu2QA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Operations Strategy and Administrative Committee (OSAC) of the Tacoma City Council approved a statement of purpose and a set of rules and procedures for the committee at its July 11, 2025, meeting and directed staff to make language edits to align the document with the council's existing rules before it is forwarded to the full council for adoption.

The committee's statement of purpose, read aloud during the meeting by Cheryl Biederman of the Human Resources Department, says the committee \"is responsible for reviewing, developing, and recommending improvements to the internal administrative processes, practices, and structures that guide the city council's operations and its relationship with the city manager.\" Biederman told the committee the document is intended to appear on tacoma.gov alongside other standing committee descriptions.

Committee members discussed the document's listed responsibilities, which include coordinating council tools and administrative workflows, developing centralized project-tracking tools, overseeing performance-evaluation processes related to the employment of the city manager, onboarding and transition for new council members, drafting council retreat agendas, auditing council-staff communications, and clarifying the legislative sponsorship process.

Chair Woodards asked whether the body wanted the document framed as a \"charter\" or to follow the language used in other standing council committees. Committee members agreed staff should adjust the wording so the committee's guidance \"looks and feels like all of the other\" standing committee procedures; the substance of the document was not to change. The committee indicated those edits would be made by staff and the revised text would be placed into the council's rules and procedures for formal consideration by the full council.

The committee voted to adopt the rules and procedures as amended. The roll call showed Chair Woodards and committee members Scott and Bushnell voting in the affirmative; no opposition was recorded. The chair declared the rules and procedures adopted with the changes to be supplied by staff.

Next steps: staff will incorporate the agreed language edits, add the committee guidance into the council rules and procedures package, and return the revised document to OSAC and then the full council for final adoption. The committee also asked staff to include the document summary in the meeting packet posted online.

Ending: The adopted guidance establishes OSAC's scope as an internal, council-focused working group and charts a path for formalizing those practices through the council's established rules-and-procedures process.","The Operations Strategy and Administrative Committee approved a statement of purpose and rules of procedure July 11 and directed staff to edit the language so it aligns with existing council rules before forwarding to the full council.","actionData","errors"]

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Tacoma panel to study council staffing structure; staff to interview council members and support staff

Tacoma committee launches recruitment framework for permanent city manager; $70,000–$75,000 budget recommended

Tacoma OSAC adopts charter-style rules for committee operations, staff to align language with council procedures