Would you ever hire a babysitter without an interview and verified references?
Would you select a personal physician without a meeting to determine your comfort level with the physician?
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Would a restaurant owner hire a head chef without an interview and samples?
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Will the military ever again hire a psychiatrist without an examination?
If you answered “Yes” to any of the above, you might be practicing a possibly new Village of Niles personnel selection policy. Because our mayor has a liquor license, the Village must, by a new state law, hire a lawyer to be the town’s Liquor Commissioner (LQ) for a measly $150-$220/hr. The position is to be filled by the Board of Trustees with the mayor recusing himself from the selection process. Some trustees voted to give village attorney Annunzio the task of setting up the search process. He narrowed the responses to four resumes and then touted one of them. Apparently the winning candidate came from a family that owned a restaurant which impressed Mr. Annunzio and may have tipped the scales in her favor.
Now the Board of Trustees hired, and not unanimously, such an attorney based SOLELY on the recommendation of the village attorney, Mr. Annunzio. Trustee Palicki and I objected since it is extremely odd to hire someone for a sensitive position SOLELY on the suggestion of Mr. Annunzio. He told the media that “he did not directly advertise the job” but did so by “word of mouth” (and we have no idea who heard his wonderful words). Trustees were not informed of his verbal activities, nor to what groups he actually did “advertise,” nor to what special ears absorbed his oral supplications.
Our televised trustee meetings may not win any primetime viewing awards, but they do provide a convenient record of who said what and when. At our May 14th meeting Mr. Annunzio claimed (see and hear on our website at 22:20 minutes on that date) that he would advertise for the LQ in the lawyers’ bar journal, local papers, and so forth. We believed him. He told us recently that lawyers like himself are held to higher ethical standards. So we believed him. But we never saw anything and he never sent us any such promised advertisements.
The trustee excitement rose to great heights at the May 20th meeting: Ms. Matayas wanted a “physical interview” (44:25) and Mr. Alpogianis wanted an interview too (54:20). Mr. LoVerde (1:05) and Mrs. Palicki (1:07) encouraged advertisements and Mr. LoVerde wanted a solicitation letter (1:10). Mr. Annunzio informed us that attorneys must carry their own malpractice insurance. We expected him to verify such insurance. A candidate who was not selected complained that the “winner” didn’t have such insurance. Mr. Annunzio hadn’t checked!
When we started the job search some months ago, I provided the board with a list of fifteen items which should be discussed with candidates, items pertaining to reporting procedures, documentation of visits, etc. - the kinds of things which guarantee proper business conduct. What happened? Nothing. Trustees never interviewed candidates, never saw any and yet were to make a decision about an important job merely by reading a resume and believing that Mr. Annunzio has some special insight into resume reading. Would this be done if we were seeking a chief of police, a fire chief, a village manager? We all know the answer.
I never met Ms. Shain, nor would I know her if she walked up to me. I never heard of her and obviously nothing of her biography until the resume trustees received from the scrutinizing Mr. Annunzio. Board trustees never were given the opportunity to interview her and other applicants to find the right mix. A most peculiar situation given that the Trustees who voted for Ms. Shain have voiced so much support for “management” and “metrics.”
The recent newspaper article noted that resume analyst Mr. Annunzio “said Shain’s connections to Banks had nothing to do with his choice for her.” Many of us asked: Who is Banks? Obviously Mr. Annunzio knew. Result: Banks is the recently former alderman and Democratic Committeeman of the 36th Ward. Banks served for years and years on the Cook County Democratic Central Committee with former Maine Township Democratic Committeeman (Mayor) Przybylo. Just a coincidence?
Mr. Annunzio is quoted in the media as favoring her selection because “she is totally independent and understood the system.” Understood the system? What SYSTEM? He then is quoted as saying “I didn’t want to hire someone everybody knew.” Who’s everybody? Mr. Annunzio doesn’t know who I know let alone the other trustees. Odd. Mr. Annunzio was not empowered to hire anyone, just present candidates to the Board of Trustees.
Common sense and common courtesy (to the candidates and to the trustees) would be to have candidates appear before the Board of Trustees (the people that actually do the hiring) for a question and answer session, the kind which sensitive positions require. Instead we are supposed to rely on the judgment of Mr. Annunzio.
This process of hiring can lead to some serious problems.
First, this kind of hiring will easily discourage future competent applicants from applying for positions in Niles, perhaps rightfully believing that they have no real chance for employment. It’s not fair to them. Would anybody apply for a job under these kinds of procedures? Highly unlikely.
Second, it casts a shadow over current village employees and how they were selected and hired. It’s not fair to them.
And it’s not fair to us.
The public is neither protected nor served with a hire-by-resume policy which hinders elected public officials from fulfilling their sworn obligations.