Follow the
Iaccoca plan
for a manager

In his book, “Where Have All The Leaders Gone?,” Lee Iacocca, the man who rescued what appeared to be a doomed Chrysler Corporation from collapse in the 1980s, credits much of the company’s successful turnaround to the people he hired as his lieutenants. Finding good people to work for you is a key to effective leadership, Iaccoca says.

That’s why hiring the right county manager should be job number one on the commissioners’ list.

Columbus County has advertised for a county manager for some time now and commissioners say they’ve found no one who they think can do the job.

Former County Manager Jim Varner has been gone for a while, and while Interim Manager Leo Hunt has held down the fort in the meantime, he says he’s ready to fade into retirement.

With round one of interviews apparently unsuccessful, we think the county commissioners should reassess the process.

For starters, the job calls for applicants to have a master’s degree with county government experience. Having someone with both those qualifications would be nice, but we believe this severely limits the pool of candidates. Some of the finest journalists to ever work for The News Reporter, for example, didn’t go to journalism school.

We’re also concerned by recent comments by commissioners that the county can’t afford the salary that some candidates might demand.

We say we can’t afford not to pay a top-notch candidate. Rookies and low-man-on-the-totem-pole candidates will demand a salary in the $50,000 range. A good manager’s salary will start in the $80,000 or $90,000 range.

If the commissioners are shooting for a $60,000 manager as they have in the past, then the county will likely be saddled with an average to below-average manager.

As we’ve said many times before, the commissioners should hire a quality manager and leave him or her alone to do his or her job.

With the county’s finances at a precarious level, the need for economic development and better planning, we urge the commissioners to broaden their search and remember that the cost of hiring a good manager will easily be recouped.

If the commissioners want to turn Columbus County around, do what Lee Iacocca did – hire the best people and the rest will take care of itself.