Pursuant to Article III, Section 3-3(a) of the Town Charter, the board of selectmen may at any time establish policies to be followed by the town administrator. This policy outlines the role of the town administrator as it relates to oversight of daily or regular operations of the town pursuant to Section 1-08-030(E) of the Administrative Code, Article IV, Section 4-4(p) of the Charter and all other relevant provisions.
[HISTORY: Adopted by BOS Vote 7-18-2016. Amendments noted where applicable.]
A.
Town management. Pursuant to Article IV, Section 4-4 of the Charter, the town administrator shall be responsible for the overall daily or regular operation of the town and shall work with all departments in carrying out town obligations and duties.
In addition to the enumerated duties of the town administrator specifically set forth in Article IV, Section 4-4(a) through (p) of the Charter, pursuant to Section 4-4(p) of the Charter, which provides that the town administrator shall perform “other duties required by…the votes of the Board of Selectmen,” effective on the above date, notwithstanding the manner of their appointment to town service, the town administrator shall promptly communicate to all department heads and the heads of each multiple member body whose membership are appointed by the board pursuant to Section 4-3 of the Charter, that, effective immediately, for purposes of administrative efficiency of town operations and to make certain that the town administrator, as chief administrative officer, is aware of all town affairs as they occur, all department heads shall report directly to the town administrator and advise the administrator of all day-to-day matters concerning town operations, as they occur, which could impact upon town operations. The town administrator shall thereafter manage any such issues appropriately and communicate with the chairman of the board of selectmen with respect to these matters as necessary and pursuant to Article III, Section 3-3 of the Charter.
B.
Employee performance. The board acknowledges that given the administrator’s day-to-day oversight, coordination, and administration of town affairs, the administrator is qualified to assess, judge, and/or evaluate the performance of department heads, and others, who are appointed by the board. As such, pursuant to the Charter, and in addition to the duties outlined in Section 1-64-060 (“Compensation Plan”) as they relate to performance reviews and compensation, the town administrator shall conduct the performance review process of the head of each town department who is appointed by the board of selectmen. Each board member may, at their discretion, submit their own individual written evaluation to the town administrator. The administrator will take the individual evaluations received by the board members, together with the administrator’s evaluation, and prepare a comprehensive performance evaluation document. A copy of the comprehensive evaluation will be shared with the employee, at a meeting with the town administrator and the employee, and a copy of the evaluation shall be placed in the employee’s personnel file. If an employee receives an evaluation grade of “satisfactory” or above, the employee is eligible for a merit increase as set forth in the Personnel Bylaw.
C.
Amendments/modifications. This policy may be rescinded or amended by majority vote of the board of selectmen at any time.