The South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority took steps to begin a nationwide search for a new president and CEO Thursday after it approved a contract with consulting firm Organizational Development Solutions Inc., of Westville to do the work.
Andy Qunell, chairman of the board of directors, said Desila Rosetti, the firm’s president and her team will aid the CVA in the nationwide search by taking in and reviewing up to 100 applications and paring it down through a vetting process and preliminary interviews to bring the best possible candidates forward for a final board decision.
Qunell said the hiring process would be slightly different than that used to find former president and CEO David Uran. Uran announced his resignation in December, 19 months after taking the job to “spend more time with family.” His resignation was effective Dec. 31.
The board will not utilize a search committee of its own members this time around, Qunell said. ODS will be tasked with narrowing down the field before bringing viable candidates to be reviewed for in-person interviews by the entire board, he said.
ODS will be paid $20,900 for the work, according to the contract.
Board members did not put a firm number on the number of candidates they would like to review for the final interview, though some like Darnail Lyles said they would prefer to see at least three. Lyles was part of the search committee that hired Uran. The field at the time was narrowed to two candidates before the choice was made.
Board member John Bushemi asked the contract be approved with the expectation of a timeline for the process to follow.
According to the contract, ODS has conducted successful CEO searches for the Northwest Indiana Forum, Center of Workforce Innovations, Grant Blackford Mental Health, Northwest Indiana Community Action, and Swanson Center along with a number of other executive searches.
ODS previously performed a human resources study in 2022 evaluating the positions at the SSCVA and what salaries and benefits those positions warranted before the search that resulted in the hiring of Uran.
The SSCVA is withholding this document because the study requested qualifies as deliberative materials under Indiana Code, according to Scott McClure, the bureau’s attorney.
“Records that are intra-agency or interagency advisory or deliberative material, including material developed by a private contractor under a contract with a public agency, that are expressions of opinion or are of a speculative nature, and that are communicated for the purpose of decision making,” McClure wrote via email in response to a public information request for the document.
Uran’s Dec. 18 resignation came one business day after an executive session where alleged misconduct was listed as the reason. Neither the board nor Uran would comment on the executive session, citing personnel matters.
Uran was tapped in May 2022 to replace former longtime head of the organization Speros Batistatos after the board of directors did not renew his contract. Batistatos is suing the SSCVA board for wrongful termination.
Nikki Lopez, who worked as the bureau’s human resources director under Uran, was tapped in January to be the interim president and CEO in the wake of Uran’s resignation. Lopez was the former events director for the City of Hobart before taking the HR job at the SSCVA. She served on the board of directors for eight years prior to becoming an employee.
In her first report as interim president and CEO, she introduced board members to all of the bureau’s full-time staff. Absent from the roster were former Chief of Staff Greg Falkowski and Megan Goodan, chief of sports and leisure.
McClure said Falkowski resigned and Goodan was let go. He did not give a reason for Goodan’s termination.
Goodan was replaced by Jimmy Nelson, former director of visitor services. No one has been named to the chief of staff position at this time. Qunell Friday said the chief of staff position will be filled depending on whether the as-yet-hired CEO will want one.
Lopez after the meeting told the Post Tribune she “100%” planned on applying for the position.
“I definitely want to earn the position. The fact they are doing a national search is showing I will go up against the best of the best. I would want nothing different,” Lopez said.
Uran’s contract allows him to negotiate up to nine months’ severance based on salary only, not benefits or bonuses, Qunell previously said. The board approved entering into the negotiations at its January meeting. An agreement was not yet approved at the February meeting.
According to Uran’s contract that he signed in 2022, his employment “may be terminated by SSCVA immediately for cause,” in which “the employee shall be entitled to the compensation and all other benefits earned prior to the date of termination as provided for in this Agreement computed, prorated up to and including the date of termination.”
The contract may also be terminated by either party without cause “upon sixty (60) days’ notice in writing which shall identify the date of termination,” the contract reads.
If the SSCVA terminates Uran without cause, “SSCVA is obligated to pay Employee for an additional period of ninety-day (90) days. Employee’s current base salary and medical benefits,” it reads. “In addition, Employee shall be entitled to all accrued vacation, and other benefits prorated through the date of termination.”
Freelance reporter Michelle Quinn contributed.
