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Special City Council Meeting <br />May 24, 2004 <br />Page 3 <br />Jim C. Blagg was present representing the Mercer Group, Inc. He is Senior <br />Vice President and is in charge of the Dallas Office and the Texas practice. <br />Mr. Blagg said he has given the City Council a folder with some of his <br />comments plus additional information about the firm. He stated that he <br />appreciated the opportunity to be here to talk about the qualifications of their <br />firm and to assist the Council with this important task of hiring a new City <br />Manager. <br />Mr. Blagg said the Mercer Group has been around for about twenty years and <br />it is incorporated in the State of Georgia. They have eight offices across the <br />United States including the one in Dallas. He said the Mercer Group is more <br />than just for executive recruitment; they do management consulting also. Mr. <br />Blagg said they were primarily staffed with former government officials. He <br />said he has been a long term City Manager in Texas for 25 years, served as <br />Deputy City Manager in Lubbock, Texas for 8 years and City Manager in <br />Abilene, Texas for 10 years. He served as the President of the Texas City <br />Management Association, and on the Board of the International City/County <br />Management Association. <br />Mr. Blagg said the Mercer Group has a long history in searching in the public <br />sector. They have done more than 750 total sector searches, and the last time <br />he counted, there were 87 searches for City Managers positions in the last three <br />years. They have conducted searches in all sizes of communities including <br />Plainview, Texas, Wylie, Texas, Boulder, Colorado, and El Paso, Texas. They <br />also conducted a number of searches for other folks beside City Managers in <br />Texas as well as doing consulting work. <br />Mr. Blagg said the objectives of this search will include on site assessment, <br />need assessment, and a comprehensive position profile. They will encourage <br />top level people to apply and encourage people who might not otherwise apply <br />to become candidates. They would objectively assess candidates and <br />recommend a pool of finalists who meet the city's requirements. They would <br />keep the City Council closely involved throughout the process and would assist <br />