City Manager Recruitment

July 12 Update: Kelly DiMartino  was sworn in as the City of Fort Collins’ new city manager on Tuesday, July 12, following City Council’s approval of an employment contract.

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March 29 Update: The Fort Collins City Council announced this evening that they will pause the city manager recruitment process for three months and will not select a final candidate at this time.

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View Candidate Forum & Share Feedback

Five finalists participated in an online community forum on Monday, March 7. If you missed it live, you can watch the replay below or on the City's YouTube channel.

Para ver el foro con su interpeación en español, haga clic aquí.

Share your thoughts: Click on the "Candidate Feedback Form" tab below to share your thoughts on the candidates and your perspective on what City Council should consider as they select the next Fort Collins city manager.

NOTA: Debido a dificultades técnicas, los primeros varios minutos de este video están en inglés con subtítulos en español. El audio de interpretación en español comienza a las14:10.

Update Feb. 16, 2022: City Council selected six finalists, listed below, to proceed in the recruitment process. They will participate in interviews and selection activities through March, including a virtual community forum the evening of March 7 and on-site interviews March 24-26.

Update Feb. 2, 2022: City Council received and reviewed 97 applications for the City Manager position. After thoughtful evaluation and discussion by Council, Mark McDaniel, the executive recruiter from SGR, has invited 19 semi-finalists to complete the next phase of candidate materials.

City Council will review these materials and discuss them Feb. 15 in an executive session, and Council action to identify finalists is planned during February. Finalists' names will be posted on this page, and additional information about the community forum open to all those interested and other next steps in the process will also be provided as it becomes available.

The City of Fort Collins is hiring its next City Manager. The City Manager serves as the chief executive of the municipal organization and reports to the elected City Council. They work with Council on community matters and lead the City's executive team to implement the City's strategic plan and manage internal operations.

What is a City Manager?

The City of Fort Collins operates within what is called a council-manager form of government. Voters elect the Mayor and City Councilmembers, who are responsible for policy decisions and for hiring and managing their three direct employees: the City Manager, City Attorney and Chief Judge. 

The City Manager functions as the chief executive. They are responsible for the day-to-day operations of the organization and for providing management and direction to City staff. The council-manager form of government creates an administrative organization that is separate from the political process and makes the City Manager accountable to City Council for operations and performance across the organization.

Selection Process

While the selection of a new City Manager will be done by the full City Council, an Ad Hoc City Manager Selection Process Committee was formed to guide recruitment and selection. The ad hoc committee includes Mayor Jeni Arndt, Councilmember Susan Gutowsky and Councilmember Shirley Peel. View ad hoc committee meeting agendas and minutes.

The position will be posted in late 2021 with finalist interviews and related public feedback opportunities targeted for late Q1/early Q2 2022.

The City has enlisted the support of SGR to lead the search.