On July 28th, the Des Moines City Council passed a motion to offer James Nichols the position of city manager.

Hiring Nichols now depends on the negotiation of his employment contract through Strategic Government Resources - the organization that the City of Des Moines hired to conduct and manage the nationwide search for a new city manager.

The City of Des Moines began the search for a new city manager in March, after current City Manager Tony Piasecki announced his retirement last year.

“We need somebody who’s going to be a great communicator, and through all the interviews and reviewing background and looking at skills sets, Jim Nichols fits the leadership and the communications skills sets above all others,” Council Member Dave Kaplan said.

Kaplan said that he was impressed with Nichols’ “work-alongs” where Nichols would participate in the duties of a job to learn more about it.

“When he’s learning about something, he doesn’t presume he knows everything,” Kaplan said. “he goes out and works with staff to learn the job.”

Kaplan said that while on a tour of the city for the candidates for the position, Nichols spent time talking to the city staff, which none of the other candidates had done. He also sat down with a number of people to field questions at the community meet-and-greet.

“I believe that he is going to be a great asset to the community,” Kaplan said.

Nichols began his career working in Chehalis and Olympia, Washington - the start of 21 years working in local government. He has previously served as the county manager of Douglas County in Nevada, the assistant city manager of Midland, Texas and deputy city manager for Las Vegas, Nevada and Goodyear, Arizona.

Nichols is an International City/County Management Credentialed Manager and holds a Public Management Certificate from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He has a master’s degree in environmental engineering from the University of Connecticut and a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Northwestern University.

by Clara McMichael

The City received 36 applications for the job from candidates in 18 states. 26 of the candidates had local government experience, 22 having served as either city manager or assistant city manager. The vetting of the candidates included a comprehensive questionnaire, online interviews, a psychometric assessment, a thorough media search, and a rigorous background investigation.

The four finalists for the position all participated in five hours of interviews and a community meet-and-greet on July 20th.

Council member Dave Kaplan said that feedback from the panels and meet-and-greet had been consistent in expressing approval for Nichols for the position.

“What really helped was the involvement we had from all of the advisory groups and the public and the staff,” Mayor Matt Pina said.

Pina said that the Des Moines had not had a leader from outside the city for a long time.

“There’s a lot happening,” Pina said. “We’re going in a very forward and positive direction, and I believe that the collaborative leadership style of the candidate that we’re bringing forward will bring out the best of those who are already here.”