The Berrien County Board of Commissioners has formally hired a search firm to help find a new county administrator.
On Thursday, the board approved a contract with the Michigan Leadership Institute to aid in the search. It was recommended by the Michigan Association of Counties.
Interim Berrien County Administrator Michael Sepic told us this week he agreed to step in to temporarily replace former Administrator Brian Dissette when approached by some commissioners. He said he wanted to do something helpful about five years after retiring as Berrien County Prosecutor. So, how long with the search for a permanent admin take?
“It was presented to me as probably between two and four months,” Sepic said. “Knowing that the process is slow, I knew that it could go longer than that, but that remains to be seen.”
Sepic says the county administrator oversees the budget. He notes there are different kinds of county departments that the administrator works with to various degrees. For example, elected offices like treasurer or prosecutor are more autonomous.
“Then there are a number of other departments that are all headed by a department head. And so the administrator is technically, in a sense, the top of the pyramid for them.”
And as administrator, Sepic is now serving as the bridge between those departments and the county board of commissioners. He says coming into the job, he was a bit surprised by just how many problems have to be solved on a daily basis. He’ll remain in the role until the Michigan Leadership Institute and the county commission find Dissette’s replacement.
The county’s contract with the Michigan Leadership Institute is for $9,500.
