There are currently three municipalities in the Florida Keys searching for their next top administrator — Key West, Key Colony Beach and Islamorada. These positions require dedicated professionals who serve as the conduit among elected officials, the public and municipal staff. Competition for these desirable posts will be fierce and candidates should be careful to avoid certain missteps during the interview process.
Top 10 ways to blow the city manager interview
- Admit that you’ll sign off on anything for a steak dinner and bottle of Opus.
- Expound on your years of hand-to-hand combat training, counterinsurgent operations and social media trolling.
- Define your work history as, “I’m a gypsy. Never in one place for more than a few months.”
- When asked about career goals, say, “I want to be here long enough to make some quick money in real estate, establish contacts in higher places, quit and then walk away with a nice severance package.”
- Describe your hiring philosophy as, “There can only be one rooster in the hen house – and that’s me. Cock-a-doodle-do!”
- Show up for the interview in camouflage fatigues, tennis shoes and one of those beanies with a propeller on the top.
- When discussing drug policies, ask, “Are they just there for the HR stooges?”
- Refer to your managerial style as “a little rock-n-roll mixed with some cool jazz – you know … baby-making music.”
- List antifa, Costco, Proud Boys or Blockbuster Video at the top of your list of membership organizations.
- Let the selection committee know your commitment to the community will be of the highest importance and you won’t take orders from “some dipshit politician who doesn’t know his ass from a hole in the ground.”
