Shawano County will have a new administrative coordinator, just in time for Christmas.
The County Board voted unanimously Wednesday to hire Brent Miller, of Green Bay, to take over the full-time position, effective Dec. 22.
Miller will replace Tom Madsen, who has been the county’s part-time administrative coordinator since 2012.
Twenty-two people applied for the position, and five were interviewed by an ad-hoc committee. The Administrative Committee recommended that Miller be hired.
Miller is the human resources manager for Brown County. He previously worked as the administrative coordinator for Marquette County and as the human service director for Columbia County.
Miller also served for 21 years in the United States Army and National Guard.
“I’m planning to move over here to Shawano County. In fact, my wife and I just looked at a house not too long ago, even before I applied for this position,” Miller told the County Board. “Hunting and fishing are very big in our lives, so we really wanted to get into this community.”
The county made the administrator position part-time as a way to balance the budget for 2012 when then-coordinator Frank Pascarella announced he was leaving to become Chippewa County’s administrator.
The board voted in July, however, to restore the position to full-time.
Recent long-term projects, such as a wage study and merger of the social services and community programs departments, convinced supervisors that the county needed a full-time administrator.
Madsen has said that, despite being paid for 25 hours a week, he was working 40 hours or more most weeks.
Miller will receive an annual salary of $87,000; benefits are expected to boost his compensation above $100,000. The final amount will depend on what health insurance plan Miller opts to take, according to county Finance Director Diane Rusch.
Pascarella’s compensation package was about $120,000 annually when he left.
Supervisor Gene Hoppe, committee chairman, said the county interviewed “five great, great candidates.”
He described Miller as someone who was easy to work and talk with.
“The one we chose had an impeccable resume,” Hoppe said. “He’s just a fantastic guy. I think everybody’s going to like him.”
Miller said he preferred working for a county with an administrative coordinator rather than a county executive because the power rests with elected officials and the residents.
He said the county executive approach is “like a mini form of state government, and I’m not a big fan of that.”
“When I saw this position, I wanted to come back to the administrative coordinator form of government,” he said.
Madsen’s job performance was not discussed prior to the vote, but Supervisor Sandy Steinke said afterward that Madsen had done an exceptional job during his time with the county.
Madsen, who was one of the finalists interviewed, said he had no hard feelings over the board’s decision. He said he had no immediate plans.
“I believe my time here was well spent, and I did enact some changes for the positive,” Madsen said. “I think they picked a very good person to replace me.”
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