DeKalb County Government is seeking qualified candidates for the position of County Administrator.

The County is located 63 miles west of Chicago, IL and 46 miles south of Beloit, WI. There are 19 townships of various sizes within the county, with the county seat located in Sycamore (population 18,652).

DeKalb County is a growing, vibrant community where residents, businesses, and agriculture flourish. The county’s unique location and talented workforce attracts top-tier international corporations and provides residents with abundant opportunity to excel in one of many growing sectors. Agriculture has a long history in DeKalb County and remains a significant contributor to the local economy, with over 2,300 farms on 370,772 acres of property (88% of the land base). With affordable housing, excellent healthcare, and exceptional education, DeKalb County is truly a place for you to live, work, and play.

The County Government includes 26 departments and 9 buildings, including a jail and a rehabilitation and nursing center. The County employs approximately 400 full-time employees and 280 part-time employees.
DeKalb County operates under the township form of county government. The governing body is the County Board and the County Administrator reports directly to the County Board through the Chair and the Executive Committee. As the legislative element, the County Board is responsible for adopting all Ordinances for the governance of DeKalb County, which laws are contained in the County Code, establishing the budget as well as levying taxes, promulgating policies, rules and regulations for the management of County operations.

The authority, duties, and responsibilities of the County Administrator include the following:

1. The County Administrator reports directly to the County Board through the Chairman and the Executive Committee.
2. The County Administrator is responsible for gathering and disseminating to the Board objective information which will aid in their decision-making process including, where appropriate, staff recommendations.
3. The County Administrator facilitates and promotes communication between the Board, the public, Department Heads, County employees, external Boards, commissions and their governments.
4. The County Administrator provides key staff support to the Board in its policy formulation efforts and makes recommendations as appropriate. The County Administrator assures that the actions of the Board, as expressed through their various ordinances and resolutions, are carried out. The County Administrator also serves as the Editor of the County Code and is responsible to see that all actions of the County Board, as appropriate, are timely codified and made available to the public in an organized format.
5. The County Administrator is responsible for the day-to-day coordination and operation of all County services that are under the control of the County Board.
6. The County Administrator is authorized, pursuant to a departmental request, to amend departmental budgets between line-items and categories within a department's total appropriation of all their cost centers within a fund, but only the County Board may increase or decrease the total fund appropriation for a department.
7. In the event of an emergency, the County Administrator, in consultation with the Chair, the Vice-Chair, the Finance Chair, and the Chair of the relevant jurisdiction Committee, may authorize additional spending to address the emergency, but such expenditures must be reported to the Finance Committee at their next regular meeting.
8. The County Administrator is responsible for the allocation, use, renovation, safety, and stewardship of the County's buildings and grounds.
9. The County Board retains the authority to approve the number of authorized positions for each department, but the County Administrator may approve staff re-organizations within a department where the resulting annualized expenses do not exceed the monies already budgeted.
10. Labor contracts are to be negotiated and recommended by the County Administrator to the County Board for the Board's final approval. Before negotiations begin, the County Administrator shall gather input from the Executive Committee and then the County Administrator. Board Chair and Board Vice-Chair shall establish negotiation parameters and strategy. Labor disputes and policy interpretations arising above the departmental level will be handled by the County Administrator.
11. When a vacancy exists at the Department Head level (other than that of County Administrator), the County Administrator, the Chair of the relevant jurisdiction Committee, and either the Board Chair or Vice-Chair (to even out political party representation if possible), are responsible for bringing forward to the appropriate County Board Committee up to five candidates for consideration by the Committee. If none of the candidates are found to be acceptable by the Committee, or the County Board, the process starts over.
12. Performance evaluations for County Board appointed Department Heads will be conducted by the County Board in a manner determined from time to time by the Executive Committee of the County Board. The County Administrator may submit input to the Board as part of that evaluation process. The County Administrator may also choose to perform interim evaluations as deemed appropriate.
13. In situations where the County Administrator deems it necessary, the County Administrator shall have the power to order the immediate suspension of a County Board appointed Department Head, with or without pay as deemed appropriate, until acted upon by the County Board. In such cases, the County Board shall act on the suspension at their next regular monthly meeting to reinstate, or take other appropriate action, or to permanently remove the Department Head.
14. The County Administrator, or their designee, will represent the County on any applicable Tax Incremental Financing (TIF) District’s Joint Review Boards or related TIF Advisory Boards.

The County Board seeks candidates with relevant education as well as administrative, management, and government experience. Candidates who are not credentialed by the International City/County Management Association (ICMA) may be required to obtain such certification, or pursue other professional development opportunities, as a condition of employment. The successful candidate will have a strong background in budget development/government finance, capital project management, economic development, intergovernmental relations, and community leadership. The successful candidate will also demonstrate a high level of both personal and professional integrity, a strong work ethic, commitment to public service, and the ability to work harmoniously with elected officials. Residency within DeKalb County is required within 18 months of appointment.

For more information, please visit the DeKalb County website at www.dekalbcounty.org.