Miami narrows search for City Manager to four candidates

The search for a new City Manager for the City of Miami, Okla., has narrowed to four candidates.

Finalist interviews are scheduled for Sept. 17-18.

The City selected the SGR firm to assist in conducting the extensive search that resulted in an impressive candidate pool. SGR is an executive recruitment firm based in Keller, Tex., specializing in recruiting, assessing, and developing innovative, collaborative, and authentic leaders for local governments.  SGR’s proprietary recruitment and vetting process produced a strong field of candidates.  The City received 45 applications from candidates in 19 states and two countries. The finalists are:

Bo Reese has 25 years of experience with the State of Oklahoma and currently serves as Chief Technology Officer, Oklahoma Dept. of Transportation.  During his career with state, he has held the position of State Chief Information Officer, Chief Operations Officer and Deputy Administrator, Employees Group Insurance Division, Chief Information Officer and Director of Technology.

Jill Cornett most recently served as the Executive Director of the Harry S. Truman Coordinating Council in Joplin, Mo. and has nine years of local government experience. Cornett previously served as the City Administrator of Lake Lotawana, Mo., City Administrator of Savannah, Mo. and Assistant Community Manager for Michaels Military Housing in Ft. Leavenworth, Kan.

Mark Skiles has 20 years of local government experience and most recently served as City Manager of Clinton, Okla. He previously served as City manager of Blackwell, Okla., City Manager of Concordia, Kansas , City Administrator of Eureka, Kan., City Administrator of Kiowa, Kan., and Director of Grant County Economic Development in Ulysses, Kan.Skiles also served as Project Manager for CoServe in Corinth, Tex.

Scott Albert began his local government career as a Consultant/Cit y Manager for the City of Palmer, Tex. He has more than 25 years of local government experience and most recently served as City Manager of Angleton, Tex. He previously served as Executive Director of Riverbend Water Resources District.  Several positions with the United States Agency for International Development and Research Triangle Institute, City Manager of Celina, Tex., town Manager of Fairview Texas and City Administrator of Springtown Texas.  Prior to completing his master’s degree, he served as a Management Assistant for the city of Plano, Tex. He is a graduate of the University of Texas at Dallas and holds a master’s degree in public administration and a bachelor’s degree in economics and finance.