Steps to Hiring Wauwatosa’s Next Police Chief

“On behalf of the citizen-led Police and Fire Commission, we would like to share the hiring process for Wauwatosa’s next Police Chief. We have committed to having a public process and will offer five opportunities for public engagement throughout the hiring timeline,” stated Police and Fire Commission President Dominic Leone.

The hiring process is outlined below, as well as the five opportunities for public engagement during the hiring process. You can follow the news about this process at the city’s website by visiting www.wauwatosa.net/chief.

Hiring process

1. Seek public input through a survey to obtain feedback on leadership competencies. The public will be able to share with the Police and Fire Commission the competencies that are most important in their mind. The public survey is open through 11:59 pm on March 12, 2021.
2. Broadly advertise for this position. When the position is posted, we will share on the city’s website the locations it will be posted. It is the Police and Fire Commission’s intent to post this position nationally and with the goal of reaching a diverse applicant pool.
3. The Police and Fire Commission will determine the assessments and screening tools used in hiring with the assistance of a professional human resources consultant team.
4. The Wauwatosa Human Resources Department and a Police and Fire Commissioner will screen resumes.
5. The Wauwatosa Human Resources Department will meet with the citizen-led Police and Fire Commission to present results of resume screen. The Police and Fire Commissioners will use this feedback to help determine which candidates to invite to the next step.
6. Phone screening. Three to five members of the public will be invited to provide feedback to the Police and Fire Commission about candidates participating in the phone screening. The Police and Fire Commissioners will use this feedback to help determine which candidates to invite to the next step.
7. Assessment Centers. Nine to twelve members of the public will be invited to provide feedback to the Police and Fire Commission about candidates participating in three assessment centers. The Police and Fire Commissioners will use this feedback to help determine which candidates to invite to the next step.
8. The public will be asked to submit potential questions to be used in a public forum interview for the finalist candidates. These questions will be screened by the Human Resources Department.
9. Finalist candidates will participate in a public forum in which they will be asked a series of questions (determined from step 8 above). A video of the interview and biographical information of the finalists will available for public review. The Police and Fire Commission will open a survey for the public to provide input. The Police and Fire Commissioners will use this feedback to help determine which candidates to invite to the next step.
10. The Police and Fire Commission will interview final candidates.
11. The Police and Fire Commission makes a hiring decision.

Stakeholders

The Police & Fire Commission will be selecting community stakeholders to participate in the process. This will include a variety of community partners, residents, and business leaders.

Learn more about the Police & Fire Commission

Section 62.13 of the Wisconsin Statutes gives the Police and Fire Commission sole authority over the selection of police and fire chiefs. The Police and Fire Commission comprises five residents of the City of Wauwatosa, which means that in addition to the public engagement outlined above, residents of the City of Wauwatosa are involved at every step of the process in hiring the next Police Chief.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. It has not been verified for its accuracy or completeness.

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