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CONTACT SCBJ Kurt Batdorf, Editor kbatdorf@scbj.com

After Project Concentrus, search for new leader begins

By Kurt Batdorf
SCBJ Editor

EVERETT — The executive committee that approved joint operation of the Snohomish County Economic Development Council and the South Snohomish and Everett Area chambers of commerce is now searching for a chief executive to lead the new organization.

“We are off and running,” said John Monroe, interim chief executive of the EDC.

The executive committee has selected a six-member search committee of local people from the private and public sectors to recruit a new president-CEO for the Project Concentrus organization, Monroe said. The search committee is led by a seasoned human resources professional from the private sector.

“The search team is all local, all top-notch,” he said. “They have a good leader in charge.”

No potential candidates have been named, but Rick Cooper, EDC board chairman, said in a press release that he has heard from people who are interested in the job, following the resignation of former EDC chief executive and President Deborah Knutson on Oct. 29.

Monroe said the new job has been advertised widely, but the search committee doesn’t expect it will have to look outside the Pacific Northwest to find enough qualified applicants.

The search committee will gather cover letters and resumes until Nov. 24, then whittle down the applicant list and screen and interview the top half-dozen candidates in early December, Monroe said. The public will probably have a chance to meet the selected finalists before the search committee makes its hiring recommendation.

If all goes according to plan, the combined organization’s new chairman will be hired before Christmas, Monroe said.

“We’re really excited,” Monroe said. “There’s a lot of momentum behind it.”