Mayor Eric Garcetti announced today the launch of a nationwide search for a Director of Personnel for the City of Los Angeles to replace longtime General Manager Maggie Whelan, who is retiring on June 30

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MAYOR ERIC GARCETTI
CITY OF LOS ANGELES

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 10, 2014

Contact: Communications Office, 213-978-0741

MAYOR GARCETTI ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT OF GENERAL MANAGER OF PERSONNEL MAGGIE WHELAN; LAUNCHES NATIONWIDE SEARCH FOR REPLACEMENT

LOS ANGELES—Mayor Eric Garcetti announced today the launch of a nationwide search for a Director of Personnel for the City of Los Angeles to replace longtime General Manager Maggie Whelan, who is retiring on June 30.

Whelan, appointed General Manager by Mayor Richard Riordan in 2000, is stepping down after a distinguished career spanning more than four decades with the City. Whelan is a member of the USC Master of Public Administration Advisory Board and a member of the City’s Board of Deferred Compensation Administration, which manages a $3.5 billion Deferred Compensation Plan (457 Retirement Plan). She also chairs the City’s Joint Labor Management Benefits Committee which has oversight of the plan design of the City’s $229 million Flex Benefits Program.

Along with administering the hiring of nearly 6,500 new police officers during the years of LAPD expansion, Whelan is known for leading the centralization of human resource staff from 23 departments under the Personnel department to reduce overall costs and improve the overall personnel performance citywide.

Whelan served as President of the International Public Management Association for Human Resources (IPMA-HR), the leading professional organization for public sector personnel specialists. She is a recipient of the Muriel M. Morse Achievement Award by the Western Region of IPMA-HR and authored a chapter in the book “Leadership Secrets of Local Government Human Resource Officials.”

“One of the things I am most proud of is being able to redirect the focus of the Personnel Department from a primarily rule focused institution to a customer friendly service department seeking to provide a quality product in a timely fashion to our customers: the nearly 40 City departments,” Whelan said.

“Maggie Whelan’s 47 years of service to the City of Los Angeles and 14 years leading the vital Personnel function will stand as a record of dedication and achievement,” Mayor Eric Garcetti said. “Facing some of the toughest and most contentious times in our City’s long history, she has always been a constructive problem-solver and has never wavered in her commitment to inclusion and fairness.”

The nationwide search for Whelan’s successor will be conducted by Steve Harmon of Citygate Associates. The firm specializes in municipal management consulting and executive recruitment. Harmon has served in human resources management leadership positions for several cities on the west and east coasts. 

During the interim after Whelan’s retirement date, former Assistant General Manager David Luther will be acting Personnel Director. 

“I will be seeking a dynamic and innovative human resources leader to be the next General Manager of the Personnel Department,” Mayor Garcetti announced. “This is an excellent opportunity for a person who can articulate a compelling vision of the future and lead the shift from a traditional personnel approach to one focused on restoring pride and excellence in public service by training, engaging and empowering more than 50,000 public service workers. Key will be a sense of urgency – someone who leads by example, shows a strong personal commitment to transformational change, and collaborates to achieve sustainable results.”

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