After recently coming up short in hiring either of its top choices for director of senior services, the Wellesley Council on Aging Board this week said it is taking a new, more proactive approach to try to fill the important position (see discussion from Feb. 19 Board meeting via Wellesley Media recording, about 42 minutes in).

A new job posting has been distributed, though hasn’t yet elicited resumes with the senior, municipal, and management experience sought.

COA Board Secretary Pat Decker said board members met recently with Select Board member Colette Aufranc to discuss the recruiting challenge, and the idea of going with an executive recruiter was raised. A preliminary meeting was held with a recruiter to understand services offered, and a proposal was requested. The Board would run this through the town’s Human Resources Department before taking any action, such as a Board vote on procuring services, Decker said.

The goal would be for a recruiter to find qualified candidates that the board would interview.

“We’ve been without a director long enough that I feel like we need to be a little more aggressive, proactive in trying to find a suitable candidate,” Decker said.

The Wellesley Council on Aging’s previous director, brought on at the start of 2023 after a challenging hiring process, was placed on leave last April and resigned over the summer.

Board member Barbara Searle said she found it interesting during the recent hiring process that a number of candidates—including current COA directors elsewhere—just didn’t have some of the experience, especially in management and finance, required for the Wellesley job. One candidate indicated such responsibilities are handled by someone else in their community. “We may have a slightly unique position,” she said.

Separate, but related: Board Chair Judy Gertler mentioned having put off doing anything about developing a strategic until a new director was in place. But given the hiring delay, she recommended that the Board go ahead with the strategic plan process, and hire a consultant to help with this. Assuming a consultant can be engaged, the board would hold a retreat-style meeting to brainstorm on the topic.

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