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The Freeborn County Board of Commissioners selected two candidates to bring back in January for second interviews for the position of county administrator after a first round of interviews and deliberations on Wednesday.

The two candidates are Melanie Aeschliman, current city administrator of Blooming Prairie, who is pursuing a doctorate in public administration, and David Stiernagle, who is originally from Freeborn and who has been in the private sector for 37 years and recently retired as vice president of lubrications and corporate accounts at Coastal Chemical Co., running the largest of four revenue focus sectors for the company.

The two others interviewed were CJ Holl, former county administrator in Wadena and Mahnomen counties, who was also former city administrator of Wells and finance/business manager for the Pelican Rapids school district, and Kyle Harris, former city manager in Benson, who had also served as a county commissioner in Saginaw County, Michigan, before that for six years.

The person hired will fill the opening left after former administrator Ryan Rasmusson resigned in October for a new opportunity.

The board asked a series of questions to all of the candidates on topics ranging from backgrounds, experience with budgets, union contracts and integrating new technology; management and leadership; building unity as a staff; communication; and community involvement, among others.

Melanie Aeschliman

Before becoming city administrator in Blooming Prairie, Aeschliman worked for about a year as state supervisor of assessments for the state of North Dakota and as director of planning and as an assessor for 4 1/2 years with the Kenai Peninsula Borough in Soldotna, Alaska. 

Originally from Rushford, she said she is passionate about government and would like to end up in a size of community like Freeborn County to finish her career. She has a bachelor’s degree in organizational management in human resources administration and a master’s degree in public administration. 

When asked about her approach to preparing budgets, Aeschliman said she thinks it is important to incorporate transparency and fiscal responsibility. She talked about going through the budget line item by line item and making sure the board she is working with is aware of the whole process and understands the budget in entirety. 

Aeschliman said it is her job to make sure the board is well informed, knows about options and knows about the pros and cons to those options. 

“I’m here to serve you,” she said, noting her goal is to bring sustainability. Once that sustainability is in place, the county can really then begin to work on some big projects. 

She said her management philosophy is to meet with department heads regularly, have open communication and make sure everyone is on the same page. 

She said it is important that communication flows in both directions and said she wants to work collaboratively. She noted she doesn’t ever want to micromanage, as nobody wants to be micromanaged. 

Regarding building relationships with staff she said she prefers to meet one on one instead of through email and would have an open door policy. She said she would communicate with the board in whatever way works for them and would be effective. 

She said she has experience with union contracts, as well as negotiations of insurance and benefits. 

When asked about her starting pay expectations — the salary range is about $122,000 to $171,000 — she said she hoped she and the board could negotiate, as she is already a little higher than the starting salary figure in her current position. 

She said she is a highly driven individual, and when she commits to something she commits to that until it is executed. She noted she sometimes even gives too much in her work and has a hard time shutting off and going home. 

When she makes decisions she always takes notes, looks at her priorities and seeks input from department heads and specialists. She also likes to have data or research about a topic. 

The most important part of the job would be to serve the board and the citizens of the county — making sure things are done transparently for the taxpayers of the county. 

David Stiernagle

Stiernagle graduated from Freeborn High School and earned a chemical engineering degree before obtaining his Master of Business Administration while working full time.

After working most of his career in Texas, he and his wife bought a house 1 1/2 years ago on Fountain Lake after first renting a house. His wife’s mother has been in Thorne Crest Senior Living Community. 

He said they enjoyed their time in Minnesota so much that they decided this is where they want to be. 

He took an early retirement package from his longtime employer, Coastal Chemical Co. LLC, in which he has worked a variety of roles, including as a corporate accounts manager, regional sales manager, executive corporate account manager and regional vice president of the company, covering west, central and east Texas, as well as the Rockies and the mid-continent areas where the business had facilities. Most recently, he has been vice president of lubrications and corporate accounts of the company, acting as the liaison between Coastal and its largest supplier, ExxonMobil Lubricants, as well as directing some of its largest customers. 

He said the Freeborn County job intrigued him after being in the public sector for 37 years. He liked the idea of giving back to the community through the position. 

He noted some of the great things that have been done in Albert Lea, particularly in recent years with the Blue Zones efforts and the downtown, and that he liked the idea of being on a winning team. 

“Seeing what Albert Lea has done, Freeborn County has done — I can tell you it’s something I want to be part of,” Stiernagle said.

He said he has been fortunate to be a part of top companies but left them because his life circumstances were best served by doing so. 

He talked of his experience doing budgets in his prior roles, and said he tried to do a “bottom-up budget,” getting input and working with management. He said he’s not afraid of numbers and he’s not afraid to get down to what really needs to be done. 

Regarding his management philosophy, he said he does not have a “top-down” kind of philosophy, but said he likes working with the people he’s dealing with and getting their input, finding out a way to implement what’s going to work best. 

He said he is not afraid to say if he doesn’t know something but will work to get the answer and is not afraid to ask for help. 

The key to developing a good team, he said, is communication and honesty. 

He said he has had no experience in the public sector but is up for the challenge. He said he would take his direction from the board, and he has every confidence that his diverse experiences would serve him well. He also asked if there was an opportunity to cross train with the current interim administrator. 

Regarding pay expectations, he said $170,000 would be a considerable pay cut from what his base salary has been even before bonuses — but he noted he is not there for the money. He said he would want something between $150,000 and $170,000 and said he was also interested in the benefits and possible pension options. 

When asked what role the county administrator has in the community, he said he would want to be out in the community and be an ambassador of the good things happening. 

He said he has not worked on union contracts previously but has worked with staff grievances and said when he makes decisions he likes to bring in all of the data, analyze and look for solutions and understand what’s best for the long-term. 

He questioned how long most administrators stay in the position, noting he had seen more turnover. Interim Administrator Darrell Pettis said five to 10 years is fairly common. 

CJ Holl

Holl said he had 18 years of public service and has time not only as a county administrator but also as a city councilor. He also was a business owner for 13 years and enjoys working on economic development. He previously owned eight Subway restaurants with his wife. 

He said he knows Freeborn County has had some turnover in the position, and he hopes he can be the one to help stabilize that. He has a master’s in public administration. 

Over the years, he said he has routinely put together budgets from the ground up. He said he has seen it done in different ways. 

He described his management style as from the “bottom up,” describing himself as a support person, though he noted there would be times he would have to make big decisions. He said his role as administrator is to know the county “a mile wide and an inch deep.” He would want the same thing for department heads within their departments. 

He talked about putting a plan to address high turnover in Mahnomen County after conducting a wage and benefits study. He also noted the importance of having a positive culture in the workplace. 

Holl said he found it difficult to work with someone who is politically motivated rather than solutions-motivated. 

Regarding pay expectations, he said he would expect $150,000, based on his experience and tenure. 

He described himself as being personable, approachable and solutions-oriented. He said he recognized he is not the end-all but said he hoped he could bring resources and connections. 

He said he has always been very community-oriented, and has been in service clubs, helped deliver Meals on Wheels, and helped out at a food shelf on the weekends.
“A leader in the community — you can’t just sit in the office and look out the window and have your door closed,” he said. 

He said he has handled union contracts and staff grievances before, and when asked what the most important part of the job would be on a day-to-day basis, he said it would be being available, recognizing challenges and being aware of budget and finance. He said the administrator has to have his hand on the pulse of what is happening. 

He said he was attracted to the Freeborn County opening because it was an opportunity to work for a larger county that he has worked before, noting the county has a stable financial picture and stable department heads. 

He recently parted ways with the board in Wadena County after about six months after it became clear he and the board had different expectations, he said. 

Kyle Harris

Harris said he has been in Minnesota for two years, recently with the city of Benson, and worked in the Legislature for 10 years and served as a county commissioner for six years. He has a master’s degree in public administration. 

Regarding preparing budgets, he has largely reached out to department heads, had them fill out budget worksheets and then he would put it together, working with them to cut it down and make it more reasonable. 

He described department heads as the “subject matter experts,” and said he would turn to them frequently when making decisions. In Benson, he said he met with department heads weekly and discussed things going on with their departments. Every Friday, he would go around with the public works director. 

He said to maintain trust with department heads, he would be patient, transparent and keep an open door policy. He said for him the hardest type of person to work with is an individual who is not willing to be open-minded. 

Harris said most of his career has been either working with elected officials or on an elected board. He said he has believed in getting out there in the departments, including going on ride-alongs with deputies, among others. This helps build rapport and allows employees to feel comfortable with him. It also helps him know what is happening in the departments. 

As a public figure, he said he also thinks an administrator should be seen in public and getting out and understanding the community you’re governing. 

He said the most important role as county administrator is making sure the county is running as efficiently as possible and making sure that staff have the tools and resources they need to accomplish their jobs. Regarding making decisions, he said he aimed to provide the best information possible to the board to make the best informed decisions. 

He referenced his experience working with union contracts and various departments. 

After his interview, Harris said he has been putting feelers out for positions, mainly in Minnesota and Michigan. He was recently terminated from the city of Benson. He said he was let go without cause but had been questioning the legalities of how they were using public funds.