Chatham-Kent's new Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) has officially started his job.
Michael Duben was introduced on Thursday afternoon. He was hired in June.
Duben said his immediate goal is to learn the ropes and settle into the role as well as getting caught up on local municipal issues, such as the Wheatley gas investigation, the downtown revitalization project, and the tree-cutting bylaw.
He has yet to meet all of the administration and wants to meet with the new council after the October election.
He said one of the challenges for Chatham-Kent long term is to keep staff turnover low and attract good staff to fill vacancies when required, adding that some municipalities are currently experiencing high turnover because it's a job seekers market right now and workers have more choice.
Duden said he plans to be a hands-on and present leader.
"I don't believe you can be a good leader if you don't know what your people are saying. I'm one of those, I'm not going to sit in my office, I'm going to be out there trying to meet as many people as I can," said Duben.
Duben also said his approach will be that council sets the vision for the municipality and it's his job to make sure the administration delivers it.
"A lot of people sometimes ask what's your vision for the community... it doesn't matter, I don't set the vision. It's set by 18 other people (the councillors) and those are the ones who tell us what to do," the new CAO said.
Duben added that he loves public service and working for a single-tier government because taxpayers know exactly who is responsible for what.
Mayor Darrin Canniff said the municipality is very lucky to have Duben and described him as "the real deal" and "a complete package" because of his experience.
