As an elected official, there is no more important decision that you make than selecting your chief of staff. While the gun and glory in politics always go to the one who had the courage to run for office, it is the single political individual right behind that officeholder who can make that elective effort a success or a failure. Perhaps we give too much credit to the office holder, and maybe now is time to shine some complimentary light upon the pivotal staffer who makes sure that the trains run on time.
I have had the privilege of being Chief of Staff to a highly energetic office holder, and it was a crazy job that saw me working 18 hours a day, seven days a week. I was 30 years old and had other experiences as a mayor, partner at a law firm, and a staffer to a state assemblyperson, but nothing, and I mean nothing, prepared me for that baptism by fire.
In the 1990s, the Essex County Executive was one of the most powerful offices in the State. The previous County Executive had gone to jail, and the County was upended and horribly divided. Only by taking full advantage of that divide did we narrowly win the County seat by 2,500 votes. In a squeaker, the political world, from Trenton to Totowa, was rocked.
After a victory party in West Orange Town and Campus, we woke up on Wednesday with no idea what to do next. The political world was watching every step, and we didn’t have a clue.
The winning long-shot candidate asked me to serve as the incoming Chief of Staff and Executive Director of the transition team. I said yes, but then I realized I had no idea what I had signed up for.
After that improbable win, we had our work cut out for us. From jump street, budget analysists had projected over $150 million in debt, and I had the task of laying off over 300 employees—tough stuff to say the least. I didn’t have a Chief of Staff handbook and just instinctively had daily senior staff meetings and worked tirelessly trying the understand the minutia of county government.
Every detail from the inauguration to interviewing cabinet officers, briefing Wall Street fiscal managers, and a thousand other items was on our calendar, and everyone wanted to have a meeting. Each meeting was critical, and everyone wanted to be around this nexus of growing power. The press had several full-time reporters dedicated to the Hall of Records, and they were looking for exciting stories. It was important to try and centralize communications.
I just wanted to learn the job and to bring some order to the chaos, and I worked hard to create relationships with the County Legislature to allow the business of the government to move forward. I give great credit to then Freeholder Director Joseph N. DiVincenzo Jr. for being an amazing steward for the County. His calm demeanor allowed for government to function during the craziest of times. If it wasn’t for Joe D., the county would have declared bankruptcy in 1995, and nothing positive would have taken place.
Sorry for that sidetrack, but the point is that my tenure as Chief of Staff forever gave me an insight of what was needed to operate as a functional Chief. It forced me to grow and develop other skill sets and to forge relationships with others to make it all work, which at that time was not my strong suit. It forced me to acquire a certain toughness, humility, street sense, tireless work ethic and an iron will to achieve our ambitious agenda. Needless to say, during that time, I learned a few things, and the most important was making sure you are in sync with your Chief of Staff.
A few do’s and don’ts when selecting a Chief of Staff –this could be for your C-suite executive job or your newly minted political office.
- Don’t select a buddy or relative because you feel obligated to. This job requires a killer, and you need a serious player, not a high school drifter or serial visitor on Monster.com whom you think you trust.
- The chief must be hard-working, intelligent, have thick skin, and be able to shut his/her mouth.
- The chief must be strong enough to say NO to the boss.
- The chief must be observant and comfortable around people.
- The chief isn’t a consigliere but has some of those qualities (see column on The Makings of a Wartime Consigliere).
- The chief must LOVE politics and regard this foray as a gift of a lifetime.
- The chief can’t have too many hobbies and being without children is very helpful—I’m sure I will take some incoming flak on that one.
- The chief can’t have an ego and must be patient, on time, and very organized and dependable.
- The chief must be able to compartmentalize and able to carry out your message without improvising or ad-libbing.
Last note: it needs to be understood that the Chief of Staff becomes part of your family and, by virtue of living with your 24/7, knows about your kids and things about your household. You need to make sure that the person you select for this all-important job is more than just a staffer, they must be trusted with everything, as there is very little separation from work and home life.
Let me close by saying that I have been incredibly well served by a few Chiefs of Staff while I was an Assemblyman, Senator and now Chairman of the Port Authority. I have been asked to rank the top staffers, and promise to do so in a future column.