Port of Seattle launches search for new executive director

The Pacific Northwest seaport is now officially looking to fill the role that became vacant when former CEO Ted Fick suddenly resigned in February after less than two-and-a-half years on the job.

   The Port of Seattle Commission on July officially opened its search for a new executive director to fill the role that became vacant when former Chief Executive Officer Ted Fick suddenly resigned in February after less than two-and-a-half years on the job.
   The initial step in the search process came in the form of the port’s posting a job description and announcing the results of an extensive outreach effort seeking input about the critical qualities and attributes for the next port leader.
   That public outreach included a web survey that received more than 500 responses, five employee forums attended by more than 200 employees, and interviews with more than 100 external community leaders and stakeholders, including customers, labor leaders, minority community leaders, environmental leaders, community business leaders, regional community leaders and elected officials. The outreach was carried out by commissioners, port staff and Seattle-based executive search firm, Herd Freed Hartz.
   Fick’s resignation earlier this year came after he was placed on administrative leave while undergoing a performance review by the five-member Port of Seattle Commission. He was placed on leave during an investigation into one-time bonus pay handed out to port employees in late 2015. The bonuses were later ruled illegal by the Washington state auditor’s office because they weren’t tied to any performance goals.
   Fick was one of the recipients of the bonuses he approved, receiving $24,500 on top of his $350,000 salary.
   Hired in September 2014 to replace retiring CEO Tay Yoshitani, Fick also brought unwanted attention to himself and his employer in April 2016, when he was arrested for DUI after leaving a retirement party that had been held at the port.
   Since Fick’s departure, Chief Operating Officer Dave Soike has been serving as interim CEO, leading the port’s 1,900 employees and overseeing its $1 billion budget.