Arts & Entertainment  October 16, 2014

Fort Collins DBA director Michael Short announces resignation plans

FORT COLLINS – The Downtown Fort Collins Business Association announced that executive director Michael Short will resign at the end of the year.

Short will assist in the search for his replacement and remain with the organization in a consulting role through April to support the transition. But his resignation also comes in the wake of major staff turnover over the summer that led to the DBA’s board of directors hiring Mountain States Employers Council to investigate what led up to the mass exodus of employees.

All of the DBA’s four full-time employees besides Short left over the summer, including three at the same time in August. Another part-time employee also resigned. Short said Thursday that all of those have since been replaced.

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Asked whether Short’s resignation was forced, both Short and Jason Barrett, vice chairman of the DBA’s board, said the decision to leave was Short’s.

“I think certainly the departure of those employees set in motion a whole process by which the board took a close look at the functionality of our organization and opened the door to look at the way in which we execute and what our priorities are from an internal perspective,” Short said.

The DBA – a nonprofit organization with an annual budget of about $1 million – represents more than 260 business members in advocating for downtown Fort Collins. It produces events like the Colorado Brewers Festival, Bohemian Nights at NewWestFest, Great Plates, First Night Fort Collins and Tiny Tots Halloween.

Barrett commended Short, saying that when he was hired in 2011 Short was given a strategic and somewhat vague charge of getting the DBA a “seat at the table” with major stakeholders in the community. Broadly speaking, Barrett said Short did exactly that, raising the credibility of the DBA with the city council, city manager, Colorado State University and key business leaders.

“To get DBA in the conversation with that circle, I think says a lot for what he’s done in three and a half years,” Barrett said, noting that he believes Short has “set conditions for success in the organization.”

The goal now, Barrett said, is to establish where it is the DBA wants to go next and find a leader that can take things to the next level.

Barrett said the review by Mountain States Employers Council revealed that “there’s a lot of deferred maintenance in the organization. We need to review our structure in the organization not only inside the DBA but within the board.”

He said that means the board needs to be clearer in its communication of its strategic plan, in addition to making sure bylaws are updated and that the board is providing proper structure and clear guidance to staff.

“We need to be clearer in our direction, and we’re working on that,” Barrett said. “That’s job one for us moving forward.”

Barrett said no timeline has been set yet for hiring Short’s replacement.

Short said he felt like he’s delivered on the goals he was brought in to achieve, and said that, along with some of the recent tumult, made now seem like a good time to move on.

Short said he hasn’t yet decided what he’ll do after leaving the DBA.

“I’m first and foremost proud of what I and the DBA staff have accomplished over this three and a half year tenure,” Short said. “I am also excited about what this new DBA staff is bringing in respect to their enthusiasm and their professional credentials. I think they have much to contribute.

“I’m optimistic that the future has never looked brighter for downtown.”

FORT COLLINS – The Downtown Fort Collins Business Association announced that executive director Michael Short will resign at the end of the year.

Short will assist in the search for his replacement and remain with the organization in a consulting role through April to support the transition. But his resignation also comes in the wake of major staff turnover over the summer that led to the DBA’s board of directors hiring Mountain States Employers Council to investigate what led up to the mass exodus of employees.

All of the DBA’s four full-time employees besides Short left over the summer, including three at…

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