RIOC Staff Attempts To Push Through Acting Chief Operating Officer To Permanent Position At Board Meeting Today After Failing To Get Directors Approval At Meeting Last Month - How Does RIOC Hire Executive Staff?

Last November 2, I asked Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC) President Shelton Haynes and RIOC Board Directors:

 I am preparing a story on the process by which RIOC Executive staff are hired.

Among the items on the cancelled October 26 RIOC Board of Directors meeting agenda was:

Dhruvika Amin - VP CFO Appointment and

Mary Cunneen VP COO Appointment

Did RIOC conduct an Executive Search for either of these senior positions at a Public Benefit Corp with an approximately $30 million budget and more than 100 employees? Were either of these positions publicly advertised?

If yes, what did the search consist of? If not, why was there no executive search for these positions?... 

There was no response so I sent a follow up message on November 6. RIOC Board Director Ben Fhala replied later that day writing:  

These questions are of utmost importance. If you happen to receive a response before the meeting, please keep us informed. Otherwise, we intend to bring these questions up during our Q&A with the candidates for these roles, as they hold significant importance.

I was informed through informal channels that the CFO was hired approximately two months ago, but the recently appointed board members have not been involved in the process. To the best of my knowledge, the selection process has included some board members while excluded others.

Thanks, Ben Fhala*

Resident Board Member

*Disclaimer: All statements made by Ben Fhala are made in his capacity as a RIOC Resident Board member. He does not represent the entirety of RIOC or the full board but serves as a Resident Board member, offering information to the community and its stakeholders. 

The November 14 RIOC Board meeting agenda items included the appointment of Dhruvika Amin as RIOC Chief Financial Officer and Mary Cuneen as Chief Operating Officer. Ms Cunneen has been the Acting Chief Operating Officer of RIOC since September 2022. 

Prior to the November 14 Board meeting, a Roosevelt Island Tipster emailed the following on Ms Cunneen's proposed appointment:

Check Mary's bio on the website vs what her resume says. Her resume just posted with the Board materials, leaves out a job she held at RIOC when she first started. We fired Erica Spencer-el for much less.

During the November 14 RIOC Board meeting, Directors asked questions regarding the executive search process conducted for the CFO position, Ms Amin's qualifications and her willingness to work with Board members as they perform their oversight function of RIOC. 

Ms Amin's appointment as RIOC CFO was approved by the RIOC Board. Here's what happened.

 

Following Ms Amin's approval, the RIOC Board considered Ms Cunneen's appointment as Chief Operating Officer. The RIOC Board asked similar questions but they also asked why she has refused to speak with Board members and answer their questions about RIOC operations. 

Ms Cuneen response that she is open to working with Board members was received with skepticism by Board members based upon their previous experience interacting with her. Ms Cunneen also responded to other questions by Board members by "deferring to the Chair" of the Board meeting or saying "I don't recall."

Discussion of Ms Cunneen's appointment was then moved to a closed Executive Session without the public being present.

Ms Cunneen's appointment as RIOC Chief Operating Officer was not approved at the November 14 RIOC Board meeting.

Here's what happened.

 

RIOC staff are trying again to get approval from the RIOC Board for Ms Cunneen's appointment as Chief Operating Officer at the RIOC Board of Directors meeting later today.

Yesterday, I asked RIOC President Shelton Haynes and RIOC Board Directors:

I am following up on my prior inquiries regarding the hiring process for  Roosevelt Island executive staff.

I understand that Mary Cuneen's appointment as RIOC Chief Operating Officer is on the December 13 RIOC Board of Directors meeting Agenda after failing to be approved during the November 14 RIOC Board meeting.

During the November 14 RIOC Board Meeting, RIOC Assistant Vice President Administration Tajuana Sharpe told the RIOC Board that an Executive Search was conducted for the position, that 7 or 8 candidates were interviewed and that advertisements for the Chief Operating Officer position were posted on websites. According to Ms Sharpe, Ms Cuneen was the best candidate for the job.

Please confirm the accuracy of Ms Sharpe's statement. 

I did not see any advertisement on the RIOC website or any other public notice of the RIOC Chief Operating Officer position. I did see notices for the RIOC Chief Financial Officer Position. Please forward any links to public advertising for the RIOC Chief Operating Officer Position.

I spoke with former RIOC President Susan Rosenthal about the qualifications of Ms Cuneen to be the RIOC Chief Operating Officer. According to Ms Rosenthal, Mary Cuneen was removed from her position as Director Of Parks and Recreation because of her poor management skills and placed in a new position where she did not have to manage staff. Ms Rosenthal added that both she and then Chief Operating Officer Shelton Haynes believed Ms Cuneen's skill set was better used in a position where she was not managing more than a small group of staff. Ms Cuneen was moved to a new position with less managerial responsibilities.

Ms Rosenthal added that she thought Ms Cuneen was a lovely person, that she personally liked her but  she was not competent as a manager of staff.

Also, during the November RIOC Board meeting, RIOC Directors asked Ms Cuneen about her previous refusal to speak with and answer questions by RIOC Board members exercising their oversight function and apparent discrepancies in her resume. Will Ms Cuneen continue her refusal to speak with and answer questions from RIOC Board members performing their oversight function of RIOC?

For comparison purposes, RIOC's sister agency, the Battery Park City Authority, recently completed an Executive Search Process for President CEO. According to the Broadsheet news site:

... a professional search firm had reviewed “dozens and dozens of resumes that would be appropriate, many of which would have been very good candidates. They presented us with six or seven very highly talented candidates that were diverse, extremely competent, and had great credentials. It was a tough decision. We got down to a couple finalists and we interviewed the finalists and quite frankly the process worked very smoothly, and I think we got an incredibly good candidate that was ultimately vetted by the Governor’s office.”...

Was a similar executive search used for the RIOC Chief Operating Officer position?

I am preparing an article on this subject. Please let me know if anyone from RIOC will respond.

There has been no reply.

 

We'll see what happens at today's meeting. Stay tuned. 

UPDATE 9 PM - Following an Executive Session, the RIOC Board voted to table the agenda item appointing Ms Cunneen as Chief Operating Officer meaning that no vote was taken.