Expanding the Clear Way in the Pacific Northwest
Featuring insights from Mark Shrives, Vice President and Northwest Regional Director for Clear Career Professionals
Clear Career Professionals continues to expand its reach into the Pacific Northwest and broader western United States, with a focus on serving local governments in Montana, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, and California along with Texas and surrounding areas.
This expansion is about more than geography. It is about bringing the Clear Way to communities that are facing increasingly complex leadership, recruitment, and organizational challenges.
To better understand what this means for cities, counties, and public sector organizations across the region, I visited with Mark Shrives, Clear’s Vice President and Northwest Regional Director. Mark brings a unique combination of military leadership, city management experience, emergency management knowledge, and direct familiarity with communities across the Northwest.
A Regional Leader With Local Government Experience
Mark’s perspective is grounded in public service. Before joining Clear, he served as City Manager in Hamilton, Montana, Polson, Montana, and Creswell, Oregon, along with service as Interim City Manager in Columbia Falls, Montana.
That background gives him direct insight into the realities facing city councils, city managers, department heads, employees, and residents. Executive recruitment is not just about finding a qualified resume. It is about identifying a leader who can fit the organization, work effectively with the elected body, support the staff team, and understand the culture of the community.
That is especially important in smaller and mid sized communities where the city manager, department director, police chief, fire chief, or finance director is highly visible and directly connected to the public.
Mark has sat on both sides of the recruitment table. He understands what elected officials are looking for in a successful leader, and he also understands what candidates need to know before deciding whether an opportunity is the right fit.
Military Leadership and a Life of Service
Mark’s career also includes a long record of military service. He began his professional career as a commissioned officer and eventually reached his goal of serving as a lieutenant colonel and battalion commander.
His military background shaped the way he approaches leadership, service, and organizational responsibility. Discipline, integrity, accountability, teamwork, and mission focus are not abstract concepts for Mark. They are principles he has carried from the military into city management and now into executive recruitment.
That experience also helps him understand candidates transitioning from military service into local government. In our earlier Clear Voice conversation, Mark talked about the importance of helping military candidates translate their experience into language that city councils and local government leaders can understand.
Leadership, budgeting, infrastructure, planning, personnel management, and organizational culture are all areas where military experience can connect directly to municipal government. The key is helping candidates explain that experience clearly.
The Talent Challenge Facing Northwest Communities
Many local governments across the Northwest are facing a difficult talent market. Long serving leaders are retiring, competition for experienced professionals is strong, and communities need leaders who can manage increasingly complicated public sector challenges.
Those challenges include growth, housing pressure, infrastructure needs, workforce shortages, public safety expectations, emergency preparedness, and changing resident expectations.
The issue is not only whether a candidate has the technical qualifications. Communities also need leaders with sound judgment, communication skills, emotional intelligence, and the ability to work effectively with elected officials, staff, residents, and regional partners.
Candidates are also evaluating communities more carefully. They want to understand organizational stability, council and manager relationships, housing affordability, quality of life, leadership expectations, and whether the community is prepared to support its next leader.
That means the recruitment process has to tell the community’s story clearly and honestly.
Why the Clear Approach Fits the Northwest
Pacific Northwest communities often place a high value on authenticity, transparency, collaboration, and community engagement. Those values align closely with how Clear approaches executive recruitment and consulting.
Clear’s process is relationship based and highly personalized. It is built around understanding the organization, the elected body, the staff team, and the leadership qualities needed for long term success.
One example is PositionCast™, a special episode of Clear’s podcast, The Clear Voice, created specifically for an active recruitment. Instead of relying only on a brochure or job posting, PositionCast™ gives elected officials, city managers, department heads, or other key leaders a way to speak directly to prospective candidates about the role, the organization, the community, and the leadership expectations connected to the position.
For candidates, it provides context before they apply or interview. For communities, it helps tell the story behind the opportunity in a more personal and authentic way.
That kind of communication is especially useful in Northwest communities where local identity, public trust, collaboration, and fit are often central to successful leadership.
Serving as an Extension of the Organization
For a city council or city manager considering outside recruitment assistance, Mark said one of the most important things to understand is that Clear operates as an extension of the organization.
That means helping manage the process, conduct outreach, communicate clearly, protect the time of elected officials and staff, and create confidence in the final decision. The goal is not simply to complete a transaction. The goal is to help communities make decisions that support long term success.
Clear brings national reach, practical local government experience, and a team made up of people who have served in the roles they now help recruit and support.
Practical Value for Smaller and Mid Sized Communities
Mark first worked directly with Clear during the Columbia Falls, Montana City Manager recruitment. As Interim City Manager, he helped evaluate recruiting firms for that process. Clear rose to the top because of the process, the communication, the candidate focus, and the value provided to the community.
That point is important for smaller and mid sized communities. Many local governments need high quality recruitment support, but they also have to be mindful of cost, staff time, and council capacity.
Clear’s approach is designed to provide professional recruitment support without losing sight of the realities faced by local governments. The process is structured, personal, and practical. It helps communities reach strong candidates while giving elected officials the information they need to make a confident decision.
Leadership Beyond Recruitment
Clear’s work in the Northwest is not limited to executive search. Mark’s background also strengthens Clear’s ability to support communities through strategic planning, emergency preparedness, organizational reviews, and other consulting services.
Strategic planning is a natural connection between Mark’s military, city management, and consulting experience. Communities need to know where they are going, what priorities matter most, and how to align elected officials, staff, and organizational resources around a clear direction.
Emergency preparedness is another area where Mark brings practical experience. After his city management career, he worked with FEMA and gained additional perspective on disaster response, mitigation, recovery, and planning. His view is direct. Plans should not sit on a shelf. They should be reviewed, tested, and updated so communities are better prepared when emergencies occur.
For local governments, outside perspective can be valuable. Sometimes a community needs help identifying short term priorities, long term risks, organizational gaps, or opportunities to strengthen service delivery.
A Northwest Perspective
Mark’s connection to the region is personal as well as professional. He understands the strong sense of community, commitment to public service, and quality of life that make Northwest communities attractive.
A coastal town in Oregon, a growing city in Washington, a mountain community in Montana, or a smaller city working through change all have their own story. Each community has its own expectations, identity, challenges, and opportunities.
That regional understanding helps Mark represent communities authentically to candidates. It also helps Clear identify leaders who are not only qualified for the position, but who are more likely to thrive in the organization and community.
The Full Clear Team Behind the Region
Mark provides a direct connection to the Northwest, but communities that work with Clear gain access to the full Clear Career Professionals team. That includes former city managers, public safety executives, department leaders, and public sector professionals with experience across recruitment, organizational assessment, leadership development, emergency preparedness, and strategic consulting.
For Northwest communities, that combination is valuable.
The region has strong communities, high expectations, and a deep commitment to public service. Clear’s goal is to support those communities with practical experience, honest communication, innovative tools, and a relationship based approach that reflects the values of the region.
As Clear continues expanding its work across the Pacific Northwest and broader western United States, the message is straightforward.
We are here to help communities find the right leaders, strengthen their organizations, and serve their residents well.
Check out our services and contact the Clear team today to discuss your needs.
