Earlham Echo

February 4, 2024

Madison County Human Resources Director Kelly Skerik was fired by Auditor Teri Kaczinski on Thursday, January 30. Afterward, the already gloomy mood in the courthouse got even darker.

The timeline of events that got Skerik dismissed goes back a few days earlier:

On Tuesday evening, January 28, Kaczinski announced on Facebook that she was hiring a third-party consulting firm to ‘evaluate our current processes, identify areas for improvement, and develop a plan to maximize our resources.’

Several citizens commented on the post, questioning the necessity of hiring a consultant. The next day, one of those citizens went into the Auditor’s office to investigate and requested, via the open records law, a copy of the contract that the Auditor had signed with the consultant. Before receiving the contract, she mentioned on Facebook later that evening that a source told her that the consultant was going to cost $250 per hour.

The next day, Skerik was upset and crying when she stepped into a 3^rd-floor courthouse office to speak with Supervisor Diane Fitch. I was waiting to see the county attorney and happened to be there. Skerik said that Kaczinski had just fired her because she ‘knew’ that Skerik was the source of the ‘leaked’ information regarding the cost of the consultant. Skerik was adamant that she was not the source and stated that she had no knowledge of any aspects of the contract.

Word about Skerik’s dismissal spread quickly among the employees in the departments at the courthouse and there was a general feeling of disbelief among everyone as they gathered in the 1^st-floor halls—whether or not anything was leaked, the cost of anything purchased by any office in the County is public information anyway.

Kaczinski left the building after the dismissal. While Skerik was gathering her things from her office, Fitch was urging her not to leave. But there was no recourse. Sheriff Jason Barnes and three deputies arrived around 11:30 a.m. Barnes did not receive the call himself, but it was his understanding that Kaczinski had called his office after she fired Skerik. He and his team seemed unclear of their role at first, but it became apparent they were there to escort Skerik from the building.

There was no need to escort Skerik. She tearfully hugged Fitch, Barnes, the deputies, employees in the Auditor’s office and others, and left the building.

The contract

The Echo obtained a copy of the contract between the Madison County Auditor and the consultant, RMG, last Friday afternoon. The price tag? $250 per hour. The contract states that it’s a ‘four-week plan.’ Assuming 8-hour days, the total cost will be $40,000.

The consultant is Craig Bergman. On his LinkedIn page, he describes himself as an Author/Speaker; Entrepreneur; Consultant; Talk Show Host; Film Producer; Adventurer; Futurist; Religion, Politics, and Culture Expert; Farmer; Banker; Veteran. He lists himself as President/CEO of four companies: Vortex Blockchain Technologies, Inc; Appellate Films; Liberty Coin Farms, LLC; and Robert Morris Group (RMG).

A twist in the story is that Bergman has hired Leslie Beck as his assistant. Beck was Kaczinski’s campaign manager for her run for the Auditor’s office. At a Board of Supervisors’ special session meeting on January 8, a resolution to hire Beck as part-time clerk in the Auditor’s office at $29 per hour was tabled after pushback from citizens that said that proper posting and hiring procedures were not followed. On LinkedIn, there is a Leslie Beck from Winterset that lists herself as ‘Homemaker, Self-Employed.’

The contract is seven pages long. It leads off with a lengthy introduction that touts RMG’s abilities. A scope of services follows that provides a high-level explanation of the four phases of the project. The object of Phase 1 is stated as ‘conduct a thorough evaluation of current workflows, team roles, and procedures to establish a foundation for targeted improvement and efficiency gains.’ The objective of Phase 2 is stated as ‘foster collaboration, align team members with shared goals, and establish a culture of accountability and excellence within the Auditor’s Office.’ The objective of Phase 3 is stated as ‘design streamlined workflows and provide targeted training to enhance operational consistency and performance, with an emphasis on cross task workflow and redundant task support.’ The objective of Phase 4 is stated as ‘ensure all systems are in place for the special election while implementing tools and processes that provide long-term operational sustainability.’

Other hiring

At the January 28 Board of Supervisors meeting, the Board considered a resolution for the creation and hiring of two part-time Auditor Second Deputy Positions and one part-time temporary assistant position. The resolution passed 2-1, with Supervisors Heather Stancil and Jessica Hobbs voting in favor and Supervisor Fitch voting against.

Is all this really necessary?

In just a month on the job, Kaczinski fired one employee, tried to hire another and failed, got approval to hire three more, and hired an expensive consultant (who then hired her campaign manager) to help her learn what anyone elected as Auditor should already know. Specific language from the contract includes ‘provide leadership coaching for the Auditor to enhance team engagement and support.’

Are there cheaper solutions available? Perhaps. State Auditor Rob Sand’s office has resources to help county auditors. Some of those resources that could be available are training, setting standards, providing resources, and sometimes direct oversight, ensuring that local government financial operations are transparent, compliant, and efficient.

What’s next?

There are many questions left unanswered, but Kaczinski is in no hurry to answer them. We sent two interview requests via email, one at 7:54 p.m. on January 29 and another at 1:24 p.m. on January 31, but she did not respond to either one.