A Flathead County Commissioner’s salary for 2021 was $79,406.
Pam Holmquist is running for a third term. Her management style dates back to when managers were authoritarians who intimidated and hired subservient employees who were afraid to lead. Flathead County is short on leaders; the county does not need more managers.
Wait! Management/leadership … I thought they were the same. Management is control. Only three things can be controlled: quality, time, and money. You can control quality, time, and money. Whichever of these takes precedence the other two will suffer. So where are people in this equation? People come under leadership.
In World War II Dwight Eisenhower was the allied supreme commander of all the European forces. When he trained his generals, he would take a chain and stack it onto a table and ask, “If I push that chain which way will it go?” The correct answer is you really don’t know. Eisenhower then said, “if I take a hold of one end of the chain and pulled the chain, which way will it go?” The answer is: it will follow you. And there is the essence of leadership!
Pam Holmquist’s management style of Flathead County has led to an increased number of lawsuits regarding Planning and Zoning, i.e., Friends of Lake Five lawsuit. Her management style is driven by her ego. She doesn’t care if she makes a poor decision because if the county is sued, she just hands the problem over to an organization called Montana Association of Counties. This is not leadership. Leadership is a gift. You either have it or you don’t. Leadership is culture building without ego. Pam Holmquist doesn’t have leadership skills. Direct your vote toward replacing her with a leader.
Lee Pinski
Kalispell