MIDDLEBORO — Middleboro select board members heard directly from all four Town Manager candidates Tuesday during one-hour interviews with each contender. 

Those vying for the position are: Gregory Enos, Avon Town Administrator; Keith Hickey, Kingston Town Manager; Michael McGovern, Shirley Town Administrator; and James McGrail, Marion Town Administrator.

Each of the four candidates was asked the same questions from select board members Brian Giovanoni, Mark Germain, Neal Rosenthal and Nathan Demers. Arthur Battistini was not present.

On the question of management style, Enos said he tries “not to overmanage’’ but instead tries to make sure people “have the resources they need to succeed. 

Conflict can happen, he said, when “people aren’t listening, they’re talking over each other. You have to be adaptable, you have to be open-minded, open-hearted and listen.’’

A town manager should “make sure people know you’re available.’’ He said he tries “not to be quick to say no’’ and not to “pigeonhole people.’’

He said his varied experiences will help with the job. “I’ve worked in small towns, cities, medium-sized towns,’’ he said. “I’ve been able to build a wide range of abilities and skills.’’

Hickey opened his interview by addressing a question he said many might ask: Why is he seeking to leave Kingston after less than two years on the job?

He said enjoys his time there but faces “challenges,’’ not from the staff or town but from “the form of government’’ in the town. “The town administrator doesn’t have the authority to make changes,’’ he said, saying that role was played instead by “two or three committees.’’

The “amount of civility’’ in Middleboro impressed him, he said. The “respect you show each other, the respect you show the public that comes in to speak with you and the respect’’ the public shows the board was striking, he said, because it is “something you don’t see in enough communities.’’

He said he would prefer to remain in the background.“I'd rather have the Board of Selectmen out there, that’s not the Town Manager’s role. I would prefer that the board do the political stuff and I’ll do the operational stuff.’’

McGovern described the role of town manager as “part manager, part mentor, part therapist sometimes. You have to be more understanding in this day and age.’’

He prided himself on his honesty, he said. “I will never lie to you, I will never embarrass you,’’ he said. “But we’re going to have an honest discussion.’’

He said that “the way we’ve always done it’’ can work if the approach is successful. “But you may have some suggestions to tweak it’’ by offering “a fresh pair of eyes.’’

To be a successful manager in a crisis, he said, “people need to believe that they can look at you and you can get them out of that.’’ 

McGrail said he creates “teams’’ among the staff he has managed through his various jobs. “I’ve created a family everywhere I’ve gone,’’ he said.

He noted that in watching previous Middleboro select board meetings that there have been “fireworks’’ at times between members. But, he said, “you guys always seem to come together and work through it’’ and are able to move past disagreements on one issue to tackle the next. 

He said he would spend his first six months on the job “building relationships,’’ including with the town staff, and would make an effort to spend time with employees working at the town hall annex. 

“We develop a bond,’’ he said. “You trust me and I trust you.’’ The current Town Manager, Robert Nunes, is retiring as of October. The board is then scheduled to meet Tuesday, Oct. 11 to make a final decision. 

That is scheduled as of now to be the only item on the agenda.

Enos has served as Avon’s Town Administrator since 2018. He previously worked as human resources director for Ashland from 2016 to 2018 and as Assistant Town Administrator in Whitman from 2012 to 2016.

Hickey has been Kingston’s Town Manager since 2021. His prior experience includes serving as Town Manager in Winchendon from 2015 to 2021 and as Salem, N.H. Town Manager from 2011 to 2015. 

McGovern has served as Shirley’s Town Administrator since 2018. He previously served as the assistant city manager for Lowell from 2014 to 2018 and coordinator of school information and director of the school foundation at Greater Lowell Technical High School from 2003 to 2014. 

McGrail has been Marion’s Town Administrator since 2019. Before that, he was the director of facilities for Sandwich schools from 2018 to 2019 and the executive director of South Shore Country Club in Hingham from 2010 to 2018.