Summers-McGee had worked for the city for one year before taking over for the top HR spot when her predecessor, Anna Kanwit, unexpectedly announced she would resign late last year. Summers-McGee now oversees HR duties for 8,000 employees.
Summers-McGee worked as HR director for the Oregon Department of Education for three years. Then she became head of HR and workforce development for the economic development agency in October 2016 before becoming Kanwit’s assistant director in July last year.
Tom Rinehart, the city’s chief administrative officer, told The Oregonian/OregonLive that Summers-McGee is seen as the prime choice to recruit and train “the next generation of city employees.”
“We intentionally recruited Serilda Summers-McGee to become the next director of human resources; this was part of our succession planning,” Rinehart said. “She has a successful record building diverse and inclusive organizations and is also a leader in workplace excellence.”