County announces new Interim CAO

By John Watson Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Sherry Baers has been appointed by Wheatland County council to replace Brian Henderson as CAO for the interim while a full-time candidate is sought. 

Henderson will officially vacate his position with the county as of Nov. 21, at which point Baers will take over until the full-time replacement is determined. 

She has been serving as the general manager of community and development services for the county and has been on staff for over six years. Previously, she served with Rocky View County for over a decade, also in a management role. 

“I’ve been in the planning and development world for over 30 years, split between municipal government and private sector, working for municipalities in the United States as well as here in Canada,” said Baers. “(The county) was looking for an internal member to keep stability. Brian Henderson did a great job; we all reported to him, and we still do until the 21st, and he has done a lot of putting a good team together. I think it was just providing that continuity of looking from somebody internal to fill the interim position.”

She added she was adamant that council take the opportunity to look externally, as well as internally to find who they believe to be the best candidate to fill the position long term.

Regardless, for the time being, Baers explained she is excited to fill the role and continue acting in the best interest of the county.

Until Henderson’s departure, Baers and the other county general managers will be working with him to organize the transition and necessary files in order to ensure a seamless transition.

“It doesn’t feel like much of a departure from my previous role. I feel that because we were working with Brian as a team, all the GMs with council, and we all answer questions … sometimes it will fall to the transportation, agricultural GM, or the corporate services, it just depends on the topic,” said Baers. “We all have some backup to give support for procedural things. I think it’s a stepping stone from manager to general manager, and then not always do people want to move up to that CAO, so I find this is a good opportunity as the interim.”

The decision to have Baers step in for Henderson was made during the Nov. 4 county organizational meeting.