City Manager Robert Belleman Receives Generally Positive Feedback in Review of First Year on the Job

A review of City Manager Robert Belleman’s first year on the job came back mostly positive, showing the city manager has won over some officials who initially opposed his hiring. Still, some officials would like to see him more present in the community. 

ELi obtained Belleman’s “Gov360” review through a Freedom of Information Act Request. The review collected feedback from city employees, commissioners and more. The review covers a broad range of responsibilities taken on by Belleman, scoring the city manager’s performance on 23 different competencies.

The review is dated Dec. 2, 2024, a little more than a year into Belleman’s tenure that started in September 2023. 

Feedback was given anonymously, but the report notes four different categories of reviewers: Self, Manager, Peers and Direct Reports. 

In a phone call, Belleman explained that the “Manager” category is made up of members of City Council, only one participated in this review. “Peers” is made up of seven board and commission chairs and Library Director Kevin King. The feedback from “Direct Reports” includes the thoughts of 10 city department heads. 

Belleman is scored on a scale of one to five on the 23 different competencies.

There aren’t any glaring holes in Belleman’s review, his self-evaluation placed him at a four or five in all competencies. Excluding Belleman’s self-evaluation, his average score among other rankers does not dip below three in any of the competencies. 

The extensive written comments contained within the report provide more insight to how Belleman’s performance is viewed by those working within city government. 

Belleman has won over some who initially opposed his hiring. 

When the East Lansing City Council narrowly voted to hire Belleman in 2023, it was controversial. 

He was recently removed from his position as Saginaw County controller and was alleged to have created a toxic workplace environment. With the loss of many important East Lansing city employees preceding Belleman’s hiring, some city figures–including council members elected just months after Belleman was hired–questioned the decision. 

The Gov360 review shows Belleman has won over some of those detractors. A comment from the City Council member who participated in the review expresses satisfaction with Belleman’s performance. 

“Because Robert came in with no experience with EL staff and a recently negative experience at his prior position, he had some hurdles that other candidates may not have had,” the comment reads. “Some skepticism regarding him was expected, including from me. However, I have found him to be a good partner in the things I would like to accomplish during my term and some community wide objectives that were necessary. After a year of trying to calm things down in the city by the Council and the City manager, adequate progress has been made and new projects and a much more well-regarded City government is in place. Robert deserves a lot of credit for that.”

Another response from a commissioner notes they opposed his hiring but now believe he is the best man for the job. 

The overall positive feedback indicates that Belleman has made more friends than enemies in his first year-plus on the job. 

Some feel Belleman needs to be more involved in the community. 

Perhaps the biggest piece of criticism in the review is that Belleman, who still lives in Saginaw, needs to be more ingrained in the East Lansing community. 

“The greatest area for improvement is that Robert does not currently live in East Lansing.” one city employee wrote. 

There were some comments in the “Peer” category signaling unfamiliarity with Belleman.

“I am the Chairperson of a Commission in the City, and he has made no contact with the Commission,” one response reads. “He has been the City Manager for 14 months. I have no information on whether he has attended meetings with any of the other Commissions.”

Belleman told ELi that attending board and commission meetings more frequently is a goal going forward.

“My goal is to have more connectivity with them and interaction,” Belleman said. “So that we can get to know each other more and they can have more of a contribution to where they see areas for growth.”

Additionally, there were some comments from staff members that said Belleman’s perspective from outside the city has been helpful–as it brings in fresh ideas. But familiarizing himself with city staff members and procedures will be key as he grows into his role as the city’s top employee. 

“Robert may want to take time in each department to know a little more about what they do and who all is in the department and in many cases, the many divisions within the department,” one staff member wrote. “Robert is approachable but sometimes will brush off a coworker’s idea or concerns or at least appear to be doing so.” 

Belleman is struggling with his workload. 

Last budget season, Belleman requested that the city hire a deputy city manager, as he indicated that he was struggling to keep up with his workload. City Council declined to include funding for the position in the budget. 

Feedback in the review indicates that the problem still exists. 

“I believe time management is my greatest opportunity for improvement because I am constantly struggling to get all my work done,” Belleman wrote as part of his self reflection in the review.

Other comments from commissioners and staff members say they are sometimes left waiting on feedback from Belleman. One staff member suggested that City Council reconsider the decision to not employ a deputy city manager.

“One of the requests that Robert made in the budget process was to hire a deputy city manager,” the comment reads. “This is an important role and one that I hope City Council will fund in the future. This would allow Robert to have some work-life balance and provide another helpful resource for his staff to get feedback when he is busy or otherwise occupied.”

When council declined to fund the position last year, members of the body were reluctant to spend more than $160,000 annually on a new high-ranking employee. Council also questioned if the new position was needed, as previous city managers worked without a deputy.