The City of Clear Lake announced that it has hired Jacob Widman as Director of Finance & Administrative Services. Widman succeeds former Director Creighton Schmidt, whose tenure with the City in that capacity was slightly more than two and one-half years. Schmidt left employment with the City to resume a career with Marriott.
Widman is currently the Director of Finance and Human Resources for the City of LeMars, located in northwest Iowa. His start date with the City is set for Sept. 11, 2023. He has worked for the City of LeMars for nearly four years in that capacity and has an MBA from the University of South Dakota.
Prior to working for the City of LeMars, Widman worked for a rural electric cooperative and also has a professional background in the private sector in various accounting and finance roles.
“I am thrilled to be able to welcome someone with Mr. Widman’s professional work experience to the City. I have been a city administrator for more than 28 years and Jacob is the most ‘ready’ individual I have ever hired in that tenure,” City Administrator Scott L. Flory stated. “It is rare to be able to hire someone with the combination of relevant work experience and academics, which Jacob brings to the position.”
Flory said that Widman interviewed with multiple members of the City’s leadership team, including the Mayor and City Council members, throughout the interview and recruitment process. Widman and his wife, Amber, also visited Clear Lake on multiple occasions to ensure that this career opportunity was the “right fit” for them both, as well as the City. “I am confident that they will each excel here in north Iowa,” Flory said.
The Widmans have four children. Widman indicated that one of his motivating factors in pursuing this opportunity was that Clear Lake happened to be located an equal distance from both his and his wife’s respective families.
