Kotek's clumsy clean-up

What a weird little employment agreement says about the elevation of Kotek's wife and the departure of her chief of staff

Oregon Governor Tina Kotek and wife Aimee Kotek Wilson (right) during Kotek’s January 2023 swearing-in (Photo by Dave Killen/The Oregonian)

Oregon Governor Tina Kotek’s administration took extraordinary measures to try to quell a staff mutiny over her wife, Aimee Kotek Wilson’s, increasingly potent policy position last month. As first reported by Willamette Week, Kotek’s former chief of staff Andrea Cooper, who reportedly was unable or unwilling to continue working in the Governor’s office with Kotek Wilson, started a new job at the state’s Department of Administrative Services April 1.

The fact of Cooper’s move to DAS, keeping her $303,000 salary plus benefits, has been widely reported. Deserving of more scrutiny, though, is a peculiar little document, titled a “Transition Agreement,” that accompanied Cooper’s job change.

The Transition Agreement, which I first learned about thanks to the reporting of Willamette Week’s Nigel Jaquiss, tells us much about the circumstances of Cooper’s apparently sudden departure, her and the state’s belief that Kotek and the state may bear legal liability for it, and how Kotek’s self-induced nepotism scandal may play out from here.

Every legal document tells a story about the people who drafted it, the people who agreed to it, and the circumstances in which it was conjured into existence. Let’s squeeze the Transition Agreement ‘til its secrets spill. You can see it in all its glorious two pages here, or just read on as we dig in.

The Transition Agreement is marked “Confidential,” right at the top. One or more of the parties wanted to keep the agreement secret, and all parties agreed to designate it as such. Why? Well, when the agreement was drafted (Cooper was the first to sign, on March 20), nothing about Kotek Wilson’s role in the office, or Cooper’s reportedly related departure, was publicly known. Willamette Week’s first story came out early afternoon on Friday, March 22, the same date Kotek signed it. The Transition Agreement itself was not made public until April 5, presumably because the state’s public records laws prevail over the word “Confidential.”

The three parties to the Transition Agreement are (1) the Office of Governor Tina Kotek, (2) the Department of Administrative Services, which is the administrative and employment nerve center for state government, and (3) Andrea Cooper. At the bottom of the agreement, Kotek signs as “Appointing Authority” for her office; Berri Leslie does the same for DAS, the agency she heads; and, Cooper signs on her own behalf. Oregon law defines “appointing authority” as a person authorized to make appointments to positions in state employment.

I mentioned earlier that Cooper’s employment with DAS is temporary. The term of the Transition Agreement is April 1, 2024 to November 29, 2024, the day after Thanksgiving. Cooper is to be employed by DAS for eight months in her new role, if she wants.

Why eight months? If Cooper wants to sue the state for employment discrimination, she must give notice to the state within 180 days (six months) of suffering the discrimination. But nothing in the Transition Agreement precludes Cooper from suing the state before, during or after her DAS employment term. Maybe Cooper simply wanted an eight-month cushion before having to find another job.

Cooper’s job title is “Senior Advisor to the DAS Director and Chief Operating Officer.” That’s Leslie’s full title. So, Cooper’s job is to advise Leslie.

The description of Cooper’s job duties is where things get really weird with the Transition Agreement, if one believes it is intended to be a legal document. Feel free to skim the following, which I find almost impossible to read, or at least to understand, on account of the ubiquitous HR jargon:

Roles and Responsibilities:

1.     Conduct comprehensive organizational assessments to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, utilizing a variety of data collection methods such as surveys, interviews, focus groups, and data analysis.

2.     Develop and implement tailored organizational development strategies, programs, and initiatives aligned with the department's strategic objectives and priorities.

3.     Provide expert guidance and support to departmental leadership and managers on change management, organizational design, team effectiveness, and leadership development.

4.     Collaborate with HR professionals to design and deliver training programs, workshops, and coaching sessions to enhance employee skills, competencies, and performance.

5.     Facilitate strategic planning processes, including goal setting, action planning, and performance measurement, to ensure alignment with organizational objectives and promote accountability.

6.     Lead culture transformation efforts by fostering a positive work environment, promoting diversity and inclusion, and reinforcing organizational values.

7.     Utilize data-driven approaches to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of organizational development initiatives, making recommendations for adjustments and improvements as necessary.

8.     Stay current with best practices, trends, and innovations in organizational development and change management, incorporating relevant insights into departmental strategies and practices.

9.     Serve as a trusted advisor and thought leader on organizational development matters, effectively communicating with stakeholders at all levels to build consensus and drive change.

10.  Collaborate with cross-functional teams and external partners to leverage resources, share knowledge, and enhance organizational capabilities.

Those job responsibilities are so boilerplate and broad that I decided to check ChatGPT, an AI program that writes things you tell it to write. Because a Google search had turned up similar descriptions for organizational development consultants, I asked ChatGPT to “write job responsibilities for an organizational development consultant.” Here’s what the computer came back with on the second try (the first try was interrupted by a “network error”):

Job responsibilities for an organizational development consultant typically include:

Assessment and Analysis: Conducting thorough assessments of organizational structures, processes, and culture to identify areas for improvement and development.

Strategic Planning: Collaborating with senior leadership to develop and implement strategic plans aligned with the organization's goals and objectives.

Change Management: Designing and facilitating change management initiatives to support organizational transitions, mergers, or restructuring efforts.

Training and Development: Creating and delivering training programs for employees and managers to enhance skills, promote leadership development, and foster a culture of continuous learning.

Employee Engagement: Developing strategies to improve employee engagement, satisfaction, and retention through effective communication, recognition programs, and organizational initiatives.

Performance Management: Designing and implementing performance management systems to align individual and team goals with organizational objectives, and providing guidance on performance evaluation processes.

Conflict Resolution: Mediating conflicts and facilitating constructive dialogue to resolve interpersonal or organizational issues and promote a positive work environment.

Organizational Design: Providing expertise in organizational design and structure to optimize efficiency, collaboration, and effectiveness.

Culture Development: Working to shape and reinforce organizational culture by promoting values, behaviors, and norms that support the organization's mission and objectives.

Data Analysis and Reporting: Utilizing data analytics to assess organizational effectiveness and track progress towards goals, and preparing reports and presentations to communicate findings to stakeholders.

Consultation and Coaching: Providing consultation and coaching to leaders, managers, and teams to enhance their effectiveness, communication skills, and ability to lead change.

Stakeholder Engagement: Building and maintaining relationships with key stakeholders across the organization to understand their needs, gain buy-in for initiatives, and ensure alignment with strategic objectives.

Research and Best Practices: Staying current on industry trends, best practices, and emerging technologies in organizational development and HR management, and applying relevant knowledge to enhance organizational effectiveness.

Project Management: Managing multiple projects simultaneously, including planning, budgeting, resource allocation, and coordination of cross-functional teams to ensure successful implementation of organizational development initiatives.

(Here are screenshots of the ChatGPT exchange. If there’s a way to link to my query and ChatGPT’s response, I don’t know how to do it.)

I don’t know if the drafter used AI to write the roles and responsibilities section. That’s not really my point. Rather, my point is that the parties appear not to have cared much what into that section. They did not bother to particularize what Cooper is expected to do to her and DAS. The entries are so nebulous the state would have a hard time enforcing the Transition Agreement unless Cooper were doing actually nothing.

But then, as is becoming obvious, the purpose of the Transition Agreement is not to define the relationship between employer and employee. It is something else entirely.

Which brings us, at last, to the “termination” section of the agreement. It’s short, so I’ll reproduce it here:

Termination:

This Agreement may be terminated earlier by mutual agreement of the Parties or by Cooper upon finding alternative employment. Cooper's employment with the Governor's Office will end no later than November 29, 2024.

Cooper can leave her DAS position at any time, unilaterally, upon finding a new job. DAS is afforded no such option in the event Cooper does not perform. In fact, if DAS were to terminate her for any reason, including for somehow failing to perform the meaningless blob of her supposed responsibilities, it would be in breach of the agreement. The Transition Agreement is a guaranteed job, or more precisely a guaranteed $303,000-per-year compensation package, for so long as Cooper wants it, up to eight months.

Taken as a whole, the Transition Agreement reads like a golden parachute or a gift of sorts to Cooper. She gives up nothing in return. The agreement does not include a release, in which Cooper promises not to sue the state in return for the compensation. She remains free to sue the state for the circumstances that led to her departure from the Governor’s office.

The state’s risk of a lawsuit is considerable. As Oregon Roundup has, I think, exclusively reported during the Kotek Wilson blow up, Cooper is black. Kotek bragged about hiring the first black, female chief of staff in Oregon’s history. Cooper’s race is relevant, here, because it means she is in a class of employee protected by Oregon and federal law from employment discrimination. Aimee Kotek Wilson is white. It would not be at all surprising if Cooper were to sue, putting Kotek in a bind from which she would seek to extricate herself by paying Cooper a considerable settlement.

Nothing about the Transition Agreement precludes Cooper from collecting her salary in the made-up job at DAS while serving the State of Oregon with a tort claims notice of her intent to sue.

In this context, the Transition Agreement appears a desperate gift from Kotek to Cooper, one the Governor hopes will keep Cooper happy enough to stay quiet and not sue. The brief, hastily drafted agreement was intended to allow Kotek to pretend Cooper was simply transferred to another department. It was part of an extremely ham-handed effort to paper over the backlash against Kotek elevating her wife over the wishes of Cooper and other top-ranking staff. But it leaves Oregon taxpayers exposed not only to Cooper’s compensation while at DAS, but a possible lawsuit, too.

Kotek quite clearly messed up by secretly ramping up the influence of her wife. Everything that’s happened since has been to try to justify or obscure that decision.

The Transition Agreement was to be a part of Kotek’s subterfuge, but its obfuscatory purpose is easily revealed if one, you know, reads it.