The Deschutes County 911 executive board on Tuesday discussed the need for stronger leadership and less micromanagement in its first meeting since former Director Rob Poirier’s recent resignation.

Poirier, who served as director from October 2010 until this month, was the 17th director of the 911 district in 20 years, according to executive board chairman and Bend Police Chief Jeff Sale.

“Something appears to be not really working all that well,” Sale said. “What do we do about leadership at 911?”

The meeting was called to discuss possibly restructuring the district to improve services, increase employee retention and bolster staff morale.

The executive board — made up of six fire and police chiefs from several local agencies and Deschutes County Sheriff Larry Blanton — met with several 911 employees, union negotiators, the county commissioners and county administrative staff to discuss possible solutions to several problems, including possible heavy-handedness by the board.

“The executive board is way too strong,” Redmond Fire Chief Tim Moor said. “If I was the 911 director, I wouldn’t want to report to seven egos. That, in my opinion, is why we failed at 911.”

Moor and Blanton both spoke about the daunting task any 911 director faces reporting to the heads of the agencies — fire departments and law enforcement — the district serves.

“911 is too valuable for every one of us in this room to continue to have this discussion year after year,” Moor said. “It’s the wrong thing to do for each and every one of us, and it’s the wrong thing to do to the director.”

Moor suggested the executive board take its issues and grievances to County Administrator Tom Anderson, as the 911 District is a county department and therefore is under the direction of the commissioners and the administration.

“The executive board has a place to talk about the big-picture strategic plan,” Blanton said. “We can’t deal with the small points. We’ve got to give the director the tools to make the important decisions.”

Sale and Deputy County Administrator Erik Kropp interviewed several 911 employees to find out where they thought improvements could be made.

“We found a few recurring themes,” Sale said. “Employees said there aren’t adequate staffing levels, they don’t feel they have good supervision, they don’t feel like a part of the group of greater public service providers and feel left out.”

The board discussed several restructuring options, including leaving the commission at the helm; dissolving the agreement with the county and placing the district under the command of the executive board; or starting a new operational agreement under the Sheriff’s Office, an appointed citizen board or a board composed of a separate agency.

Though no decisions were made, several in attendance said they believed that with proper leadership the district didn’t need restructuring, nor did it need to be transferred to another agency’s control.

“I like the setup the way it is,” Commissioner Alan Unger said. “It’s cleaner, and we can provide a more neutral position. It’s our job. We own 911 whether we want to or not. It’s Deschutes County 911, and I think the public sees it that way.”

Anderson will now create a synopsis of options offered at Tuesday’s meeting to narrow down the possibilities. The board agreed to meet monthly while decisions are made regarding future leadership and internal changes to the department.