Fargo City Commission to appoint new Finance Director

(FARGO) — The Fargo City Commission is set to appoint its next Finance Director at its regular meeting tonight.

Susan Thompson has been serving as the Interim Finance Director since June, having been appointed the position following the firing of Terri Gayhart, who was terminated in May after an investigation showed Gayhart “had lacked professionalism, communication and leadership skills, and was a poor resource for the Finance Department.” Other claims made during investigation interviews say Gayhart alienated team members she felt threatened by, banged her fists against tables, called city employees "dumb, cruddy, or worthless," and generally had very little communication with the team. In addition, the report found that Gayhart only had conflicts with female members of the team, and that "She treats the male members of the team better than the female members." The report says Gayhart violated ethics and conduct policy by failing to treat finance team members equally.

Thompson had previously served as the Director of Finance and Administration for the FARGODOME since 1998.