Finance Director's First Week Proved Eventful, To Say the Least

The first week at a new job is most often uneventful. It usually involves trying to remember many new names, navigating a new building, and unpacking a few boxes of mementos to feel settled in your new space.

For Robert "Bob" Curry, the town of Clinton's new finance director as well as the business manager for the town's Board of Education, his first week on the job included the arrival of a historic blizzard that strangled the town leaving some residents without power, town offices and schools closed, and mountain-size piles of snow in the parking lot. 

All in a day's work.

Curry came to Clinton from the city of New Britain where he served as finance director. Prior to that, he was the director of finance for the city of Meriden and earlier, worked as an accountant for the Departments of Education and Housing for the state.

He replaced Kevin Kane who resigned last November to take a similar position closer to his home.

Why the move to Clinton?

"I was looking for something local," said Curry, who told Patch he and his wife, Sue Augustin, built a house in the area. They moved in just a month ago.

Curry spotted the opening in Clinton on a website for state finance directors.

"People are nice and friendly in Clinton," he remarked.

Although the population is quite smaller from his former city to his new town, "the issues remain the same," said Curry.

Work such as post employment payments, risk management, education funding, police department pensions, union negotiations, heart and hypertension disbursements, bonding, etc. all takes place in small towns as well as large cities, said Curry.

"The issues are the same, they are just of a different volume," he said. "We must provide all these services."

One of the first tasks Curry looks forward to is installing a new accounting program, efinance plus, which he says will help modernize the town, reduce paper and result in better accounting.

He earned a BS in Accounting from Central CT State and an MBA from the University of New Haven. In addition, he's one of only a dozen CPFO's in the state - a Certified Professional Finance Officer.

In his private time, Curry enjoys cycling, skiing and traveling.  He and his wife have one son and a two-year old grandson.