Salaries for staffers going up in the Jay Inslee years

You’ve got to spend money to save money.

That seems to be the mantra as Governor-elect Jay Inslee starts announcing his picks to help run the state’s top office.

“We have been going out to look for very specific kind of leaders to help obtain a results-driven operation for the state government,” Inslee explains.

Inslee says his focus is on finding the right people to incorporate a “lean” management style. It focuses on maintaining a high level of service using fewer resources.

These folks don’t come cheap. The Herald reports, Inslee’s first ten appointees will make between $120,000 and $166,000 per year.

While our next governor seems to prefer to focus on quality over frugality during his transition, Inslee believes it will save the state money in the long run.

“We have gone out to look for leaders who have both embraced and demonstrated an ability to use the lean management systems that I’ve been talking about now for about a year and a half,” says Inslee.

On top of filling the vacancies being left by staffers of outgoing Governor Chris Gregoire, Inslee has also created one new position. Inslee has named his former campaign manager as his “Senior Adviser.” Joby Shimomura will be earning about $140,000 a year in her new position.

According to her staff, Gregoire did not have a senior adviser in either of her two terms in office.