The council's water services manager, Russell Bond, has resigned and takes up the role of infrastructure strategy manager with the Clutha District Council next month.
He is the third senior manager to leave the council over the past year.
Mr Bond said the role was "a step up'' in his career.
He has worked for the Central Otago council for six years.
Asked about the exodus, council chief executive Leanne Mash said in her experience "this degree of staff movement is not uncommon''.
"In essence no-one is irreplaceable and no-one stays ‘forever' anymore. New team members bring fresh experiences and skills to the table. These blend with existing, longer-term staff members and in many ways the organisation benefits from these changes,'' she said.
The council's infrastructure services manager, Jon Kingsford, left the role in January. Council roading manager Julie Muir has been appointed to the role for a limited term until early July, Ms Mash said.
"In part, this decision was taken to avoid recruiting over the notoriously difficult Christmas-New Year period. We will be advertising shortly for the permanent appointment.''
Susan Finlay resigned as corporate services manager a year ago and the role was then restructured into a chief financial officer job.
Bernard Murphy started in the new role in October.
Peter Morton retired from his job as the council's development engineer at the end of last year and Ms Mash said the role remained vacant.
"We will continue to outsource this work until we can appoint a suitably qualified person. We have had two preferred applicants emerge from the recruitment process. During negotiations their current employers have convinced them to stay. While disappointing, this is a factor of modern-day negotiations, as on occasion our offers generate better offers from current employers keen to keep their key people.
"The skills we seek in this role are highly desirable to a number of major employers in the Otago area and we all happen to be in the position of competing for the talent available,'' she said.
The council was also advertising for a building control officer, based at Cromwell, in response to the increased building activity in the region.
"We have chosen to offer it as based in Cromwell to particularly respond to the demand in that location.''
Ms Mash said right now the council had an overall stable employment base, particularly in third-tier management.
