The five-year contract extension for Central Coast Council CEO David Farmer is the wrong decision, taken for the wrong reasons, using the wrong procedure (Five more years for Council CEO, CCN Issue 420).
The extension was approved by Mayoral Minute procedure.
This enables decisions to be taken without prior notice or paperwork – thereby evading public scrutiny.
Council’s own rules clearly state Mayoral Minutes can only be used for items that are “urgent” and “not complex”.
Neither criterion applies in this case.
Once again, Council senior bureaucrats act as if their own rules do not apply to themselves.
The decision itself appears designed to deny the next elected council an opportunity to appoint its own CEO.
Elected councillors may, of course, be happy with the current CEO – but in that case they would extend the contract themselves thereby strengthening an important corporate bond.
Simply imposing a CEO on them for a full term runs the risk of dysfunction at the top of the organisation.
Suppose, for example, next year’s elected leadership wants a change of direction.
Over the past four years, the Administrator and CEO have pursued a financial strategy of aggressive rate hikes.
They have increased rates revenue 30 per cent in three years and flagged two further special variation rate hikes in the next 10.
The CEO has not been a passive bureaucrat in this.
Suppose an elected leadership wants an alternative strategy based on improved management performance, productivity, efficiency, cost control, prioritisation and culture.
They would need to pursue this through the CEO appraisal process including better performance and efficiency targets.
Discussions would be needed to ensure the CEO is willing to work with them, and that they are confident in his ability to deliver taking account of track record and skill set.
In seeking to deny the elected leadership any say in the matter, the Administrator is putting the interests of the senior bureaucracy above those of the organisation as a whole – and indeed those of the community.
Email, Dec 18
Kevin Brooks, Bensville