At its full meeting in March, Ashfield Council appointed its first female General Manager, unanimously offering Vanessa Chan a five year contract.
“It was a very competitive field with over 50 applications for the role, but Vanessa’s qualities and experience placed her as the best candidate by far for the role,” said Mayor Ted Cassidy. “I am very proud of our strong senior team and dedicated staff here in Ashfield.
“Vanessa’s appointment can only strengthen what is already a dynamic organisation and I know she will build on the excellence she has achieved over the past four months as acting GM and the two and a half years she has been at Ashfield.
“She has captured the imagination of the Councillors and all the staff she has worked with.”
Vanessa brings some very specific strengths and experience to the role, including:
- 15 years in public policy analysis, social
planning and community development - business excellence and performance improvement expertise with particular
interest in multidisciplinary Local
Government programs - recognised expertise in strategic planning,
with a clear vision for the future of
Council - highly developed local knowledge and
relationships across Council.
“I am committed to supporting Council to achieve exceptional outcomes for our community and to turn Ashfield into a centre of best practice – one of the truly innovative and engaged Councils,” Vanessa Chan said.
This appointment is not only important for Ashfield, but also for the wider community. Vanessa will be one of few women appointed to the top Local Government job, both in New South Wales and nationally.
At the recent Australian Local Government Women’s Association (NSW) Conference, research showed that in New South Wales women make up only 16.7 per cent of Local Government Directors and just 3.2 per cent of Local Government General Managers.
The figures are not much better nationally, where women make up 20 per cent of Senior Managers and five per cent of CEOs/General Managers.
Ashfield Council has a history of supporting diversity in the workplace and is a very active partner of ‘2010 The Year of Women in Local Government’.
In June 2009, Council introduced 18 weeks paid parental leave as a standard provision for all staff. Recently, a joint staff and Councillor committee was formed and an action plan is being developed to improve upon the role of women as both elected members and in senior staff positions.
“It is important to raise awareness of the significance of women to the healthy operation of local democracy and our critical role in leading responsive, community focused public institutions,” Vanessa Chan said. “Our communities are right to demand a Local Government system that invites opinions on community issues, negotiates solutions, fosters partnerships and is deserving of public trust. Women are at the heart of shaping and delivering this contemporary model of Local Government.”
Vanessa Chan is Australian born of Chinese background.
Ashfield is a very diverse community and Council recognises the importance of promoting cultural diversity within its staff – reflecting the character of the people it serves.
