New Zealand’s City of Manukau was the winner of the Australasian final of the 2002 LGMA Management Challenge.South Australia’s City of Playford and Marrickville Council in New South Wales were placed second and third respectively.
The other 2002 finalists were Shire of Manjimup (WA); Maroochy Shire Council (Qld); Darwin City Council (NT); Burnie City Council (Tas); and Greater Dandenong City Council (Vic). In this the ninth year of the Challenge, a record 110 teams entered, involving some 650 Local Government staff.
The Challenge final is a substantial step up in level of difficulty and complexity from the Regional Challenge rounds that were held across Australia and New Zealand in March.
This year’s Challenge tested participants’ negotiation skills, analytical and interpretive skills and communication.
“The key to the Challenge in more recent years has been the linkage of tasks back to the real workplace of the teams,” said Challenge Facilitator, Mark McKenzie-McHarg from Mach II Consulting. “We think this makes it a more ‘real-life’ experience for the teams and provides Councils with better value for the money they invest. In the past, it was nearly all simulation based scenarios and tasks that the teams are given. Now, we are linking it back to the workplace more.”
The Challenge is a unique management development program conducted annually in Australia and New Zealand. This year it was sponsored by AXS-One Systems. It provides an opportunity for Council staff to learn about themselves, acquire and practise management skills and experience team challenges/dynamics in a pressure situation.
It is structured so that Council teams become the management team of a Council for a day. In advance of the day, they have to prepare themselves as a team and get their team processes, communication and values in place. On the day, they have to perform a series of different intertwined tasks, respond to various simulated ‘real life’ situations, many with limited prior notice.
After the Challenge, all teams are debriefed and given feedback on their performance.
