At the 2007 Local Government Managers Australia National Congress in Hobart, Local Government FOCUS invited delegates to nominate individuals or teams from their Council who are improving Council’s operations or enhancing service delivery within their community.
In this edition, we showcase two more of our high achievers for 2007.
Fionn Muster, Media and Communication Officer, Alice Springs Town Council, NT
Located approximately 200 kilometres south of the absolute centre of the continent, Alice Springs is Australia’s most inland town.
Covering 320 square kilometres, Alice Springs Town Council has a population of around 28,000 people and is a communications and commerce hub.
Alice Springs Town Council CEO, Rex Mooney, nominated Media and Communication Officer, Fionn Muster, to appear in FOCUS. He said she is a great asset to the organisation.
“Fionn is efficient, friendly and professional,” Rex Mooney said. “She has the ability to look at the wider picture, is extremely consultative with staff right across the organisation, and has a knack of being proactive with issues rather than reactive.”
Fionn has been with Council for just over a year. She said she enjoys the variety the position offers, as well as the close working relationships she has developed with various individuals and organisations, including Council staff, community organisations and State and Federal Government departments.
“It is also very rewarding when positive news stories are taken up by media outlets as a result of active promotion,” she said. “It is a significant achievement to build and maintain strong relationships with local media.”
Fionn’s role involves many elements, including media liaison, public relations, overseeing internal and external communications, development and design of Council’s printed materials and advertising management. She said time management can be a major challenge.
“Meeting daily and weekly deadlines, in addition to managing larger scale communications projects requires great organisational skills,” Fionn Muster said. “In terms of media, it is important to deal with big issues in a timely manner. I am constantly looking to identify areas that need promotion or development, and implement strategies to communicate these areas to the wider community.”
A recent personal achievement for Fionn was playing the lead role in the development and implementation of a community awareness campaign – ‘An invitation for change’. The campaign invited the entire Alice Springs community to play a part in creating positive changes for the area. It was released in conjunction with the Northern Territory Government’s rollout of the Dry Town Legislation,
which declared all public areas in Alice Springs dry zones.
Fionn Muster said Council’s campaign focused more on the need for everyone to respect the town and take responsibility for community safety.
“The campaign includes a series of three 30 second commercials, aimed at engaging a large cross section of the Alice Springs community and visitors to our town,” she said. “We also developed a radio campaign to reach remote communities and further communicate the key messages from the television campaign.”
Fionn Muster said excellent communication skills and a positive attitude are key elements of her position.
“Not only do Media and Communication Officers need to understand the role the media plays in the community, but we need to respect that role,” she said. “We also need to have a concise understanding of the role of Local Government in relation to both communities and other spheres of government. This is something that we need to be able to simply convey to media representatives and residents that may not be fully aware of Council functions.
“Being able to speak in clear, simple language also allows us to create a transparent Council. However, it is also important to address the tough questions, and answer them in a timely and cohesive manner.”
Fionn said this is where being proactive rather than reactive is important. She said it is important to anticipate and understand what the wider community will need to know, and the kinds of questions people will want to have answered.
“It helps to take pressure off Council when you can communicate messages before the questions are asked,” Fionn Muster said. “This is particularly relevant in times of emergency, when the media and community look to us for answers.”
Community Services Team, Cook Shire Council, Queensland
Located in far north Queensland, Cook Shire is the heart of Cape York Peninsula. Covering approximately 116,000 square kilometres, the Shire is home to just over 9,000 people.
Its main township of Cooktown is the gateway to Cape York and the very tip of Australia. Exotic animals and plants that can be found nowhere else abound and unique natural wonders, such as waterfalls, coral reefs and lagoons, can often be found with a short trip.
Cook Shire CEO, Mark Pitt, said Council’s Community Services Team is doing an excellent job in promoting interaction between Council and the community. He said they have developed desperately needed services and promoted opportunities for healthy living that complement the Cook Shire environment.
“Developed late in 2005, the division has developed structure and goals from scratch,” he said. “Their proactive and enthusiastic approach in this remote area has really improved Council social functions and made a difference in the community.”
Prior to the development of the Community Services Team, social functions and community services were tied in with Council’s Planning and Environment Department. While Council has always seen community services as important, with no real coordination of the area, these functions often became an afterthought rather than a priority.
Manager Community Services, Sian Nivison, said the standalone team now looks after social planning, arts and cultural events, community and economic development, libraries and sport and recreation.
“It is fantastic that Council has recognised the need for and invested its time, money and effort into these areas,” she said. “It is most rewarding to see our achievements come to life and to know that the work we are doing is making an impact.”
Sian Nivison believes the team works well together as it was built up by its members from the start.
“Staff are also more committed knowing that they are a part of the team, rather than an individual team member,” she said.
As a disparate Shire, Sian Nivison said a major challenge has been communication.
“We have one library that is located a five hour drive away and is only accessible by road in the dry season,” she said. “Obviously, this staff member is unable to attend regular meetings and briefings, so we have had to find ways to make them still feel a part of the team. We are maintaining regular contact by sending meeting minutes, making regular phone calls and email conversations.
“As a new unit, another challenge has been communicating to the community what we do. We have had to convey exactly what our function is and demonstrate that we are not just here to do things for them, but with them.”
As a result of the formation of this team, Council was nominated in the Queensland Kellogg’s Awards for Excellence for its kindy gym ‘Come and Try Days’. Sian Nivison said with a recent baby boom in the population, the days have proven very successful, with around 40 to 50 participants each time. The days involve parents and children aged one to six attending a ‘kindy gym’. The gym teaches children and parents gym activities, rolling and tumbling, jumping and bouncing.
Local parents are now undertaking training so they can take over the running of the program.
The team is now working towards approval for a multi purpose centre for Cooktown as the town currently has no indoor facility for sports or arts. If successful, the new centre will also incorporate a training and convention centre and will become a community and economic development icon for the Shire.
