ORGANISATIONS within Jersey’s public sector must ‘redress and reset’ how they work but any change must involve a ‘collaborative’ approach with staff, the new head of the civil service has said.
Government chief executive Suzanne Wylie took up her post earlier this week, following the departure of interim head Paul Martin.
Setting out her management style, Mrs Wylie appeared to signal a continuation of the more restrained approach to leadership that characterised Mr Martin’s tenure after Charlie Parker left the service last spring.
‘I am very collaborative in my style and I think that is the right way to get things done,’ she said.
‘That doesn’t mean to say that I don’t address difficult issues, I do and I’m a problem solver. I’ve got a track record of doing that but I’m determined to bring people with me.’
The former chief executive of Belfast City Council said that one of her first tasks would be to listen to the views of staff across the Island’s public services.
She also said that she recognised the impact of the pandemic on staff, saying it had created ‘a little tiredness in the system’, and she welcomed the appearance of a new people strategy to support staff wellbeing.
‘A lot of organisations, particularly in the public sector, need to redress and reset how we work. We need to be much more agile, we need to be much more flexible and support our staff and build their skills,’ she said.
A former director of health and environmental services in Belfast, Mrs Wylie said that her previous responsibilities had given her a particular insight into social inequality in the city, which was also relevant in Jersey.
‘I did see all of the suffering that happened across the city in terms of public health, housing standards and living conditions.
‘I think it gave me a really good grounding in experiencing all walks of life, and all the social issues and inequalities that exist in many, many places. That’s not unique to Belfast and, of course, there are inequalities here in Jersey that we are taking very seriously,’ she said.
Asked about disagreements between some previous chief executives and politicians, Mrs Wylie said that her attention was firmly on her responsibilities as chief executive.
‘I have come into the job with my eyes open and, clearly, I am conscious of what has happened in the past. I’m here to do a good job and I will focus on doing the right thing and doing a good job for the people of Jersey. That’s what I’m here to do,’ she said.
Mrs Wylie said that she particularly wanted to thank her predecessor, Paul Martin, with whom she had been working over the past few months
