Narromine’s own Jane Redden has been appointed general manager of the Shire at an extraordinary meeting of council on Tuesday, January 24.
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The council announced the appointment on last Tuesday evening.
Mrs Redden said she is very happy and a little bit nervous about her appoint, brings with her local government experience.
“It’s a big job and the expectations of the community are justifiably high. Being a local gives another layer of responsibility, I’m not going anywhere, so I really have to deliver,” she said.
“I was the manager of Finance and IT at [the] council for many years and in 2007 I left to take up the role of [Chief Financial Officer] at State Water Corporation. I returned to the council in January 2015 in the role of CFO, for the past three months I’ve acted as general manager at council.”
Mayor of Narromine Shire Craig Davies was delighted to make the announcement last week.
“After a very comprehensive recruitment process, Jane has shown herself to be the most qualified candidate for the position and was selected unanimously by the recruitment panel. The council was fortunate enough to have 15 applications for the position,” he said.
“I am confident Jane has all the attributes required in a general manager and look forward to working closely with her over the next five years to deliver council and the community’s expectations.”
Mrs Redden is “born and bred” in Narromine.
“I’m a 48 year old married mother of four kids. I live on a farm outside Narromine where I’m involved in a family farming partnership,” she said.
“I’m a born and bred Narromine girl. I was educated at Narromine Public and High Schools, went away to university for three years and returned to the local area.”
Mrs Redden brings a degree in business and post graduate qualifications in management, real estate, company directorship and project management to her role in general manager.
The general manager said she’s looking forward to working with the community, the council and the council staff to deliver efficient outcomes for ratepayers.
“The council is a business and needs to be run like one,” she said.
The Narromine 2027 Strategic Plan, is a priority for Mrs Redden, the plan started developing in close community consultation late last year.
"I want to deliver the targets set in the plan in partnership with the community and other stakeholders,” she said.
She also has a list of other achievements she’d like to see at the council.
“I’d love to be bale to strengthen our relationships with other levels of government,” she said.
“We have a great Shire, we need to capitalise on our strengths but we can’t forget the basics; maintain our roads network, attract and retain business in the shire, provide a safe and secure place for residents to live and of course run council prudently so we can assure our financial sustainability.”