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Councils to benefit from funded research into gender equity
MEDIA RELEASE
Australian Centre of Excellence for Local Government
Date: 9 December 2009
Australian and New Zealand councils who participate in the 2010 LGMA Management Challenge will have access to an innovative funded research and development program into gender equity and workplace diversity, as part of a new pre-challenge initiative.
Funded by the Australian Government's Office for Women, teams participating in the challenge will be required to collect and analyse workforce data within their own councils, and identify issues, barriers and challenges to women in management positions.
Teams will also be required to interview their CEO and Mayor and develop a range of strategies to address any identified gender equity issues in line with the 2010 Year of Women in Local Government (YoWiLG) for submission to their council.
The teams with the best programs will then be invited to present their findings and strategies during a plenary session dedicated to YoWiLG at the 2010 LGMA National Congress & Business Expo in Adelaide in May.
"The LGMA Management Challenge is widely accepted as Australia's most sophisticated professional and team development program for current and emerging local government leaders," says LGMA Chief Executive, John Ravlic.
"More than any other seminar or traditional training program, the challenge provides a hands-on approach to leadership development in a real-life problem solving environment.
“By creating an opportunity for current and emerging leaders to integrate their learning experience with a real-life task, we are ensuring the program continues to be relevant to the organisation and its people.”
Mr Ravlic also said that the new pre-challenge initiative will provide councils that may not have the capacity to carry out such projects with the necessary resources.
“By incorporating the project into an already established and well regarded development program, we are providing councils with the tools required to ensure their staff continue to develop, and their business activities better reflect their community's interests."
The LGMA Management Challenge is held in most Australian and New Zealand capital cities and some regional centres each year. Teams of up to six are required to complete a range of tasks that are crafted to develop individual and team competencies in pre-determined management areas. The best performed team in each state and New Zealand go onto compete in the Australasian final in Melbourne in June.
Councils can register their teams to participate in the 2010 LGMA Management Challenge on-line at www.lgma.org.au. Councils who register by 18 December 2009 will attract an early-bird saving of over $500.00.
Ends
For more information contact Roni Beauchamp, Director - Program Development on (03) 9682 9222.
