Most Invercargill councillors lack confidence that the city's mayor is on top of key council issues, according to a recent survey.
Since mid-2020, a number of reviews have revealed continued concerns about a leadership void with Invercargill mayor Sir Tim Shadbolt. Photo: Supplied/LDR - ODT/Stephen Jaquiery
The council has been under scrutiny since mid-2020 when serious concerns about its ability to govern were raised and the Department of Internal Affairs got involved.
Subsequent reviews found good progress had been made but acknowledged continued concerns about a leadership void with mayor Sir Tim Shadbolt.
The Governance Review Legacy Report - which included a survey of elected members - was presented at council's Project Governance Group meeting today.
Eleven of the twelve councillors and the mayor responded to the survey with one elected member declining to respond, citing privacy concerns as the reason.
In the recent survey, 92 percent of respondents believed the mayor was not on top of key council issues.
The report said the mayor himself was most likely the neutral eight percent.
This was a drop from last year's review where 23 percent of respondents were neutral.
The survey results showed the mayor's working relationship with the deputy mayor and committee chairs had become worse over the past six months, while his working relationship with councillors remained similarly poor with no notable progress.
The working relationship between councillors remained mostly positive, with 67 percent of councillors agreeing that they had good working relationships with each other, the report said.
"Without exception, councillors view themselves as being committed to positive outcomes for Invercargill city and the community they serve, over and above any personal views they may hold," the report said.
"However, they remain more likely to view other councillors as pushing personal agendas."
Just over 40 percent of survey respondents believed there had been significant or noticeable progress towards having strong and unified governance and leadership in the past six months.
However, it was less progress than reported in a previous review when that figure was more than 50 percent.
"While a greater proportion of councillors feel they have had input into the current governance structures, there has been a significant decline in those who have confidence in the leadership of council committees and a decline in the proportion of councillors who believe the current structures are working well," the report said.
External Appointee Jeff Grant said the report showed just how much work had gone in over the past 18 months.
"The report clearly shows that progress has been made - in particular, that there is now a well developed interface between governance and management, a stronger relationship between senior managers and councillors, a recognition that a positive culture is important, as is a proactive approach to communicating with the community and media," Grant said.
"The report also acknowledges there is more work to be done in certain areas, in particular with regard to leadership within the council and developing a reputation as a high performing council.
"Mechanisms and support has been put in place to help ensure this remains a focus."
A summary of the final respondent comments found issues of absent leadership and diminishing input from the mayor were still very clear, there were themes expressed around lack of commitment to professional development and ingrained approaches or personalities. Block voting was identified as a negative by some and a factor which limited freedom to express personal views, and councillors were grateful for the work of the chief executive and council staff.
The report did note different improvements including development of a council charter, a professional development programme for elected members, an induction programme and improvements to reporting processes.
In addition, council members had been learning and applying some soft skills, which should contribute equally to performance, Grant said.
"It is imperative that these are not forgotten. They need to be kept alive, put in front of elected members, practised and applied," he said.
"It would be so easy for people and groups to revert unless this occurs. Whose job is it? Everyone's - but mayors and CEOs need to be the key champions."
Chief executive Clare Hadley said the report marked a positive milestone as the council worked to address the issues raised.
"There has been a clear, structured effort to make improvements right across the organisation and we can be pleased with the progress we've made," Hadley said.
"We now have robust processes in place to support our councillors and to manage and guide our staff.
"We know that there is always more that can be done, however, and our focus now will remain on keeping up the efforts of the past 18 months."
Last year's survey included responses from external appointees and eleven council staff members.
The Governance Review Legacy Report would be formally considered by the council at its meeting next week.