Tell us something your colleagues don’t know about you?
I’m a speed freak!
What is your top leadership tip?
Don’t underestimate the power of saying ‘thank you’.
Christina Harrhy, Chief Officer, Neighbourhood Services, Torfaen County Borough Council
Neighbourhood Services is a key department within Torfaen County Borough Council, which provides front line services including; Highways, Transportation, Property, Leisure, Waste, Recycling, Arts, Regeneration, Parks and Libraries. It employs around 1200 employees.
Christina has led the development of a new leadership programme whilst completely transforming her public service department.
Christina instigated the development of a Leadership Programme for Public Services (LiPS) within Torfaen. Influenced by her own experiences at Cardiff Business School and an internship at Harvard, she recognised that a new style of leadership was required to deliver public services across Wales in the 21st century.
LiPS was developed in partnership with University of Wales, Trinity St. David and delivered by if-development. Christina designed the programme and led the accreditation of the programme to Master’s Degree level and it has since attracted wide interest from Welsh Assembly Government Ministers.
Christina also led the development, with her team, of an innovative business plan to address the inherited budget shortfall and the challenges of future budget reductions in line with citizen demands and government policies. This change has also seen that the staff are now empowered to deliver innovative and collaborative public services focussed upon the customer.
Christina demonstrates an adaptive approach to leadership. She is always tuned to the dynamics of any situation and adjusts her leadership style to suit. She is very innovative in her approach and her tenacity to follow things through to completion, no matter how challenging, has gained her the reputation of being a high quality leader across all sectors. Her entrepreneurial approach to tackling challenges is a key and rare quality.
Through strong and progressive visionary leadership, Christina has enabled a complete transformation to take place. Neighbourhood Services now has a reputation based upon delivery, innovation and staff who are happy to be part of the exciting journey as it continues.