Central Coast Council’s new Culture Development Plan

Central Coast Council is committed to building and sustaining an effective workplace culture and at the recent December Council Meeting, adopted a new Culture Development Plan (CDP) focused on improving the Council’s performance. 

Recognising the strategic importance of a healthy organisation, Council made it the first of five pillars in its recently adopted Term Plan – Our Place, Our Future. 

“To achieve our goals for the community, we need a well-led organisation that is capable, flexible, and responsive. I have full confidence in our new General Manager, Barry Omundson, who has been charged with achieving just that.”  Said Mayor Cheryl Fuller

The new General Manager, Barry Omundson, joined the council in July 2023 and has a strong background in Change Management. He believes that culture defines an organisation’s overall success and performance. 

Council has taken an evidence-based approach to proving this theory using The Barrett Model – the breakthrough work of Richard Barrett that is also inspired by Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.  

“My focus is on our people. Things get done through people, and I want to ensure our councillors and staff can be the best they can at work, at home and in our community.”  Said General Manager, Barry Omundson.

The evidence-based model used by the GM measures the organisation’s entropy, meaning “wasted effort”. It was found that the Council’s entropy score was high, highlighting the need for a change in approach to ensure staff can be effective in their efforts.

The Culture Development Plan provides a roadmap of what the Council will do to intrinsically engage its people and includes specific strategies to improve the workplace, including leadership development and embedding new values developed within the workforce.

Council is committed to improving its workplace culture and effectiveness for the benefit of the community. “I look forward to building and maintaining an effective workplace culture; together we can achieve organisational success and better serve our community.” said General Manager Barry Omundson.

To view the full Culture Development Plan, click below.