The importance of considerate leadership: community sector roundtable

Last Thursday on 20 June 2024, we held our 16th Community Sector Roundtable with key consumer and community representatives coming together to participate in an online forum.

We were fortunate to have Rodney Carter, the CEO of DJAARA and Damian Wells, Managing Director at Coliban Water, share their learnings in considerate leadership and the role this plays in appropriately acknowledging and helping to come to terms with history.

The below is a summary and not a verbatim transcript.

Notes from the Chairperson

I would like to start today’s roundtable by acknowledging the Traditional Owners of all the lands we’re meeting on today – for me, that is the land of the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nations.

I also acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the various lands, and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples participating today, in particular extending a welcome Rodney Carter who is the CEO of DJAARA and joining our roundtable for the first time.

I would also like to pay my respects to Elders past and present and acknowledge the connection that Indigenous Australians hold to Country.

In these forums we have often talked about the commission’s Getting to Fair strategy which is our clear and public commitment to incorporate and consider the voice and experiences of consumers in our work.

To track the strategy's implementation, the commission identified action items which would enable us to embed this commitment across our work program. Many of these actions related to leveraging our regulatory role, where possible, to break down barriers to accessing essential services for consumers experiencing vulnerability.

In the strategy we also outlined a commitment to explore and adopt culturally appropriate ways for First Nations communities to directly guide and influence our work. What has been echoed in the roundtable by Aunty Esme Bamblett is that we must listen to the voices of First People when making decisions that will impact them.

Esme was also a formidable force on the stage at the commission’s 30-year anniversary conference in April, and reminded a room full of regulators that it’s not enough to think in terms of systems but the people and the communities that are interacting with them, and the need to have real faces and relationships at the forefront of this work.

When Rodney Carter spoke to the commission last year, he called out Coliban Water as demonstrating best practice in terms of how a business can engage with Traditional Owner Corporations in a proactive and meaningful way.

So, in this roundtable we stand back and take ourselves out of the conversation to hear from Rodney and Damian about how they work together because we believe there are lessons for all of us to hear.

In conversation:

Rodney Carter, DJAARA and Damian Wells, Coliban Water

Rodney Carter is a descendant of Dja Dja Wurrung and Yorta Yorta People who resides on Dja Dja Wurrung Country in Bendigo, Central Victoria. Rodney currently works for his people, the Dja Dja Wurrung as the Group Chief Executive Officer of DJAARA and the Dja Dja Wurrung Enterprises Pty Ltd.

A defining moment in Rodney’s career has been negotiating the Dja Dja Wurrung People’s Native Title settlement under the Traditional Owner Settlement Act 2010.

Rodney strongly believes that Dja Dja Wurrung people are best placed to manage history, places, and materials for the benefit of all Victorians.

“We can collectively contribute to setting something right.” 

- Rodney Carter, CEO of DJAARA

Damian Wells has worked across the water sector, starting in technical roles in catchment management and water which led to an operational leadership role at Goulburn-Murry Water before being appointed CEO of the North Central Catchment Management Authority in 2008.

He also led statewide regulatory operations for the Environment Protection Authority Victoria where he was appointed as an Executive Director in 2015. Damian also has over 10 years’ experience as a Non-Executive Director, having previously served on the Board of Anglicare Victoria and its predecessor organisations.

Damian is Chair of Zero Emissions Water (ZEW) and the Bendigo Advisory Board for La Trobe University.

In their conversation Rodney and Damian reminded us of:

• the importance of considerate leadership in acknowledging the truth of our history. Rodney imparted that this can be done one step at a time, subtly, to set history straight.
• the fact that progress means that there is a shifting of power and institutional discomfort is a necessary part of that.
• the importance for leaders to build capability around them through leadership so that they can bring others on the journey and share the work; and that
• we all need to look beyond our core business, holistically, to touchpoints across our lives to heal.

The pair also spoke to key strategies that guide their work and you can access these here:

• Djaara Gatjin Strategy
• Coliban Water Strategy

Representatives from across the community sector thanked Rodney and Damian for their time and made comments talking to the importance of all utility companies building cultural capability and more broadly, the value of building stronger relationships between the private and community sector.

Closing remarks from the Chairperson

Some of you may know that this is my last roundtable as Chairperson and when I reflect on my tenure at the commission, I know some of the work that I am most proud of, has been informed by many of you at these roundtables and your representative efforts on behalf of Victorian consumers.

Putting consumers at the heart of everything we do at the commission has been a personal key focus. I am confident that this focus is now so embedded in what we do at the commission that it will continue past my departure.

The implementation of nation-leading consumer protections, including comprehensive assistance for energy consumers in payment difficulty and bespoke protections for Victorian energy and water consumers experiencing family violence are milestones that I am proud to have contributed to during my time at the commission.

The commission’s Safety by Design partnership will build capability for change and reduce risks for consumers experiencing family violence. This is enduring work that I am confident will make a positive difference in the community and I am grateful to have been involved in the project in its formative stages.

I have said many times in this forum that meeting, and engaging with stakeholders is one of the favourite parts of my job and reflecting on these roundtables and our other interactions over the years, I stand by that.

So, thank you for your time not just today but throughout my years as Chairperson at the commission. I am sure we will continue to cross paths and until we do, please continue your important work and take care.