David Donaldson

There was no rulebook for responding to covid, so organisations have had to adjust as they go along. A group of female leaders reflect on the past year.

Working out which powers can be relinquished is the first step agencies can make towards Aboriginal self-determination, says Rueben Berg.

Even the flexible work advocates at VEOHRC worried about providing frontline services remotely during lockdown — and were surprised at how well it worked.

Restrictive planning rules add hundreds of thousands of dollars to the average price of a property. This is driving high prices, long commutes and poverty.

People who can behave in an emotionally intelligent way form strong workplace relationships and are better at influencing their colleagues. People who can’t show emotional maturity are the ones who are damaging to workplace morale.

New research shows fewer staff are experiencing sexism while working remotely, as well as the most effective ways to win over fence-sitters on gender equality.

With a strong dose of individualism and a distaste for teamwork, mavericks can make inspiring leaders or dysfunctional narcissists. Self-reflection and a flexible manager can help them survive in a bureaucracy.

‘The more women who come through, the easier it gets, the better it is, the more women have the ability to be themselves, to feel these gender prisons less’, says the former PM.

Moonee Valley council’s ‘Mamma’s Kitchen’ is giving women from Somalia, Eritrea and Sudan the chance to use their cooking skills in paid work, and it’s helping to build confidence and experience.

From the grandiose to the incremental, missions offer a powerful policy tool for getting things done. What makes them work?

Reputation can’t be left to the comms team, argues Michelle Bryne, head of strategic communications at the Victorian Essential Services Commission. Remember that every interaction with stakeholders impacts their view, and rethink those hundred-page reports.

Homeless hotel programs have given many the security to make positive changes in their lives. Victoria hopes to make these changes permanent.

Some of the changes forced onto Victoria’s prison system by the pandemic have led to better services that will endure into the future, says Corrections Victoria Acting Commissioner Larissa Strong. Advocates hope the experience will lead to deeper shifts.