This month we profile Rob Gagetti from the City of Tea Tree Gully - who is certainly a busy man!

Hi Rob - thanks for talking to us.

What's your current role?
Manager, Development Assessment

How did you get into that role?
I secured my position following an organisational restructure.  Prior to my appointment, there was one manager covering 4 different teams.  The organisation identified a need for one manager for the development assessment section (building, planning and development compliance).  The position was advertised internally and my application was successful.

What do you like best about the current position?
I enjoy working with less experienced staff members and watching them develop and grow into their positions.  I also enjoy implementing system improvements designed to make the department operate in a more efficient manner.

What advice would you give someone looking to get into a similar role?
I would suggest that this person carefully examines their passion for working with people before they take on a similar position.  To be a competent manager, excellent interpersonal skills are essential and a passion for working in a team environment is also critical.  Furthermore, the person must also be capable of working within a highly political environment. 

What’s next for you?
I have only been in this role for approximately 2 years.  Long term, I would like to become a senior manager (director/general manager).  I also have an interest in one day working for a rural Council. 

I am also currently completing a Masters in Business Administration and I will use my learning’s to further develop my managerial skills, to assist with future career advancement.

Why did you join the LGMA(SA) and their Network/s?
It’s a great way to network with other people in similar roles.  Effective networking is an essential tool required to facilitate professional development and unlock career opportunities. 

Describe a typical day for us…
The interesting thing about a manager’s role in local government is that each day is very unique.  However, generally speaking I would ordinarily arrive at work between 7:45am and 8:15am.  At the moment we have been backfilling new positions within our team and so I have been preoccupied with completing the recruitment process.  This process has involved a lot interviews, performing reference checks and completing a lot of paperwork. 

Between interviews, I have been attending various internal steering committees for various software upgrades that will impact on the organisation together with various department meetings. 

Media, rate payer and elected member enquiries are also regularly received and some of my time is occupied with responding to such enquiries.  However, I will often delegate this work to other employees so that my time can be spent completing other work.

When I am not completing the work discussed above, I usually try to work on at least one project designed to improve the efficiency of the department, or the customer service that my team provides.  At the moment I am working with other staff on performing a number of improvements to our website