We caught up with Tom Hogan, Leading Hand Horticulture, City of West Torrens, 

about why he signed up for the Emerging Leaders Program, his experience at a recent program module, and what he's looking forward to the most as the program progresses.

What made you sign up for the Emerging Leaders Program?

My manager recommended the Emerging Leaders Program to me, so I signed up as I saw it as a great opportunity to develop my leadership skills and become a better leader within local government. I was also interested in gaining a better understanding of myself as a leader and learning what areas I can improve in.

So far, the program has helped me step out of my comfort zone, which has helped build confidence and personal growth.

A recent module focused on ‘A Rural Perspective’ – what were some of your takeaways from this module?

“A Rural Perspective” module was a great day, and one thing I took away was gaining a better understanding of the challenges that rural and regional councils face. 

It was good to see the City of Onkaparinga Civil Team undertaking maintenance to their unsealed roads. I always wondered why they don’t just bituminise these roads, but the team had a few explanations, with one being that some wineries prefer the rustic look of an unsealed road. 

I also learnt that rural councils have more local knowledge and stronger relationships with their communities than metro councils do, which helps understand what the locals wants and needs are.

What are you most looking forward to as the program progresses?

Besides further developing my leadership skills and knowledge, I’m looking forward to building stronger connections and friendships with my peers and networking with other councils.