Carmel Foster - Director, Corporate Strategy and Resourcing

Carmel-Foster.jpg

Carmel Foster has held senior leadership executive roles in Local Government over the past 25 years and has also worked in State Government, as well as the private sector.

In her current role, Carmel is responsible for the Corporate Strategy & Resourcing Directorate, providing internal and external services to the Council and the Community.

Carmel is passionate about delivering valued services to the community, with a focus on business improvement and customer experience.

Carmel has Post Graduate qualifications in Urban Design, Masters Degrees in Urban Planning and Property Development, is a qualified property valuer and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Carmel can be contacted on mail@wsc.nsw.gov.au or (02) 4868 0888.

The Corporate Strategy and Resources Directorate comprises of the following areas:

Governance and Corporate Performance - Manager, Danielle Lidgard

  • Coordinator Strategy & Business Improvement
    Coordinate and prepare Council's integrated Planning and reporting documents
    - Facilitate and support strategic and corporate reporting
    - Identify and assist services to implement business improvement initiatives
    - Develop and coordinate the service review program 
    - Coordinate corporate projects

  • Integrated Risk Coordinator
    - Manager enterprise risks
    - Deliver long term and sustainable safety improvements in the workplace
    - Monitor and review our Integrated Risk Management Framework
    - Protect Council assets and reduce risk impact
    - Manage the return-to-work program

  • Coordinator Governance
    Coordinate Council meetings including the preparation and distribution of agendas and minutes
    - Facilitate access to information held by Council
    - Coordinate Internal Audit program and the Audit Risk Improvement Committee
    - Maintain registers on delegations, policies and disclosures of interest
    - Facilitate the management of Council's legal panel
    - Manage complaints, probity and investigations  

Finance - Chief Financial Officer, Pav Kuzmanosvki

  • Deputy CFO
    - Financial Accounting and Reporting
    - Taxation
    - Payroll Services
    - Accounts Payable
    - Grants Management
    - Management Accounting
    - Treasury
  • Coordinator Revenue
    - Issue rates, and water and sewer accounts
    - Issue invoices for non-rates revenue
    - Maintain Council's property and rating database 
    - Manage debtor accounts and providing debt recovery services
  • Coordinator Procurement & Contracts
    - Procurement and Tendering
    - Contract Management
    - Probity Overnight 

Business & Property - Manager, Salomon Kloppers

  • Coordinator Property Services
    - Leasing and licensing
    - Administer land, easements and road closures
    - Land acquisition and disposal 
    - Native title

  • Coordinator Children's Services
    - Out of School Hours Service
    - Nominated Supervisor and Responsible Person as per the Education & Care Services National Regulations 2011

  • Coordinator Tourism and Events
    - Tourism marketing campaigns and strategies
    - Council owned events
    - External festival and events
    - Visitor information centre operations
    - Bowral Memorial Hall bookings 

Information Services - Chief Information Officer, George Harb

  • Coordinator Corporate Systems

- Deliver digital solutions and technical guidance
- Maintain and support interactive mapping systems
- Keep corporate applications up-to-date and cyber compliant
- Capture reliable data for accurate stakeholder information
- Facilitate informed decision-making through data insights
- Oversee the development of corporate applications, upgrades, and enhancements

  • Coordinator Corporate Information

-Safeguard and manage comprehensive and precise records
- Convert records into digital format and preserve as needed
- Organise, categorise, and safeguard Council records
- Ensure compliance with the State Records Act
- Implement secure access controls to protect sensitive Council records 
- Regularly audit and update record-keeping practices to meet evolving standards and requirements

  • Coordinator ICT Operations

- Foster a secure IT environment for the Council
- Provide expert technical support to ensure smooth operations
- Sustain dependable and robust infrastructure for seamless performance
- Regularly update and patch Council systems to fortify cyber security
- Proactively identify and address potential cybersecurity threats
- Optimise system efficiency through continuous monitoring and improvements
- Implement disaster recovery plans to ensure business continuity
- Conduct regular training sessions to enhance staff awareness on IT security
- Stay abreast of emerging technologies to drive innovation in ICT operations

  • Coordinator Customer Experience
  • - Addressing and solving customer inquiries promptly
    - Delivering accurate and easily understandable information
    - Striving for quick and effective issue resolution right from the initial customer interaction
    - Continuous improvement by actively seeking feedback.
    - Personalisation through tailoring interactions
    - Proactive communication by anticipating and providing relevant updates
    - Improving the customer experience through digitisation and enhancement of existing services
  • Coordinator Bookings and Facilities

- Monitoring and ensuring facility compliance
- Collaborating with and supporting the 355 Management Committees for effective facility management
- Coordinating bookings of halls, community centres, sports grounds, and recreational reserves
- Maintaining the Council's online booking system for streamlined and accessible facility reservations

  • Business Solutions  Implementation
  • - Implementing new systems throughout the organisation to enhance efficiency and productivity.
    - Managing and facilitating change processes associated with the introduction of new systems for a smooth transition.
    - Providing comprehensive IT training sessions to equip staff with necessary skills and knowledge. 
    - Ensuring seamless integration of new systems with existing processes and technologies.