ESA culture fix must be more than 'tick-a-box' effort, overhaul chair says

Leanne Close, a former deputy commissioner in the Australian Federal Police, has been appointed to lead the oversight committee, a key recommendation of a review of the agency's executives.

Ms Close said she was keen to borrow ideas from other emergency services agencies, but the ACT as a smaller jurisdiction could work fast to test improvements.

"We're small, we're agile, we can communicate really effectively and quickly across each of the services," she said.

"But [I'm] always happy to look at what's happening in other jurisdictions, whether it's Australia or ones that might be identified overseas. I haven't done that yet but would be keen just to understand what is better practice, what's working elsewhere."

Ms Close said it would take time to improve the agency, by building support for new initiatives and training people who are in leadership roles.

"We need to step through and take our time to embed new things, new programs, new ways of thinking and doing businesses - so that they become embedded and not just a quick fly-by-night action just to tick a box," she said.

Ms Close said there were similarities between the Australian Federal Police and the Emergency Services Agency, where staff move into leadership roles after serving at an operational level.

"I think all these sorts of organisations are very mission-focused. Their people have a strong value set around the roles that they do for the community. They have great training in their operational disciplines," she said.

Ms Close said as people rose through the ranks, they needed different skill sets to enable them to manage people and risks, while communicating across the organisation.

"It's that sort of level of leadership and management training focus that I really want to bring through this committee and the role," she said.

Ms Close said the experience and expertise people brought from operational experience would need to be valued as part of improving the agency's culture.

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The review of the Emergency Services Agency's executive leadership team, which was completed by former Ambulance Victoria chief executive Tony Walker, provided a good blueprint for what needed to change, she said.

"The key task is first of all to, you know, meet with the executives, understand their needs, understand and work with them to get some of these outcomes," Ms Close said.

"So it won't be me imposing the solutions on them. I need to work with them."

Ms Close, who will begin meeting with the agency executives next week, said the committee would work with them to set the agency's strategic direction, improve collaboration and consider succession planning.

Justice and Community Safety Directorate director-general Richard Glenn on Tuesday told staff an expression-of-interest process would soon begin to fill a short-term vacancy as Emergency Services Agency commissioner, while a national recruitment process begins to find the next permanent appointee.

Jason Jones was announced as acting commissioner following the resignation of Georgeina Whelan, who departed several weeks after the findings of the review were made public. Mr Jones will remain in the position during the expression-of-interest process.

The external review found the Emergency Services Agency had a culture of blame and fear which affects the health and wellbeing of its staff and that its executives do not trust each other.

No findings were made against individual executives in the review.

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