An important announcement made today by Mayor Len Brown – that Lester Levy will be taking over as Chair of Auckland Transport from Mark Ford, from November onwards:
The Mayor has named Lester Levy as the new chair of council controlled organisation, Auckland Transport (AT).
Dr Levy comes to the role after extensive management and governance experience in large and medium-sized public and private organisations.
Present roles include Chair of the Auckland and Waitemata District Health Boards, Adjunct Professor of Leadership at the University of Auckland Business School as well as being a director of Tonkin & Taylor.
Previous roles include Chief Executive of South Auckland Health, the New Zealand Blood Service and MercyAscot Private Hospital Group (where he was a founder) and previous governance experience as chairing private healthcare, film and television production and biotechnology enterprises.
Dr Levy, who is 57, was born in South Africa and has lived in New Zealand since 1978. He is married with three children and lives in Mission Bay.
“I have a very strong commitment to Auckland and New Zealand and am very ambitious for both,” says Dr Levy. ”I believe all organisations have unrealised potential for greater performance and look forward to working with the board, management and all staff at Auckland Transport to serve our community in the best way possible.”
Lester Levy replaces Mark Ford who has been Chair of Auckland Transport since the creation of Auckland Council.
“It is a privilege to hold the role of Chair of Auckland Transport during a time of great change in the city,” says Mr Ford.
“Highlights include the efficiencies of integrating the majority of transport activities under a single organisation; signing the contract for the delivery of a fleet of modern electric trains for Auckland; starting work on a comprehensive integrated transport solution for the eastern suburbs through the AMETI project; and presiding over the highest growth in public transport use for over half a century.”
Dr Levy will engage with Auckland Transport from late August, working alongside Mark Ford, to ensure an effective transition until Mr Ford’s term finishes at the end of October. Dr Levy will become the Chair effective from 1 November 2012.
Mayor Len Brown has paid tribute to the leadership shown by Mr Ford as chair and says he is looking forward to working with Dr Levy.
“Mark Ford has played a superb role in leading the transition that has taken place at Auckland Transport. Lester Levy is highly regarded in local and central government and business. He was a game changer at South Auckland Health, where I first became really aware of his work. I look forward to the contribution he will make at Auckland Transport.”
Dr Levy certainly sounds like he’s pretty competent and has an extensive background working in challenging public sector governance roles – of which this is certainly one. While Mark Ford tends to polarise opinions, I think we need to give him credit for getting Auckland Transport through this initial phase and also with regard to specific wins – like getting 57 EMU trains rather than the original 35 which must surely stand out as a particular highlight.
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Perhaps we also need a few other new faces on the AT board, I would like to suggest that having someone who is passionate enough about transport to talk about it every day during their own free time is the kind of person we need 😉
How do people get appointed to the AT Board by the way?
Lester is a good operator. i remember him from his time running Middlemore Hospital. He will make a good chair of AT. Lets get some other decent people onto the AT Board.
God, what HASNT this guy managed? He’s been in everything from film to private health, obvisouly doesn’t like to stay in one industry for too long. A jack of all trades. Has he actually got any solid transport industry experience? He’s probably never used public transport in his life. Why is the board full of people who have made their careers out of managing managers, but dont have a clue about day to day PT issues?
Possibly agree. I reckon promoting some bus drivers or TM’s who have a lot of frontline experience would be a good idea.
uh, because it’s the Board of Directors of Auckland Transport, not Auckland Public Transport. At that level, what’s most important is to have people who will challenge the advice that reaches them from the lower levels. Having people with coal-face experience in middle- and upper-management is important, certainly, but it’s much less vital once you get to the very top.
I would rather have directors who know nothing about the specific business, to be honest, because they’re less likely to have entrenched views on how things should be done. Provided they’re willing to gather information beyond that provided by their subordinates, the outcomes will probably be better because they’re a blank slate and not so likely to have been captured by the institution.
Wasn’t he at North Shore Hospital?
ISTR that he is a bit left leaning as well????
“game changer for South Auckland Health” this gives me a bit of an idea of what he may bring to Auckland Transport.
I can’t tell if that’s meant to be cynical and snarky or not.
Assuming the Manukau Super Clinic is the “game changer” activity that happened with his involvement, he’ll probably do incredible things for PT in Auckland if he can fight his way through the entrenched attitudes. Pretty much everything about the MSC that has dramatically improved health outcomes for residents in the catchment area can be transferred, in abstract, to reforming transport in Auckland: focus on getting the best spend for every dollar, using evidence to determine what that is; listen to the practitioners; preventative courses of action are generally much, much cheaper than treating a full-blown problem in the future.
Not at all snarky, I just didn’t know who he was so that quote was a bit of a clue for me. I was thinking along the line of him implementing TQM in hospitals?? therefore he would be great on the operational side of things and other process related matters.
Well, at least it aint Cameron Brewer or Dick Quax. Course I guess you need experience in management.
Is it too much to hope that from that health background we might see some more emphasis on active transport?