Isabel Dove tells Ellen Bennett about the council manager who even made working late fun
How it all began
I was a neighbourhood manager at Lewisham council in south-east London, having had a really brief spell as a temporary finance manager in another area. I was responsible for a 2000-home estate in North Downham, including a tenant management organisation that ran 187 post-war prefabricated homes.

Who was the boss?
John Wright was the area manager for the south of the borough in the run-up to the switch to housing management compulsory competitive tendering in 1995. He went on to be assistant director of the direct labour organisation. As a manager, he was extremely supportive and professional. He was a good leader and an effective communicator.

Any bad memories?
Not really, but there were several amusing ones – even working until the small hours of the morning in order to ensure the bids in the first tranche of compulsory competitive tendering were submitted on time and intact.

What did he teach you?
To keep sight of the bigger picture. This helps you to do your job more effectively and efficiently. Also, the more information you have, the easier it is to project what is coming and where the organisation is headed. That way, you can make informed decisions about your day-to-day duties and understand the impact that they may have.

So he was a good mentor?
Put it this way: when compulsory competitive tendering was looming, I was fairly new to housing. I admitted to John that it made absolutely no sense to me. A couple of weeks later, I was seconded to work on the project.

He taught me to keep sight of the bigger picture so you make informed decisions about your duties

I couldn't understand why he'd picked me. When I asked, he replied: "Don't worry, you'll learn." And he was right.

Do you treat your staff the same way he treated you?
I hope so and I wouldn't do anything differently. It didn't matter how many times you asked the same question, you always got a really good answer and guidance as to where to go to get more information. He would go out of his way to ensure you had all the tools you needed to do the job.

If you met him today, what would you say to him?
Just thank you. I wouldn't have done it without you.

Source

Housing Today

Postscript

Isabel Dove is business services director at West Kent Housing Association

John Wright is director of Magna Housing Association