27 Apr 2023

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There’s still work to be done to improve Christchurch City Council staff satisfaction.

The results of the 2023 AskYourTeam Working@Council survey have been released today. This year’s overall score has remained at 56%, the same result as 2022. 

What went well?
Cultural competence saw an increase from 67% to 74%.
Strategy increased from 57% to 59%.
Culture increased from 59% to 60%.

What stayed the same?
Business processes remained at 55%.
Performance development remained at 53%.
Ratepayer community focused remained at 60%.

Where did we go back?
Leadership saw a decrease from 55% to 51%.
Internal communications saw a decrease from 54% to 51%.
Project planning saw a decrease from 55% to 53%.
Organisational learning saw a decrease from 55% to 53%.

“As a leadership team we are disappointed in how staff see our leadership and how we empower staff and demonstrate Council values. However, we want to acknowledge there have been some positive changes including, where units are reporting greater awareness of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and a higher alignment of objectives between units,” Chief Executive Dawn Baxendale says.

“We value honest feedback and are pleased to see 72% of staff taking part, an increase of 15% on last year.”

Mrs Baxendale says although leadership, internal communications, planning and learning have decreased since 2022, the increases in cultural competency, strategy and culture are positive. The majority of people who answered the survey enjoy working at Council and are proud of the impact they have on their communities.

“We want to assure our staff that the focus is on making sure this Council is a great place to work." 

An action plan was created following last year's survey results. 

Two of the key projects were around remuneration and development of a leadership framework.

The remuneration project will identify the organisation’s approach to remuneration and any improvements. It will be completed before the annual remuneration review later this year. The Leadership Framework is expected to be complete by July and will set out ways of working for all levels of staff. 

“Every day, across the organisation, we see the great work staff do for our communities and we want to acknowledge this. We all come to work to make a difference and deserve a workplace that enables us to achieve this. As a leadership team we will work hard to make sure this happens,” Mrs Baxendale says.

Read the summaries for the 2022 and 2023 surveys here.