Panel formed to select new City of Bayswater chief executive

SIX councillors will work with Beilby Consulting to help secure the City of Bayswater’s next chief executive.

The Council decided to part with former chief executive Francesca Lefante last August, with finance and corporate services director Carissa Bywater acting as chief executive since September.

A selection panel was chosen behind closed doors at a special council meeting last month to help finalise the position description and conduct second-round interviews with shortlisted candidates.

The successful applicant will be offered a five-year contract and paid $250,000 to $325,000 a year, which includes a car and superannuation.

Acting chief executive Carissa Bywater left the meeting as she was acting in the position and a possible applicant for the role.

The Council directed all City staff to leave the meeting in order to debate the matter, except for the community services director, governance advisor and personal assistant to the community services director.

Councillors Sally Palmer, Alan Radford, Catherine Ehrhardt, Dan Bull, Barry McKenna and Chris Cornish were chosen to form a selection panel.

The chief executive selection and recruitment process costs $35,000 and includes psychometric testing.

The package is considered level one by the Salaries and Allowances Tribunal, the highest level of local government chief executive remuneration packages.

Twenty other WA local government chief executives are also paid at a level one rate.