Applications closed this morning for the coveted role of Retirement Commissioner (RC) ahead of a slated July start date for the new leader.
Current RC Dianne Maxwell was stood down last December pending a State Services Commission investigation into claims she bullied staff.
While the government had yet to release details of the investigation, Commerce Minister Kris Faafoi said last November Maxwell would end her two-term stint as RC at the end of June this year.
According to the job specifications, the prospective RC would have to demonstrate a “working knowledge” of retirement income and financial capability issues, experience dealing with government and strategic skills.
Among a raft of other attributes the new RC would have to possess “the ability to foster a positive, respectful workplace culture where people feel valued, and unwelcome behaviours are less likely to occur”.
The prospective RC could be based in either Auckland or Wellington.
Maxwell earned between $320,000-330,000 as RC during the 2017/18 financial year, according to the Commission for Financial Capability (CFFC) annual report.
The RC is a “corporation sole” position, the official job description says, with much more than figurehead responsibilities.
“This means that the Commissioner has both a governance and a managerial role,” the government outline says. “In effect, the Commissioner acts as both the Board and chief executive of the Commission for Financial Capability (CFFC).”
The CFFC employs about 25 people to cover a diverse range of activities including shaping retirement income policy, advising on the retirement village sector and managing the financial information website, Sorted.
In a letter to acting RC Peter Corditz this February, Faafoi laid out the annual “expectations” for the CFFC in light of the government’s overarching “well-being” economic strategy.
“This means moving beyond narrow economic indicators and measures of success, and instead putting the well-being of our people and the environment at the centre.”
The government is due to hand down its budget on May 30, which for the first time will be constructed under the new ‘well-being’ guidelines.
As well as a number of ‘general expectations’, Faafoi sets out a long list of specific targets for the CFFC over the coming fiscal year including rolling out the ‘Sorted in Schools’ project and developing “outcome-focused” financial capability performance measure.