Being private in the public service

Last year we asked Creative NZ to give us some background on their staff. We thought that knowing where they came from would help us get an idea of what expertise they brought with them. CNZ lurched into secretive mode and fobbed us off by saying that this sort of information invaded the privacy of their staff. If you go to the CNZ site it’s a bit like getting info from a prisoner of war: name, rank and responsibilities. So to date we are unable to discover how many of them came from the performing arts, how many have a dance background etc.

Compare this it’s-none-of-the-public’s-damn-business attitude to the way Te Papa handles the question of staff expertise. They believe that publicly paid positions are in the sphere of public information. So you want to know what sort of jobs the senior management team from Te Papa come from? Not a problem.

Acting Chief Executive: Michelle Hippolite - the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
Collections and Research Group Director: Dr Claudia Orange - the Department of Internal Affairs
Experience Group Director: Mark Donovan - the National Aquarium Institute, Baltimore
Business Group Director: Andy Millard - Sport & Recreation
Corporate Services Group Director: Brighid Kelly - Telecom
Chief Financial Officer: Graeme Quinn - the Department of Corrections

And now you know.