The Anthea Kerr Award is awarded in honour of Anthea Kerr who passed away suddenly at 38 years of age. At the time of Anthea’s death, she was an Assistant Director General at the Department of Finance and Services, a role which was the culmination of an outstanding career of over 16 years in the NSW public sector. Anthea was a wonderful mentor and a great supporter of the Young Professionals Network.
The award is to recognise future public sector leaders and will be awarded to a maximum of two individuals each year. It will be awarded to people who exhibit in their work a deep commitment to public sector values and identified leadership potential – attributes that Anthea exemplified throughout her working life.
The NSW Public Service Commission will offer the Anthea Kerr Award recipient an opportunity to undertake a set of accelerated bespoke development activities tailored to their needs. These activities should be undertaken between 12 – 18 months of the awarded date to support the winner in their career development.
Below you will find details of some of the activities this award can offer (depending on development needs):
- participation in a full day executive development centre culminating in an individual report and debrief with the recipient and their mentor
- a bespoke development program based on the outcome of the executive development centre and aspirations of the recipient
- access to a professional coach
- opportunity to attend an executive education program
- a designated PSC contact to facilitate program elements.
Thank you for this prestigious honour. Not only will I continue to strive towards the qualities of a leader in health, but using these skills to improve access to exercise programs for all people diagnosed with cancer.
Jane Turner, 2019 Anthea Kerr Award Winner
Judging criteria
Nominations for the Anthea Kerr Award must answer the following three questions/criteria. Each of the criteria has equal weighting when scored by judges.
Nominations must include the contact details of two referees, for example, the individual who supplied the answers to the three criteria and should include a current or recent manager.
Nominees must be under the age of 35 as of 1 July 2024.
Above and Beyond
Briefly describe how the person went above and beyond their role or how they contributed to the success of a project or initiatives. (Word limit: 200 words)
Consider: Collaboration, stewardship, mentoring, analytical thinking, integrating information from multiple sources.
Leadership
What leadership qualities or attributes does this person possess and how do they inspire direction and purpose in others. (Word limit: 200 words)
Consider: Leadership, interpersonal skills, development of team or peers, leaders as role model, belonging and inclusion.
Aspirations
What aspirations does this person have and what is the potential for their leadership skills to be applied to future roles or in other teams or agencies? (Word limit: 200 words)
Consider: Mobility, adaptability, consistency.