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Trevor Holden spent 25 years in the RAF before changing his career to local government, and now heads up a major unitary council. He tells Michael Burton of his impressions of the two sectors The first question on meeting Trevor Holden, former wing commander and now chief executive of Luton BC, is how local government compares with the RAF. He replies: ‘People think the services have a disciplined culture, but if you have to rely on your rank to get things done, you've lost respect. ‘You have more authority as a chief executive. In the air force, someone else decides. As for culture, the key thing is the sense of common purpose, the esprit de corps. Leadership is about getting people to realise how extraordinary they are. As a chief executive you're motivating and driving staff.' He breaks down organisations into three – the good, the bad and the ugly. In the first, the staff are motivated. In the second, they are floaters, doing what is required but preferring routine. In the third, they are ‘organisational terrorists', who have to be moved out of the system. He adds: ‘We need more people in the good category. Local government will get leaner, but beyond that, is a different ball park. Where we are is a unique opportunity to change, and I don't accept that we can't.' Trevor was raised in a small Norfolk village, one of eight children, and left school aged 16, with aspirations to be a policeman. Unfortunately, as he describes it, he ‘is vertically challenged', and since 5ft 8ins was the minimum height regulation, he was rejected. He recalls: ‘It was a real blow, since I'd wanted to join the police since the age of 12.' Instead, he worked for a year at Lotus Cars, then went into the RAF as a policeman, where the height restriction was less of an issue. He was in the ranks for six years, studied O-levels, and was commissioned in 1986. He became a flying officer in the administration branch, serving overseas in Hong Kong, the US and the Falklands Islands, studied for an MA in defence studies at King's College, London, and ended up as a wing commander in charge of an administration wing. In total, he spent 25 years in the RAF, but decided he did not want to spend the rest of his air force career ‘flying a desk', and instead applied for a job in local government, becoming director of neighbourhood services at Erewash BC. He adds: ‘In the military, you focused on a single output – air power. In local government, it's much more fragmented. We managed to move the service areas up to two stars. It was about getting people to do things in the right direction.' He says he aimed to be a chief executive in three years, and after 18 months, a chief's role came up at Breckland, back in his home patch, where he was hired As he jokes: ‘You don't need the Audit Commission on your tail if your mother-in-law lives there.' At Breckland, he was a strong believer in merging with a neighbour to achieve economies of scale. ‘We have to drive out costs, regardless of the budget challenge. There are too many managers. ‘Local government has got to reduce its managerial overheads. The public sector needs to reduce its organisational boundaries. But, also, too often, the personal agenda gets in the way of shared services. ‘Everyone gets it at the academic level but won't implement it.' In his case, once the merger with South Holland was agreed, he decided to ‘free up the space' by looking for another position. ‘I learned a lot, but was aware the council didn't cover the whole range of local government delivery. When the Luton post came up, I knew it was a dynamic council with a significant regeneration challenge and a complex social mix. ‘The councillors were forward-thinking and prepared to take someone not engrained in local government. My view is that while I'm unfettered by a background in local government, I'm supported by a board that knows it.' There are enough challenges at Luton, which he joined last March. For a start, he is looking at saving £35m, through better procurement and outsourcing, and ‘is already a long way down.' Inevitably, there will be job reductions, some 500 over four years across the board, out of 4,000 staff, mainly in the first two years, and he expects to see more shared services and fewer senior managers. The council is currently in legal discussions with the Government over the cuts in Building Schools for the Future which hit two of its schools. But there are also assets. The council owns Luton Airport, and has capital programmes under way. He adds: ‘We recognise the budget challenge but must also stand back and ask what we're delivering – and why. We'll look at the services first, then the structure, and we'll withdraw from areas where others can fill the gap.' He continues: ‘We don't need to own a service to deliver it. We must get over the sovereignty issue. The customer doesn't worry what goes on behind. The real challenge is in the upscaling to bigger business units. It's not about organisational structures.'

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WHITEHALL

Flying high

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