Message from the CEO – 21 April 2020 

Who would have thought that after managing the worst bushfires in Australia’s history, we will be facing a pandemic that will have an incredible impact on our society, economy, and people around the world? It seems that 2020 will be etched in our consciousness as a very difficult year, and it is only April.

Amid these trying and changing times, the sudden need to reprioritise the number of tasks and business activities have meant that COA has had to pivot, innovate, and respond to numerous changes.

The past month has been relentless as the domino effect of change washes through all of the programs, staff, clients, and network. These changes continue…. with little clarity as to how long this will need to continue.

Considering all this…. there has been overwhelming support and collaboration across the entire network. In the past month, I have seen organisations cooperate across sectors, state and federal governments working together and responding to the needs of the sectors. I have seen bureaucrats and business leaders, showing unilateral common sense to make things happen and work for the benefit of the clients we support.

In the midst of all these changes… I have witnessed incredible generosity and goodwill…to the point that has allowed a wonderful sense of comraderies among our staff, network, and government. Despite all these challenges, there is an opportunity to reflect and take stock on what is important for our clients and communities. The silver lining is that we can creatively look at ways of delivering more effective services, improve on our coordinated approach to community care and better support the clients we serve.

I encourage the COA network and the community care sector to continue to work together to meet these challenges and look for the opportunities that may lie within these times. Inevitably there will be a point in future when we look back at this time and reflect on how we were able to manage. The goodwill, collaboration and cooperation among the network will be contributing factor to the success of overcoming these challenges.

Regards

Bill Campos, CEO