New MCA CE - Peter Cardy (groan!)

[tome]

He spent the first part of his career working in adult education in the east of England and the north of Scotland. For twenty years from 1987 he ran the UKs major charities concerned with motor neurone disease, multiple sclerosis and cancer.

Mr Cardy has written and lectured extensively on the management of these uniquely complicated bodies, with their devolved structures, large numbers of volunteers and small staff, and their multiple goals of service improvement, research and policy change. He has been a member of many national and international professional bodies and foundations. In 2001, he was honoured with the Charcot medal of which fewer than a dozen have been awarded, all others to senior physicians.

In a change of direction to head the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, Peter Cardy remains idealistic about making the world a better place. He intends to use his experience of running complex organisations for the benefit of seafarers and other users of the seas around our island nation.

Peter Cardy, Chief Executive, Maritime and Coastguard Agency said:

As a relative newcomer to the world of shipping and maritime safety, I know I am on a very steep learning curve and will remain there for as long as I am with the MCA. But I learnt very early on about the unique qualities of the people who work in this very special sector, and I feel both honoured and daunted by the challenge of living up to the proud traditions of professionalism, skill and integrity we have inherited. I shall do my utmost to build on that inheritance.

 

[Twister_Ken]

Oh good...

...Oh God.

 

[Phoenix of Hamble]

That job should only be open to someone who sits in their office staring out the window at the sea wishing desperately that they were out there.... IMHO

 

[iangrant]

Dear Sir
May we be the first to congratulate you on your post.
We look forward to being charged more on our taxes for more stringent reulations and higher staffing costs within your organisations.
I'm told that with limited expense accounts there are really nice places in the Caribbean that need research ino their methods, also there are some very nice places to visit in the US, NZ and the Pacific Isles.
There is much to be learnt from these Coast Guard people so enjoy the trip(s)
They will really motivate your staff.

Regards

 

[Twister_Ken]

With its HQ in Southampton town centre, I don't suppose there is a window that looks out to sea.

 

[Richard10002]

[ QUOTE ]

As a relative newcomer to the world of shipping and maritime safety, I know I am on a very steep learning curve and will remain there for as long as I am with the MCA.

[/ QUOTE ]

I would have expected him to have been "a keen sailor for most of my life, with some experience of commercial maritime matters aswell"

It's quite clear that it is not necessarily necessary for a CE to have experience of his field as it's a management job, but you would have thought they could have found someone with a big flash yacht or motor cruiser, which would give them a vested interest in getting things right.... and you cant tell me that there isnt anybody.

This guy will be able to use the old excuse of still learning the job....... doing very well and making significant changes for the better, but must keep improving.

 

[flaming]

[ QUOTE ]

In a change of direction to head the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, Peter Cardy remains idealistic about making the world a better place .

[/ QUOTE ]

Hello regulation and "carbon footprint" taxation!

 

[jhr]

Give the guy a chance. At least he's not:

(a) A career jobsworth from within the MCA
(b) An escapee from the shipping industry who thinks that buoys and lighthouses are an irrelevance to commercial shipping and should be paid for by leisure yachtsmen
(c) Weighed down by preconceptions about the various interest groups that the MCA has dealings with.

On the other hand, he has a lot of experience of running organisations (a) staffed by mainly low-paid individuals, motivated by the job they do rather than the rewards it brings (b) that are bureaucratically complex (c) that have to operate on a low overhead basis.

Most jobs of this kind need a capable manager to handle a team of professionals, who are actually the people who provide the specialist input. I'm not trying to be an apologist for this guy, and I'm sure I will grow to hate him /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif but on the face of it, he fits the bill for an appointment of this kind.

[Heads nervously for the fire escape].

 

[alldownwind]

I share the doubts but on the other hand I did understand that he does own a sailing cruiser. Somewhat surprised that his PR gurus have not included that in his profile, if it was correct.
Stephen Bligh (who was 'asked to leave early') was bad enough and he WAS a seafarer.

 

[ChrisE]

I'm sure that we had this discussion some time ago when he was first appointed and I agree with you. A CE runs the place and should not need specialist indutry knowledge. I seem to remember that last time I said that the dearly-missed Mirelle seemed to think that for some reason you did need knowledge. i disagreed then and I disagree now.

It least he's a sailor and not some old seafarer who thinks that yotties are WAFIs....

 

[pvb]

Strange press release...

The press release you quoted is here on the MCA website. But, rather strangely, the press release used by others - eg here (and presumably issued by the MCA) - includes the introductory words "Peter Cardy was born on the south coast of England, where at an early age he developed a lifelong interest in sailing and the sea. He studied for his first degree at Durham University and gained an MSc at Cranfield Institute of Technology." Odd that this snippet of info disappears on the MCA's own website!

 

[awol]

One of Mr Cardy's first problems is the industrial action started over the bank holiday weekend by up to 700 members of the PCS union over a below cost of living increase pay rise + industrial action voted for by MCA marine surveyors and senior managers.
Not a happy ship!

 

[bdsweeting]

And his salary no doubt compares very closely with the advert in my local paper for Watch Keepers with a starting salary of just over £14K

Oh, the value of rsponsibility.

 

[DorsetPete]

This bafoon used to run The Multiple Sclerosis Society.
I have MS and am a member.
We were very glad to see the back of him.
He is a career loafer - totally institutionalised and incapable of any original thinking.
Expenses claim forms excepted obviously!