I was very pleased to be appointed as DHA Managing Director in November 2016 for a five year term after acting in the position for 12 months. I feel privileged to lead such a unique organisation and one that plays such a critical role in supporting Defence capability.
DHA is a unique and complex business with many challenges. DHA:
- delivers housing and related services to ADF members and their families in accordance with service agreements with the Department of Defence and Defence policy
- self funds its operations and maintains a robust financial position to deliver commercial returns to the Australian Government
- is the only Government Business Enterprise (GBE) that employs its staff under the Public Service Act 1999 .
Our achievements
DHA’s strong performance in 2016–17 demonstrates operational and commercial effectiveness under government ownership for the long term. I could not hope to summarise all of DHA’s achievements in 2016–17 in this short review. In my opinion, DHA’s top three achievements were as follows:
- Service delivery
We maintained service delivery to ADF members and their families and property investors by exceeding all customer service targets (greater than 90 per cent) and meeting most provisioning targets (greater than 85 per cent). - Financial performance
We ensured sustainable government ownership for the long term by meeting or exceeding most financial targets and returning a higher than budgeted dividend to the Australian Government ($39.6 million). - Organisational capability
We rebuilt organisational governance foundations ensuring that, as a government owned business, we operate commercially. This was achieved through improved staff engagement, teamwork, collaboration, communication and increased capability. Staff throughout DHA have been encouraged to adopt a whole of business focus.
Our Annual Performance Statement details our achievement against the five purposes and associated 28 key performance indicators (KPIs) set out in our Corporate Plan 2016–17.
In addition, the new Highlights and events section following this review provides a summary of our significant achievements by month, including industry recognition for our efforts in residential development, workplace safety, customer service, marketing and reporting.
Our challenges
DHA’s success is affected by complex environmental and operational factors over which we have little or no control. These directly impacted our performance in 2016–17 and were largely the reason for us only substantially meeting eight KPIs and failing to meet one KPI. In my opinion, DHA’s top three challenges were as follows:
- Residential property market conditions
Our operations are sensitive to the residential property markets in which we operate. Market conditions in some locations negatively impacted our revenue streams and ability to cost-effectively source suitable land and housing to meet Defence’s provisioning targets. - Maintaining customer service levels
As is the case for many businesses, increasing customer expectations and the use of technology are challenging our ability to maintain customer service levels. This is especially challenging for us in that our customer satisfaction rates are exceptionally high by industry standards (greater than 90 per cent). - Attracting and retaining skilled and capable staff
Our staff are critical to the organisation’s success. Attracting and retaining skilled and capable staff, particularly residential property industry and information technology professionals within the Australian Public Service remuneration framework, was challenging in 2016–17 and will continue to be a challenge for the foreseeable future.
In speaking about organisational challenges, I also wish to acknowledge the tragic and unexpected death of Mr Jon Brocklehurst, DHA’s highly regarded Chief Financial Officer and Head of Corporate Services, on 30 April 2017. Mr Brocklehurst was a dear friend to many of us at DHA. He was an integral part of the organisation’s professional culture and success, and the epitome of our core values. I greatly valued his strong contribution, extraordinary competence, wisdom and good humour. I feel privileged to have known and worked so closely with him.
In the days and months following Mr Brocklehurst’s death, DHA’s amazing staff continued to impress me. I thank those who supported their colleagues who needed time to grieve and those who kept the business functioning at a high level for our customers and shareholders during this very difficult time. Everyone at DHA played a part in their own way and I am incredibly grateful to them for it.
DHA Managing Director, Ms Jan Mason, and former Chief Financial Officer and Head of Corporate Services, Mr Jon Brocklehurst.Mr Brocklehurst’s loss continues to be felt on both a personal and professional level across the organisation. However, his imprint and legacy will continue to live on through a special award that we have created to recognise a staff member who displays the sort of admirable characteristics that he embodied. The award will be presented for the first time as part of our Staff Awards of Excellence in October 2017.
An overarching analysis of our performance, including detailed information about our business challenges, is provided after our Annual Performance Statement.
Our priorities for the year ahead
DHA’s Corporate Plan 2017–18 reflects continued focus on business improvement and risk management in relation to:
- provisioning programs to ensure we can provide high quality, well located accommodation to ADF members and their families in accordance with service agreements with Defence, especially in challenging markets such as Sydney (NSW)
- property investment programs and improved service to investors to ensure that we can meet our future funding requirements
- revised funding arrangements with Defence in relation to selected provisioning, construction and upgrade activities to ensure we do not bear unsuitable financial risk
- continued review and improvement of our governance arrangements and internal processes to ensure our operations are ethical, efficient and effective.
I look forward to continuing to work with my senior executive team and staff across Australia to deliver quality outcomes for our customers and shareholders. I am confident that DHA will continue to make a positive contribution in 2017–18 and beyond.
Ms Jan Mason
Managing Director