Thank you to those who attended and contributed to the first Finance, Payroll and Rates Exchange.

DISCUSSION NOTES

• There was a general sense that the exchange could provide an opportunity to network with peers and discuss issues/challenges that come up from time to time.
• An opportunity for sharing information and skills of value

Learnings from last year

• Flexible workplace arrangements – many successes
• The need to develop virtual/email approval process instead of physical sign off
• Cassowary Coast has gone paperless
• Cairns on track to deliver Capex programme

Impact of COVID on budgets

• Longreach not greatly affected.  Tourism benefits from domestic market
• Cairns - $3M deficit but overall surplus of $9M.  Nervous about impact of JobKeeper winding back for tourism

Potential future Exchange topics 

Sharing ideas on what’s working really well

• Participatory budget processes - tips on how to prioritise community wish lists. Does anyone have a simple decision-making process that’s practical and scalable?
• Capex evaluation methodologies
• Benchmarking council data
• Is any council using an effective OCR?
• Moving to single touch payroll
• Pros of logging in to Services Australia for paid parental leave?
• Flexible workplace arrangements – impacts on payroll functions, impacts on EB negotiations

Where to from here with Exchanges

• Look at making them topic specific so that people can choose to register based on topic for discussion
• Separate Exchanges to focus on Payroll, Rates, Finance topics respectively
• Agenda prepared
• Officers to nominate topics of interest so advice can be sought from the group
• Officers who wish to chair, to advise