A hands on approach and diligence in responding to the concerns of residents are just some of the qualities of LASA Retirement Village Manager of the Year for 2019 Jessica Maddern.
Jessica is the Operations Manager of De Paul Manor Estate, a 79-unit village on the Gold Coast.
Since Jessica took on the role, the Gold Coast village has seen a huge improvement in resident satisfaction, largely due to her professional and friendly approach.
Jessica joined the village part-time as a student finishing her social work degree and took on her current role aged 24.
Being a young village manager was both an asset and a challenge – on one hand the residents trusted her, enjoyed her enthusiasm and were grateful for her IT skills.
But in the early days, residents wrote letters of concern to the Parish and Bishop that she was too young for the role.
Today however, resident engagement is her absolute priority.
We would also like to acknowledge and congratulate the following finalists:
- Jack Greathead – Village Manager at Wesley Mission Qld’s Wheller on the Park in Brisbane – VMPD Program member.
- Vanessa Nugent – Manager at Bolton Clarke’s Westhaven Retirement Village in Toowoomba – VMPD Program member.
- Deborah Luscombe – Retirement Village Manager at Mt Eymard Retirement Community in Bowral.
- Raylene Trewartha – Resident Liaison Manager at Good Shepherd Village in Mackay.
Jess will be joining us on the Village Management Professional Development program, as part of her reward.
Jodie
