An Cosantóir

| 21 www.military.ie THE DEFENCE FORCES MAGAZINE What is your job title in the Defence Forces? Head of Strategic Human Resources. This is a newly created role as identified under the Commission for the Defence Forces, I joined on the 4th of September. What was your first job and outline your career path to date? I studied organisational Psychology in UCD both at undergraduate and Masters level and as a result I have always had an interest in creating a working environment that encourages people to bring their best selves to work every day. My very first role was in Lucent Technologies (Bell Labs Innovation) as Recruitment & Employee Relations Manager and all my subsequent roles have been in the sphere of Human Resources. I have worked in Golden Pages, Aviva, Dairygold Cooperative Society, FBD plc and most recently in PTSB plc for the last 5 years. All of these latter roles have been at Executive Director & Senior Leadership levels. What job did you leave to join us and what is the one major change? My most recent role was in PTSB plc where I was the Head of HR Business Partnering & Performance. My first impression is the passion people have for the organisation, our raison d'etre and for the people that serve. It is genuinely palpable. The second change is the investment in peoples development. This far exceeds anything I have experienced in the private sector. The biggest personal change is the sheer amount of acronyms! What was your knowledge of the Defence Forces before you joined? I did a significant amount of research and reading in preparation for joining. My first month has been spent meeting & listening to as many people as possible. This something I intend to continue doing. There is no substitute for listening and everyone has been hugely welcoming and engaging which is making the transition much easier than I had envisaged. I think it was Calvin Coolidge, the 30th President of the USA who said "No man has ever listened himself out of a job". What do you think is our greatest opportunity? In my view, our single biggest opportunity is harnessing the passion and ideas of our people into a clear, consumable People & Culture Strategy, building on the huge amount of work already completed. Do you know what a day in the life our personnel looks like? I'm not sure there is a typical day to be honest. The people I have met so far are performing a diverse range of activities across the Army, Air Corps and Naval Service. At the moment, I am working on making the connection better. What is the biggest challenge facing us, in your opinion? Recognising our people as our key strategic resources, we have a unique opportunity in the coming years to co-create a People & Culture strategy where everyone feels valued, appreciated and invested in. That strategy will attract top talent, bolster retention and create an environment that optimises operational performance thus ensuring the Defence Forces is fit for the future. What's your favourite acronym that you've learned so far? There have been so many, it is difficult to choose. It's like a different language. What leader, historical or current, inspires you and why? I have been following Sheryl Sandberg, former COO of Facebook in recent times. Her thoughts on Leadership are inspiring and a rock of common sense. I particularly like her quote, "If you are offered a seat on a rocket ship, don't ask what seat, just get on". Sometimes we need to push ourselves out of our comfort zones and then that comfort zone becomes wider. | 21 www.military.ie THE DEFENCE FORCES MAGAZINE INTERVIEW WITH HEAD OF STRATEGIC HR MR DECLAN CARVILLE Chief of Staff Lt Gen Seán Clancy welcoming the Head of Strategic HR Mr. Declan Carville

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