STODDART Catherine, DBA

Catherine has been Chief Executive Officer of Brightwater Care Group since April 2022. She was Chief Executive of Northern Territory Health in Australia (2017-2021), Deputy Chief Executive and Chief Nurse at Oxford University Hospital Foundation Trust (2014-2017). She is a member of WA Country Health Service Board, and Councillor of Australasian College of Health Service Managers.

Catherine will defend her Doctorate of Business Administration (DBA) in September 2023, on The Grounded Theory “”Crisis Stewards- Taking Action in Crisis”” which explores the role of Australian Public Sector Leaders in COVID-19, under the supervision of Dr Helen Scott, Business Science Institute.

Pr Helen Scott

Crisis Stewards: Taking Action in Crisis – A Grounded Theory Study of Australian Public Sector Executives

The theory of ‘Crisis Stewards—Taking Action in Crisis’ was developed against the backdrop of the COVID-19 global pandemic. This thesis offers a contribution to leadership and management practice by explaining and predicting the impact of crisis stewardship. Three types of crisis stewards are explained, each of which has varying impacts in crisis by taking action dependent on their capacity to act. These crisis stewards are explained as Thrivers, Strivers and Survivors and are affectively differentiated by their individual capacity, combined with the power to act (legislation, policy, public discourse, organisational structure) and the crisis itself. These elements create a ‘Combined Force’ that assists them to take action with varying amounts of impact, which can be at local, sector or societal level.

One of the influences on a crisis stewards ability to have an impact is the expectation of the community and government who require them to act in times of crisis. These crisis stewards are delegated powers to act through legislation and policy by government. The government, community and media expect the public sector to take the lead. The scale and longevity of the crisis required a move towards urgent decision making and therefore another consideration from this theory is the potential move towards tactical decision-making being in place for some time post crisis and supported by the government. The scale, longevity and impact of a crisis may create a catalyst for public sector leaders making decisions to move from more long-term, strategic processes to urgent decision-making. Thirdly, some crisis stewards, have the capacity to recognise, make change and implement reform that then becomes the standard, taking the opportunity to embed them in the organisation.

The crisis steward theory highlights the effect of the agility of teams in the public sector on the leader, which may have a role influencing the impact. For crisis stewards there are leadership attributes affecting their capacity to act; the amount of flexibility in their style, their tendency to authority versus consultation and a key factor appears to be prior experience in crisis as a leader. Therefore, there may be implications for management in determining who should take on a crisis steward role, given it is a key to a more significant impact.

This theory provides an overview of the impactful styles of leadership and conditions for crisis stewards to succeed in crisis and offers some prediction for future crisis responses.
This research study uses a Classic Grounded Theory (CGT) methodology, including 26 interviews with participants, and additional secondary data from media sources, government papers, reports, and presentations because, in CGT ‘all is data’ (Glaser, 1998 p8).