Mark Heysom, formerly Chief Executive of the Learning and Skills Council.
I left the LSC about 6 months after he joined I guess, but even in that time he had made an impact on staff. While that impact wasn't always regarded as a good thing, at least you knew he was somewhere in the organisation. In many ways he was a more sympathetic character than his predecessor, known by many in the LSC as Monty Burns. I met "Monty" once and introduced him to my colleagues on a show and tell style visit - I was impressed at his lack of charisma, and his ability to wind up my colleagues by being vague and uninformed.
I was not completely Mark Heysom's number one fan - the move from local to regional focus was not a good one in my view and the processes to move staff around meant that there was real hiatus and impact on learners and on projects. This has been recognised in evaluations of ESF programmes at regional level and in more than one region too. It did also seem that this was a reorganisation too far, being the third since the LSC's inception in 2001.
I did feel sorry for him when Gordon Brown sprung the split of the Department for Education and Skills and its delivery agencies on him and I gather with only 20 minutes to half an hour warning of the public announcement. That has not helped performance or cohesion in the LSC in the past 18 months, and the next year promises to be as chaotic as the move from local to regional organisations.
However I have to admit to being very impressed that he has fallen on his sword, so to speak, over the issue of college rebuilding funds and related problems. It seems a long time since anyone did the honorable thing, without ensuring a golden parachute, and Mark should be commended for that. Good luck to you in whatever you chose to do next, sir!
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