It is a statement in itself that Ruth Parsons, chief executive of Historic Scotland, has given her first print interview since she took up her position in October 2009. More to the point she decided to do so in the business pages of The Herald and with the business editor Colin Donald.
A great deal of interest will be in her comments on allegations of bullying and the exodus of staff which have dogged her since she took up the reins. As the piece makes clear, in 2011-12 the cost of staff who accepted severance or early retirement was £477,985. It was only £64,157 in 2007-08 – the year before she took over:
Parsons strongly refuted press allegations of discontent within the organisation, including accusations of "bullying" levelled at her personally. While no formal complaints are under consideration, a spate of departures by experienced senior managers since her appointment in October 2009 include the chief inspector, the director of properties in care, the director of outreach and education, head of the press office, director of human resources, director finance and director of policy.
Parsons declined to comment on the departures, but claimed her "unsettling" changes were designed to "bring out the best in people" and improve corporate decision-making. She admitted she found public criticism of her management style difficult, but claimed strong internal support for her changes, which she said had given HS's conservation department its seat at the senior management table along with visitor services, commercial and tourism, and heritage management.
"It was difficult to read those things in the newspapers but you have to understand that when you are taking an organisation through change, not everyone is going to agree with those changes or accept those changes."
In return, Parsons claimed to have been offended on behalf of the remaining staff, whose contribution, she said, is slighted by the suggestion that the exit of key conservation personnel was putting Scotland's heritage at risk.
The full article is here.
It is a solid piece - Donald is a both a good writer and editor - but I remain curious why has it taken Parsons 29 months to talk to the press. Not engaging with the media is not a valid option these days. You come across as though you have something to hide. Parsons either needs to listen to the media advice she is already receiving or get new advisors. Remember she has a salary of £100,000 (which strikes me as too low for a job of this stature) and a budget at the moment of £47 million. Parsons may have a valid answer to many of the criticisms levelled against her, but we simply don't know.
Why did Parsons not comment on senior departures from Historic Scotland? There have too many and they are too senior for her to brush the question aside. Why did she not comment on the announcement last week of the centralisation of much archaeology in Scotland under Historic Scotland (see here)? And how does she feel about the perception that Historic Scotland has become politicised, a puppet for SNP policy on independence?