During Wayne’s nine year as Chief of Staff to the Prime Minister he worked closely with officials from right across the public service.
Between 2005 and 2017 Wayne was Chief of Staff to three National party leaders. As Chief of Staff, Wayne was the Prime Minister’s senior political adviser and was responsible for the management of both the Prime Minister’s office and key stakeholder relationships including National’s support parties.
Wayne’s presentation will cover how the Prime Minister’s office works in reality. He will talk about what staffers to the PM look for from the public service, and give some tips on interacting with them.
About our Speaker:
Between 2005 and 2017 Wayne was Chief of Staff to three National party leaders. After an initial year with Dr Don Brash, Wayne was Chief of Staff to John Key for ten years – two while John was Leader of the Opposition and eight as Prime Minister. After John Key resigned as Prime Minister, Bill English asked Wayne to stay on as Chief of Staff which he did until the change of government in October 2017.
Prior to becoming Chief of Staff, Wayne was General Manager Public Affairs for national grid operator Transpower. He also held senior communications roles as Head of Media Relations for Westpac in Sydney and General Manager Corporate Affairs for DB Breweries.
Wayne started his career as a researcher at Parliament in 1986, and was Private Secretary to then Opposition Leader Jim Bolger from 1987 to 1990. After National won the 1990 election Wayne became Director of the National Parliamentary Research Unit until 1993 when he was appointed Campaign Director for the National party.
Wayne is married to Adele and they have two daughters, Lauren and Jenna. He is a keen golfer and is a member of the committee at the Royal Wellington Golf Club.