24th February 2015
Solace statement on departure of Joanna Killian from Essex County Council
On 24 February 2015 Essex County Council announced that Chief Executive Joanna Killian, also the Chair of Solace Group, will be leaving the authority to take up a role as Partner at KPMG. This is a short statement from Mark Rogers, President of Solace and Chief Executive of Birmingham City Council, in response.
On behalf of all Solace members, I first and foremost want to congratulate Joanna on her new role. During her time at Essex, CC Joanna has demonstrated clear, innovative and compassionate leadership which we are sure will be missed both by Essex and the sector more widely. We wish her all the best in this new opportunity.
I will also miss her clear and energetic advice and support to me personally and to the Society in the past few years. In particular, I wish to express my real gratitude for the way she has led the transformation of Solace launching the “new look” society at our 2014 Summit. She leaves us in a strong position to support the sector in the future.
In time, Solace will need to appoint a new Chair. These shoes will prove difficult to fill.