Whanganui & Partners general manager Philippa Ivory resigns after seven-month tenure

Whanganui & Partners general manager Philippa Ivory is "pursuing other opportunities" after resigning from her role.

Whanganui & Partners general manager Philippa Ivory has resigned after just seven months in the job.

Ivory moved from Auckland back to her home town earlier this year to head up the economic development agency. However, on Monday, August 20, Whanganui & Partners and Whanganui District Council confirmed Ivory had resigned and would finish up on September 14.

Whanganui & Partners chair Myles Fothergill said he had had a number of discussions with Ivory over the past few days.

"It's sad and disappointing that Philippa has decided to move on but that's her decision and I wish her well for the future," Fothergill said.

"Seven months is a relatively short tenure. Economic development can be pretty tough. It's diverse, has complexities and demands from the business community in particular. It's a high profile job and has a fair amount of pressure attached to it but I don't want to speak on behalf of Philippa.

"We've got a great board and a great team and that's got to be a credit to Philippa as well."

Fothergill said he was satisfied with the agency's progress on delivering on its statement of intent and overall economic growth for Whanganui.

In the short term, a structure was being put in place to ensure a smooth transition for Ivory's departure and enable the remaining Whanganui & Partners' staff to focus on their work, Fothergill said. Recruitment to fill the position would begin as soon as possible.

Whanganui District Council chief executive Kym Fell said Ivory's decision to resign had not been made lightly and she was "now pursuing other opportunities in Whanganui".

"It is sad that Philippa has decided to move on, however I wish her all the very best for her future endeavours," Fell said.

The Innovation Quarter was delivering some positive outcomes and a framework had been created "to take Whanganui & Partners to the next stage", Fell said.

Whanganui & Partners receives $2 million a year from the council. In May 2018 a new statement of intent for the agency scrapped numerical targets in favour of more general economic improvements.

The 2018 targets are an increase in available jobs, businesses established and ensuring tourism numbers and spending track in line with national trends.

In education its goal is to increase enrolments in tertiary training and numbers coming to the district for study.

Whanganui & Partners is currently recruiting for a new education and youth strategic lead after Heather Cox's recent departure from the organisation. Fothergill said Ivory and one of the board members were currently looking after the education portfolio.

A public forum scheduled for 12 noon today (Tuesday) at Cooks Gardens function centre would go ahead as planned.

"It's business as usual," Fothergill said.

"This isn't an abnormal situation. People do move on. That's life."