Jon Thompson
Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Defence
How did you tackle the biggest challenges facing your organisation in 2014?
I have a great team, and we have real clarity about what we are trying to achieve and who is leading. We’ve spent a huge amount of time on the importance of leadership with the Senior Civil Service, taking responsibility for tackling problems, finding solutions and delivering them. Changing the culture to embed this way of working and taking tough decisions has taken a little while, but with these attitudes I have every confidence the team will deliver. Constant attention to talent in the organisation is also fundamental, ensuring we have the right people in all roles and enough capacity and capability to deliver – wherever we can get that from, internally and beyond. Essential to that is promoting personal development and learning, from the top, for everyone, improving the individuals, teams and the organisation overall.
What are your department’s top priorities in the last months before the general election?
Four big priorities for us: deliver everything we’ve committed to (91 targets to deliver this year); respond to new events that require our presence and assistance (like ISIL in Iraq, or ebola); withdraw our combat troops from Afghanistan; and marshal all the evidence needed for the 2015 Spending Review and Strategic Defence Review.
What’s your favourite Christmas treat? And what makes you say ‘Bah, Humbug’?
It’s not a treat but having our three sons, with partners and other family, at our house, at some point for a great family day is fantastic, as it rarely happens in the course of the year. Bah, humbug: I don’t like carols – ironic as I’m a committed Christian!