Jessica Quilty takes the helm at Snowy Valleys Council, continuing the family tradition of community service started by her grandfather Clem Roddy. Photo: Snowy Valleys Council.
Jessica Quilty grew up watching local government around the family table.
Her grandfather, Clem Roddy, served as a councillor. Her grandmother worked at the Tumut Visitors Centre for more than two decades. Her mother spent years promoting tourism and local industry across the region.
“Public service has always been part of our family conversations,” she said.
Now, the Tumut-raised executive will take on the most senior role in the organisation her family once helped shape, appointed as general manager of Snowy Valleys Council.
“For me, returning home to serve as general manager is both a professional privilege and a deeply personal honour,” Quilty said.
“This is the community that shaped me, and to now have the opportunity to contribute at this level is incredibly meaningful,” she said.
Mayor Julia Ham confirmed the appointment this month following an open recruitment process.
Quilty, who joined council in 2023 as Director of Community and Corporate Services, has spent the past 12 months in the role of acting general manager.
Her permanent appointment comes at a critical time as the council readies itself for de-amalgamation, with plans underway to separate back into two councils – Tumut and Tumbarumba – following the community’s decisive referendum vote last year.
For Quilty, the weight of the moment is not lost.
“Local government is where decisions directly impact people’s daily lives,” she said.
“To do that work in a region I care about so strongly brings a real sense of responsibility and purpose,” she said.
That sense of responsibility was shaped early.
From her grandfather’s time as a councillor, she says she learned the importance of integrity and accountability – and the need to make decisions for long-term community benefit rather than short-term gain.
For decades, her grandmother was the welcoming face of Tumut at the visitors centre. That role in championing the region was later carried on by her mother, who worked in tourism and industry promotion.
From both, Quilty learned that economic development isn’t simply about marketing — it’s about jobs, livelihoods and sustaining a strong regional community.
Those lessons now inform her leadership approach.
Quilty brings 19 years of experience across metropolitan and rural NSW councils, along with a Bachelor of Business Management and a Master’s in Local Government.
Working in metropolitan councils exposed her to large-scale infrastructure delivery, complex customer service systems and heightened community expectations around transparency.
Rural councils, she says, operate differently.
“There are fewer resources, a lower rate base, broader service areas and much stronger personal connections between council and community,” she said.
What she believes she brings back to Snowy Valleys is a combination of both worlds – a focus on seeing infrastructure projects through to completion, improving customer experiences and finding efficiencies within operations, paired with an understanding that in regional communities, relationships and trust matter just as much as systems.
Her year as acting general manager tested that balance.
“The biggest learning has been the importance of clarity during uncertainty,” she said. “When an organisation is navigating significant change, people look to leadership for direction and stability.”
With de-amalgamation on the horizon, clear direction will be crucial.
“The biggest challenge is managing complexity while maintaining service continuity,” Quilty said. “There is an understandable level of community interest and expectation. Ensuring transparency, clear communication and sound decision-making throughout the process will be essential.”
Her priorities for the next three years are deliberately structured.
First: financial sustainability – ensuring the council’s long-term financial position is viable and aligned with community priorities.
Second: strengthening organisational capability and culture – building workforce planning, leadership capacity and consistent service performance leading into de-amalgamation.
Third: community-focused service delivery and communication – ensuring the council’s Community Strategic Plan genuinely guides council decisions and that services remain accessible and responsive across the entire region.
“Above all, the goal is stability, strong governance and steady progress,” she said.
A particular focus will be ensuring smaller towns are not overshadowed in the transition.
“In regional areas, smaller communities are not peripheral; they are fundamental to the identity of the region,” Quilty said.
“Ensuring their voices are heard requires deliberate engagement – structured consultation, accessible communication and clear feedback so communities can see how their input informs decisions.”
It also requires equitable service planning, she added, aligning resources with need rather than simply population size.
