Auckland City's chief tipped for top post-merger position

David Rankin

Auckland City chief executive David Rankin is thought to have the inside running for the powerful position of running the Super City.

Another strong contender is Auckland Regional Council chief executive Peter Winder, who is also being tipped as chief executive for the mega-transport agency.

The chief executive of the Super City will oversee a $3 billion budget, $29 billion worth of assets and about 6000 staff. The salary is unknown, but is expected to be more than $550,000.

The new water agency transitional chief executive, Ian Parton, is on a salary of between $540,000 and $550,000.

An international search for a chief executive has attracted 28 candidates.

The interim job runs until July 2012, when the new Auckland Council will have the opportunity to confirm the chief executive or find a replacement.

The agency designing the Super City, which has the job of appointing the interim chief executive, is understood to be keen on appointing a New Zealand candidate who can hit the ground running for what will be a mammoth task of melding eight councils into a new structure.

The chief executive will also have the difficult job of building a council culture and relationship with 1.4 million Aucklanders.

As chief executive of the region's largest council, Mr Rankin, 54, is probably the best qualified candidate among the region's chief executives.

He holds a law degree, has risen through the ranks and led Auckland City since July 2005 after a spell as finance director.

His tenure, however, has been marred by controversy, and yesterday, Mayor John Banks refused to back him as a candidate. The pair have a strained relationship.

Mr Rankin is probably best known for going behind the back of councillors and introducing a new council logo at a cost of up to $1 million.

He had a hand in stopping community board members from acting as spokespeople on trees and spent more than $410,000 on consultants to come up with a discredited plan for a 26-member Super City with no local members, just one "neighbourhood" councillor for about 60,000 people.

Last year, a former associate of Mr Rankin at the old East Coast Bays City Council, Graham Parfitt, said he showed "total disdain for the democratic process" back then and this had characterised his term as chief executive at Auckland City.

A former employee said he "had a twinkle in his eye and a good sense of humour" and was good to work for. Others call him the "steely-eyed accountant". One former councillor said he was arrogant and high-handed.

Mr Winder has a lower profile by comparison, once famously telling staff that the ARC was a "beige organisation" following the campaigning days of former chairman Phil Warren, who took on the oil giants to lower sulphur content in diesel.

Mr Winder is not seen as a tough operator, but possesses a sharp intellect, an all-round knowledge of Auckland issues and is something of a transport boffin. This could see him get the top job at Auckland Transport, the council controlled organisation that will run all transport services for the Super City.

Auckland Regional Council chairman Mike Lee said he supported Mr Winder for the top Super City job.

"Peter has encouraged a more democratic public ethos at the ARC," Mr Lee said.