Meet Lynsey – Area Manager, Community

Meet Lynsey Monk, Rocky Bay’s Area Manager for Community, who is based at our Mosman Park hub.

As Area Manager, Lynsey is responsible for Community functions in our hubs based in the north and east of Perth, as well as overseeing the Stages Toward Employment Pathways (S.T.E.P.) program and the Studio at Mosman Park.

She oversees the development side of the business, and focuses on strategy, business planning, and supporting service managers with their own professional development.

While Lynsey is relatively new to her current role, she has worked at Rocky Bay since 2015 first as an Occupational Therapist (OT), then in 2019 she was promoted to Allied Health Team Leader and had the opportunity to lead a team of therapists in the area of Assistive Technology.

Earlier this year, Lynsey was looking for a different pathway to follow and was keen to step up into more senior position with a completely different focus.

Find out more about Lynsey and her role with our Q&A below!

What is a typical day like in your role?

I look at things like ensuring we achieve great outcomes for our customers by supporting them to make the most of their funding. I also look at the Community operating model where I’m currently leading the work stream on customer experience, which looks at what we do now and what we want to be able to do in the future for our customers.

It’s just lovely that I have the opportunity to work every day with people who are so passionate about what they do and love what they do…the customers really are at the centre of our work. I’ve felt very welcomed into this business area. Everybody is so lovely, it’s a nice team to work with.

Tell us more about your previous experience? 

I am originally from Scotland, where I worked in psychiatry and in my latter years, before moving to Australia, I specialised in working with people with Dementia. Upon starting at Rocky Bay, I was the project officer and occupational therapist for the ‘Technology for All’ project, and was one of the WANDIS coordinators. I then had nine months off on maternity leave and returned to my role as an OT, before being successful in becoming the Team Leader for the Assistive Technology Services Team. 

Any there any exciting projects Community are working on that you can share with customers?

We are commencing the roll out of a new project with the first team of customers this month, which is very exciting as it will now empower customers to make decisions about how they want to use their plan! Our teams are working very hard in preparation for us to be the first service area at rocky Bay to roll this out. We are also looking at our current operational model, and reviewing how we may need to work differently in the future to keep up with the continual changes in customer requests and services.

What do you love most about your role? 

I love the diversity of my role, and having the opportunity to work with an amazing team of people who are so passionate and customer centred in all they do! 

Being able to engage with customers is really important to me, and this role allows me to do this and occasionally still wear my OT hat! Community is a vibrant and exciting area to work in, and as we navigate the ever changing world of the NDIS, it is giving us the opportunity to look at the services we provide, and shape these to what our customers need and want. This role is supporting me to develop my leadership skills, and undertake project work which I really enjoy.

What do you love to do in your free time?

I love spending time with my family and friends in my free time. I am often busy taking my children, Jack and Elise, to their various lessons on the weekend but when I can get a minute to myself you will find me tucked away with a cuppa, reading a book. 

And what are 3 things you can’t live without and why? 

1. My family – they are my world and what centre me
2. FaceTime – Sounds crazy, but with having family in both the UK and Melbourne, and in these current times, this allows us to stay connected to them which is very important to us.
3. A good cup of tea – particularly first thing in the morning, can’t beat it! As we say in Scotland I am a ‘tea jenny’!