What is the appropriate level of the use of consultants in the public service? Has it gone too far? Are consultants doing too much core/routine work or are they providing a vital service?
World War II and 9/11 led to permanent social shifts. The coronavirus will too, says the man who led Victoria through Black Saturday.
It's not enough to keep having "the same old conversations", argues new Victorian EPA Chair Kate Auty. For her, improving diversity and community engagement has meant talking to sports fans about climate change, convincing local communities about Aboriginal sentencing courts, and boosting the readership of environmental reports.
Would you accept that there is no such thing as a perfect public policy — or, if not, would you agree with the contention that the perfect can sometimes be the enemy of the good?
Know your customer, have a clear idea of what 'good service' means, and engage meaningfully. Department of Customer Service Deputy Secretary William Murphy discusses what NSW is doing to improve services for citizens.
Regulators need to be independent, but what does this mean in practice? Peter Shergold and Graeme Samuel recently offered their thoughts to the ANZSOG regulators' community of practice.
Public engagement is a great way to access expertise held by the community, but is often frustrating for participants — especially those from diverse communities. Consider whether you're really empowering people, says Maria Katsonis.
For as long as we continue to characterise what we’re trying to achieve with a name as amorphous as an ‘innovation agenda’, it’s hard to imagine it rising above anything more than being an add-on to business-as-usual.
In this second installment of his three-part series, economist and forward thinker Nicholas Gruen explains more of why it is so important to understand the ‘how’ of getting things done. From the commanding heights to everyday routines The big public sector careers are built in the land of ‘what’ – that is in designing and […]
Government leaders understanding what they need to do when faced with impending issues is one thing. But here, in the first of a three-part series, Nicholas Gruen gets into the nitty gritty of coming to terms with the 'how' of what needs to be done.
Which management type are you: the robot? The superhuman? Consultant Mark LeBusque on the importance of really knowing your colleagues — and yourself.
Disinformation is often presented in easily accessible formats designed to spread quickly and broadly across social media. Choose Your Own Fake News, by adopting the format of a game, is designed to fight fire with fire. It’s designed to target those most vulnerable to disinformation – the people who perhaps wouldn’t read reports put out by think tanks and governments – distilling the information in the most digestible way for them.
A new, multi-disciplinary approach at the Tax Office is trying to better design government interventions and services for a complex world. Assistant Commissioner Misha Kaur explains how they're doing it.
Testing the logic behind your arguments can only strengthen them, argues the head of Zoos Victoria.
Former premier Anna Bligh discusses evacuating a hospital while a cyclone loomed, finding leadership lessons in everyday life, and working from home for the first time in her career.
