A digital-ready public service: learning from Canada
Governments around the world face problems attracting and retaining staff with digital skills. A Canadian report provides some ideas. Read More
Australian public service
We need to talk about ministerial control, says APS Review panellist
Ministers, decentralised pay, secretaries cloning themselves — a panel discussion on public sector reform gave an insight into what the APS Review might hold. Read More
What could go wrong when a top public servant moves to the big end of town?
Ken Henry's fall from pedestal to bed of nails was not even cushioned by the sterling contribution he previously made to the public service, says Verona Burgess. Read More
E-Day and the beauty parade: how two elections will impact the public service
Verona Burgess looks at how two critical elections could trigger another round of politically and personally favoured musical chairs at the top of the public service. Read More
The passion for making a difference is our greatest asset ‒ and we must preserve that
APS review panel member and Coca-Cola Amatil Australia chief Alison Watkins reveals her observations of the public service and dwells on the role of business in contributing to the reform debate. Read More
APS is ageing fast, and its older employees most want to stay
Today's average federal public servant is female, 43-year-old, an APS 6 in a service delivery role in Canberra. She's been working for the APS for 11 years and never moved from her starting agency. Read More
‘We’ve seen it before’: what secretaries talk about during leadership spills
The release of secretaries' board notes from the prime ministerial spill provide an insight into what APS mandarins talk about when their ministers are falling around them. Read More
Michael Pezzullo: know thy place, public servants, and focus on the facts
Home Affairs secretary Michael Pezzullo worries that some of his colleagues know too little of the origins and principles that underpin the Westminster system, and their role within it. Read More
‘Offer better advice’: overcoming the public service ‘victim mindset’
It's a tough time to be a public servant, but one deputy secretary is urging his colleagues to break out of their despondency. Read More
Consultants doing core public service work ‘deeply problematic’, says VPS commissioner
Consultants were on the agenda at this year's IPAA national conference, with panellists pondering politicians' lack of trust in public servants and the long-term implications of outsourcing strategic functions. Read More
Crisis of confidence: a black dog stalks the public service
Alarming new research has revealed the black dog stalking the public services of Australia as their unique professional obligations are afforded less respect than in the past. Read More
APS executives trail private sector on skills, says Terry Moran
Underinvestment in skills development is leaving bureaucrats lagging behind business, argues the former head of the APS. The problem is particularly acute in the senior executive. Read More
The most influential voices outside of government on improving the APS
The panel reviewing the APS should reinforce its identity as a distinct institution within government, and build a stronger general consensus around what federal bureaucrats and ministerial advisers are supposed to do these days, argues a group of Canberra's most experienced ex-mandarins. Read More
Andrew Podger’s brilliant reimagining of the Australian Public Service
Verona Burgess analyses former APS Commissioner Andrew Podger’s thought-provoking 8800-word submission to the Thodey review. Read More
Hell hath no fury like a senior public servant scorned
The trouble Roman Quaedvlieg is causing for his former political master is testament to why it's a good idea to look after public servants you want to dump. Read More