Preliminary Pages
The annual meeting with the heads of key agencies
responsible for public sector governance and administration provides the
Committee with a regular opportunity to discuss whole-of-government issues and
trends, and review the overall performance of the Australian Public Service
(APS). Previously held as a private briefing, to improve transparency, the
Committee decided to open up this year’s meeting to the public and to publish
this report.
The Committee was particularly interested in progress on the
APS reform initiatives; the results of the latest State of the Service report;
the potential impact of the increased efficiency dividend; and to hear about
future improvements planned for the public service.
The Committee is also responsible for approving annual
report guidelines for Commonwealth departments on behalf of the Parliament.
Questions relating to the proposed 2011-12 Requirements for Annual Reports were
also discussed at the public hearing.
In regard to the Annual Report Requirements, the Committee
was pleased to see a continued focus on streamlining and minimising duplication
of reporting.
A proposal was put forward to amend the reporting of
consultancy contracts. While maintaining the summary data, reports would direct
readers to AusTender, the centralised procurement reporting site, rather than
reproducing static lists of contracts. The Committee agreed to support this
proposal, after being informed by the Australian National Audit Office and the
Department of Finance and Deregulation of the potential for improvements to
accuracy and currency of information.
On another aspect of procurement, the Committee wanted to be
sure that agencies continue to improve on-time payments to small business.
Responding to the Committee’s concerns, the Department of Prime Minister and
Cabinet (PM&C) advised that the Australian Government Payments to Small
Business Performance Report will be enhanced with the inclusion of information
on the performance of individual agencies.
On the broader front of improvements across the public
service, the Committee noted the status update on the initiatives stemming from
the APS Blueprint for Reform. There are two key points in relation to the
reforms:
First, in terms of APS policy implementation capacity, the
JCPAA has for some time been raising concerns about the capacity of certain
departments to implement policy. PM&C outlined the engagement and support
strategy developed to improve guidance and communication and increase agency
capacity. The Committee will now be looking for a reduction in numbers of the
actual audit reports critical of implementation.
The second area of interest is the establishment of further
agency review options. The Committee welcomed advice that further scrutiny of
cross agency performance and strategic assessment of future capabilities was
underway. In particular the Committee was pleased to hear that the Capability
Review process would be rolled out across agencies and the results publicly
disclosed. However, due to the complexity of the different review options
available, the Committee would like to see the development of a simple explanation
of how these reviews fit together and avoid duplication.
While the underlying major reform takes place, APS agencies
will need to be considering how to improve the ‘state of the service’ at the
same time as finding savings to meet the increased efficiency dividend. Issues
in need of attention include:
n addressing the
continuing decline in diversity in terms of Indigenous employees and employees
with a disability; and
n improving the average
overall employee satisfaction with senior leaders.
Leadership drives success of an organisation and allows
these major reforms to succeed. Leaders are also pivotal in ensuring diversity
is encouraged and valued in a workplace. So it is of particular concern that
there is this continuing trend of dissatisfaction with those steering the
course. The Committee will continue to monitor results in this area.
When looking to the future, the Secretary of PM&C suggested
the APS needs to become Asia-capable. The JCPAA agrees that engaging with
regional counterparts is an important goal and looks forward to hearing about
developments in this area over the next year.
The Committee appreciates the important work of the APS and
the effort that has been put into reforming the state of the service. This
report makes some additional suggestions, largely aimed at improving the
accessibility of information to assist parliamentarians and the public in
assessing the performance of the APS.
Finally, I thank the senior public servants who attended the
hearing for their time, as well as for their frank and detailed engagement with
the Committee.
Robert Oakeshott MP
Chair
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Chair
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Mr Robert Oakeshott MP
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Deputy
Chair
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Ms Yvette D’Ath MP
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Members
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Hon Dick Adams MP
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Senator Mark Bishop
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Mr Jamie Briggs MP
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Senator Helen Kroger
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Ms Gai Brodtmann MP
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Senator Louise Pratt (from 27/06/12)
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Mr Darren Cheeseman MP
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Senator Dean Smith (from 09/05/12)
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Mr Josh Frydenberg MP
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Senator Matt Thistlethwaite
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Ms Deborah O’Neill MP
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Ms Laura Smyth MP
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Hon Alex Somlyay MP
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Committee Secretariat
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Secretary
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Mr David Brunoro
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Inquiry
Secretary
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Ms Vikki Darrough
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Senior
Research Officer
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Mr Shane Armstrong
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Office
Managers
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Ms Dorota Cooley
Ms Louise Goss
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