The ATO’s Key observations The ATO believes that for the APS to be best placed to serve Australian governments and the community into the future, it is essential there is visible, cohesive leadership and a clear strategic vision for the APS delivering on the principle that a citizen’s interactions with government are as integrated and seamless as possible. In making our submission to this review, the ATO considers there are three priority areas where this review can have the most impact in meeting this objective: Leadership, Accountability and Funding Models across Whole of Government Leveraging data across the Public Service to enhance the Citizen Experience Consideration of Whole of Government approaches to people and resource management Leadership, Accountability and Funding Models across Whole of Government While the need for a whole of government approach, where appropriate, is currently widely accepted, the issue remains of how this is most effectively delivered. It is essential the APS establishes clear leadership and accountability models that require both collaboration and timely delivery of whole of government initiatives across agencies. The ATO considers there is potential for stronger and more effective collaboration between agencies across the APS. This can lead to government services that are more integrated and seamless. To be effective, collaboration activity must be balanced against the need to remain agile and responsive in a fast changing environment. For example it is clear that the APS needs to become more agile to address the regulatory and administrative issues caused by digital disruption. Too much collaboration activity (such as meetings for meetings sake) can adversely impact on actually achieving outcomes. Where processes are overly governed, it leads to too many decisions being in effect dilutes accountability for delivering outcomes within made ‘by committee’ which appropriate timeframes. Information technology and community expectations are moving quickly. Long term projects can no longer be the norm; otherwise the outcomes will be outdated before they are delivered.
The ATO’s Key observations The ATO believes that for the APS to be best placed to serve Australian governments and the community into the future, it is essential there is visible, cohesive leadership and a clear strategic vision for the APS delivering on the principle that a citizen’s interactions with government are as integrated and seamless as possible. In making our submission to this review, the ATO considers there are three priority areas where this review can have the most impact in meeting this objective: Leadership, Accountability and Funding Models across Whole of Government Leveraging data across the Public Service to enhance the Citizen Experience Consideration of Whole of Government approaches to people and resource management Leadership, Accountability and Funding Models across Whole of Government While the need for a whole of government approach, where appropriate, is currently widely accepted, the issue remains of how this is most effectively delivered. It is essential the APS establishes clear leadership and accountability models that require both collaboration and timely delivery of whole of government initiatives across agencies. The ATO considers there is potential for stronger and more effective collaboration between agencies across the APS. This can lead to government services that are more integrated and seamless. To be effective, collaboration activity must be balanced against the need to remain agile and responsive in a fast changing environment. For example it is clear that the APS needs to become more agile to address the regulatory and administrative issues caused by digital disruption. Too much collaboration activity (such as meetings for meetings sake) can adversely impact on actually achieving outcomes. Where processes are overly governed, it leads to too many decisions being made ‘by committee’ which in effect dilutes accountability for delivering outcomes within appropriate timeframes. Information technology and community expectations are moving quickly. Long term projects can no longer be the norm; otherwise the outcomes will be outdated before they are delivered.