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Feature

Picture: Organisers and speakers at the Connecting Government Conference

Connecting Government Conference, Adelaide
Creating a culture for success

In a first for South Australia, influential leaders from Commonwealth, state and local government came together at a conference in Adelaide to look at ways that services and programmes could be delivered in a seamless and integrated manner.

The two-day conference at the Adelaide Convention Centre attracted the interest of more than 500 people, and was a joint venture between the Australian Public Service Commission, Public Sector Reform Unit of the Department of Premier and Cabinet South Australia, and the Institute of Public Administration Australia.

Dr Peter Shergold, Secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and keynote speaker, promoted the adoption of whole-of-government approaches in public administration, pointing out that:

For the public service to face the governance challenges of the future it must successfully adopt whole-of-Government approaches where it makes good business sense to do so.

Lynelle Briggs, the Australian Public Service Commissioner, addressed the conference and outlined her vision for a collegiate, collaborative and responsive Australian Public Service, noting that:

Our challenge is to find the infrastructure, processes and practices that will promote better connections and remove obstacles to collaboration.It is a question of balance—finding the relevant skills, and information-sharing infrastructure and governance arrangements that focus on accountability and the whole-of-Government outcomes that the Government is seeking.

Warren McCann, Chief Executive of the Department of the Premier and Cabinet in South Australia, outlined progress to date on South Australia’s Strategic Plan, while Mark Searle, Chief Executive Officer from the City of Marion, added a local government perspective on whole-of-Government work.

In addition to this conference, our regional offices held a range of activities throughout the year to progress the whole-of-government agenda and strategies.