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Last updated: 1997
Beyond bean counting: Effective financial management in the APS - 1998 & beyond
Please note: This document is for reference purposes only and is no longer considered by the APS Commission to be current. It may contain good practice advice and/or advice on the transitional arrangements between the 1922 and 1999 Public Service Acts.
The benchmarking survey conducted in conjunction with this report has confirmed the view that Commonwealth financial management practice is behind best practice as exhibited in the private sector and in some other public sector jurisdictions.
With the backdrop of an operating environment undergoing major financial reform, this report was commissioned by the Management Advisory Board (MAB) to evaluate the readiness of agencies to implement the reform framework. In its brief, MAB requested that the project team explore the extent of the gap, if any, between current Commonwealth practice and best practice, discover how best practice is actually applied in organisations, and suggest remedies for bridging gaps. That work is reflected in the report which provides details of 'real life' experiences in a range of organisations throughout Australia and overseas to illustrate the attributes of good financial management actually at work.
The Board is of the view that the adoption of accruals management at both the agency level and across the government sector is critical to a best practice financial management environment. Commitment to accruals management is not illustrated only by the production of annual accrual accounts, it goes much further than that. It provides the platform for better management of government resources, enhanced accountability and more meaningful performance management. The fact that the private sector has used accruals-based financial management for decades, and that other public sector jurisdictions throughout Australia and overseas are increasingly embracing it, strongly suggests that the Commonwealth Government's decision to adopt an accruals-based financial management framework in the Commonwealth is sound.
Members of MAB, and other agency heads, are committed to improving financial management throughout the Australian Public Service. The effective implementation of the new framework presents a number of major challenges. This report details the various implementation issues, and their associated risks. The biggest risk is that senior management will fail to grasp the importance of the reform framework and inhibit the effective adoption of its intended elements.
M.W. Moore-Wilton
Chairman
Management Advisory Board
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