We sat down the Hon Patrick Gorman MP, Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister and Assistant Minister for the Public Service to discuss the importance of integrity in the context of APS reform.
What does integrity mean to you?
Integrity means being really clear about what it is you're seeking to do and following through. To me, integrity is about respect, respect for our institutions, and respect for the trust placed in Australia's public service by the people of Australia. We are all incredibly fortunate to have the roles we do, working on behalf of the Australian people, and therefore, integrity should be embodied in everything we do.
Why is one of the key pillars of reform about integrity?
How could it not be? The expectations of the Australian people, when it comes to public services, and people making decisions and taking power on behalf of the Australian people is really clear, they want governments and public servants who act with integrity.
There's not just one simple check or balance that does that. We've got new initiatives like the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), and we've got existing integrity bodies. But we need to make sure that ultimately, this isn't about just finding people when they've done wrong, it's actually about ensuring people embody integrity in everything they do. If we get to that point, then actually, you build greater faith with the Australian people. And therefore, we expand our capability to implement policy agendas that have broad public buy-in, and we also encourage people to give Government the best possible advice.
Integrity also, in that sense, when it comes to good quality policy advice means being clear and upfront with people including when you're advising a minister or preparing information for Government of risks, opportunities, and making sure nothing is held back from a decision maker so they can actually make the best decision in the public interest.
When you see the Australian Public Service (APS) embodying integrity, what does it look like?
It looks like a new public servant doing a graduate program, being comfortable, asking questions of their superiors. It means people who've worked in Services Australia for decades, being able to demonstrate they are always working within the lawful guidelines that cover them. It means people taking their obligations really seriously to report serious corrupt conduct. It also means being really proud of your work as a public servant, where the community at large does see Australia's Public Service as embodying integrity.
One of the most trusted parts of our public service is the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). I met with some workers and officials at the ATO in Brisbane recently. What was really clear to me is, for them, integrity is also about meeting the promises they've made to their taxpayers. This means efficient delivery of services, making sure their systems are always operating to a standard so people can efficiently go about engaging with the ATO. It means thinking about the challenges we have coming at us in terms of cybersecurity. All those things are part of the APS embodying integrity in literally everything it does.
What role do APS HR professionals play to ensure the APS has a focus on integrity?
One of the most important things HR professionals do for the APS is to set the standard from the beginning. Inducting new members of staff into the APS. Being clear about those ongoing professional development pieces that are expected of all public servants, many of which have an integrity focus to them. Ensuring internal communications to staff talk about integrity matters and give people examples. One of the things I'd really encourage HR professionals within the APS to do is, where they see great examples of people demonstrating integrity, to celebrate that and share those stories widely. We can't make the mistake of integrity always being about learning from mistakes. Integrity and sharing the values of integrity is also about sharing success.
What's the biggest challenge when it comes to creating and delivering APS reform?
The big challenge is to ensure our APS Reform Agenda speaks to every public servant, regardless of which part of the public service they work or how long they've been a public servant. But that's a challenge I embrace. Because it's also the opportunity that if we are to get public service reform right, then it's a collaborative piece of work we do with the public service. That's why we're working with the public service. And we've opened this as much as we can, when it comes to creating the new APS purpose statement, something that will really be a guiding statement for all public servants, whatever contribution they make, wherever in this country, they make it, or indeed, if they are based overseas. So, making sure we speak to and engage with as much of the public service as possible. One of the things I'm really committed to as the Assistant Minister for the Public Service is getting out and talking to public servants across the country. I've visited Services Australia, I’ve visited the ATO, I’ve met with small agencies and secretariats that deliver really important public services. We want to be listening to public servants as we roll out these reforms. Because the other thing we know is when it comes to the continuous improvement of the capability of the public service, it’s not a piece of work that starts and stops. It's an ongoing piece of work. And so, we're going to keep listening, keep working with the public service, to make sure we can all deliver the sorts of policy outcomes Australians expect, and the high quality of services, we know the public service can deliver.
With the formation of NACC, what added value to APS employees and the Australian community does an improved focus on integrity have?
Acting with integrity holds no one back. Acting with integrity doesn't make anyone's job harder. Acting with integrity is simply about meeting the very fair and legitimate expectations of the Australian people. And making sure we send a message from the Government and the leadership of the public service, across all who have the honour to work for the Commonwealth, that integrity matters.
But also, that this is a shared value. This isn't a value only held by some. This is something which we actually all know every public servant holds as a value, as part of our work. We've sought to send a clear message through the establishment of the NACC, something which was done in 2022. People said it would take years, it was done within the first year of the Albanese Government.
I hope that sends the message; we take this seriously. The Parliament takes it seriously. And therefore, we can do so much more in terms of meeting our shared objectives of creating policy to improve the lives of all Australians, when each and every day we act with integrity.
A focus area is strengthening behaviour and outcomes-based performance management, starting with SES. What are the benefits of this top-down approach?
Everyone who works in the APS is expected to demonstrate leadership. But of course, for those within the Senior Executive Service, we have extra expectations. We know it's an obligation to invest in the skills of our people. And even when you get to those senior levels within the public service, your obligation to continue to engage in training, and to share those insights with others, does not stop.
We also know there's an expectation that the APS is a leader, not just of people who work in the public service or those who we service, but as an employer more generally. And that's something else I really want to see, is a high-level focus from senior leaders across the APS, that doesn't just mean integrity is a value embodied in the public sector, but it is something we lead on in the non-government and corporate sectors as well.
What outcomes of the APS reform are you most excited to see?
An ever-growing sense we are all part of one APS. The idea we have stronger connections across agencies means we can harness the full talents of the APS to solve the problems Australian people confront. And we can develop and continue to develop world-leading policy responses to the challenges of our time.
I really believe if we can make sure the idea that we're all part of the whole is embedded from the day someone starts as a graduate or is first issued with their employee number, we will actually get the really good outcomes everyone expects. This was part of the promise of the Thodey Review.
How do you see the Reform Office drawing on the HR professional stream to embed integrity into processes?
HR professionals and Departmental Secretaries have an important and shared responsibility for setting the standard and organisational culture of any Department. What we also know is there's often so much useful feedback from HR professionals to decision-makers and leaders about what is working and not working for people within the APS.
If we are to ensure we get new APS values like stewardship, embodied across the public service, and to continue to enforce these longstanding values, such as the importance of integrity, then we do have to rely on our HR professionals to make sure it’s done in a consistent and coordinated way. Particularly when we're dealing with large agencies and departments, thousands of employees and making sure this is embodied in the work of every single one of them. And for that, we do rely on a trusted HR professional stream to ensure best practice across the board.