Senate Education and Employment Legislation Committee, , 50:35 to 1:00:17
The Secretary explains the creation of the Portfolio Strategy Division to centralize governance, planning, and cross-portfolio strategic policy.
Topics: Public service staffing, Government spending
Speakers: Simon Duggan, Senator Paul Scarr, Catherine Rule, Jody Anderson, Unknown Speaker
Thank you very much. I've got some questions in relation to Department Strategy 2026 project. So if there's anyone else who needs to come to the table. You described it as I understand it as a new very small function of about four to five staff reporting directly to you with no budget allocation running certainly to the end of the then financial year. Is that correct?
Yeah, that's correct, uh Senator. So I established the team on the 13th of April. There were five staff temporarily transferred from within the department. So one SES band two, so Ms. Anderson, who's now joined us to the at the table, uh, who led the endeavour, one EL2, two EL1s, and one APS five. Uh they concluded their work in around the first week of July.
So you say they concluded their work in about the first week of July.
Yeah.
But is it correct that your organisation chart effective 1 October now has uh a new team which has been established with respect to strategy? Can you just walk us through that?
Yeah, no, that is correct, Senator. So we established uh portfolio strategy division on the 10th of August, and the purpose of that new division is to provide a centralized and coordinated strategic capability within the department. And it's focused primarily is on cross-portfolio issues, where uh we have a contribution to make uh as a department, but it has a number of responsibilities, and that division was formed out of bringing together existing functions that existed across other parts of the department. So it's responsibilities broadly are for leading the department's governance, planning, performance and reporting arrangements. It coordinates implementation of our closing the gap commitments. So you just heard from Mr. Castro, he is one of the branch heads within the within the division. Uh as I mentioned, it brings together department-wide perspectives on cross-cutting and portfolio-wide issues. It also has a capability there to provide analysis and advice on emerging policy issues, so a bit of a strategic policy capability there. But it also supports the department's broader strategic direction and including implementation of the strategic framework, which was the key outcome of the strategy 2026 work.
Okay. I'll ask one further question just to provide you with some context and in terms of what my concern is. So on the face of it, in terms of the history, we had the strategy 2026 team, which had four to five staff, what whatever it was, Ms. Anderson. And then this has morphed into a three-team branch new division dealing with the strategic issues. Which on the face of it raises a question as to how did we go from four or five people looking at the strategic issues to a three-team division?
Yeah.
So can you just walk me through that evolution?
Yeah, Senator. Um the strategy 2026 work was a specific endeavour to bring really clarity to the department's mission, what our priorities are, what are the values that we demonstrate when the department is at its best. And so that that was a specific piece of work that what are the values? So we have five core values that have been articulated. Uh they're to be impactful, courageous, collaborative, curious, and inclusive, and that came out of extensive status.
I try to lift those values every day.
They align pretty well with it.
I like the values.
They align pretty well with the APS values as well. Um Senator. So that was that was a specific piece of work, and that has really given good direction and guidance to align the department around priorities. That was important, including for the work that we were talking to you about earlier, Senator, which was trying to ensure that we brought our budgeting position back into alignment with our resource allocation. So the need to do some really hard-headed prioritization and deprioritization started with a conversation with the department about what were the how do we align with the government's priorities and the department's broader accountabilities? This this was an exercise in making sure that we all had a clear understanding of what those priorities were.
So what wasn't the existing structure fit for purpose in terms of delivering those outcomes? Why did you need to set up this new team? Uh why was it necessary in your view?
So, Senator, I guess as a newly arrived secretary in the department, uh I was looking for strategic clarity from the organisation in terms of did it have a clear strategic purpose? My observation was that it could be sharpened significantly, and therefore I launched that strategy 2026 process. But but to go to your question, I mean, how do we go from five people to a division of 50%?
You understand why I'm asking the question.
I completely understand. And and basically that function of the division, which is around uh embedding the strategic framework that came out of the strategy 2026 work, is one relatively small part of what the division does. What the division did was consolidate existing functions. So we've moved existing staff out of other divisions to form this central division to bring together in a sense.
So I'll just give you the opportunity from your perspective. You were involved in the the very small handful of officers involved in strategic 2026, and now you've you've got a lead role with respect to the new division. So can you provide your context? So I'm it's my enthusiasm.
So it was a critical um uh decision obviously from the Secretary to bring together the the governance um division uh branch with the closing gap branch as well as the existing um strategic policy branch. So they're all in existence, but they were all in various different areas of the department. So there was that decision to align that that work to drive the um strategic framework, the objectives, but also the Secretary noted the overall um sort of governance arrangements driving that through our executive board, for example, on um uh you know, focusing the department's priorities.
Okay.
I'll just stress some of the um people who worked on Strategy 2026 were temporarily on that work, and they've since gone back to from whence they came. So um from whence they came. Yeah, for example, we had uh we had an expert um in kind of engagement and communications. Um she's gone back to the communications and engagement functions. So um we haven't gone up, we've just reallocated um people to different pieces of work.
Yeah, I get invited to go back to from whence I came on a regular basis. Uh have you got an executive board paper or or something that the documents the decision-making process in relation to that and when the decision was made?
Yeah, Senator, so all of all of these decisions were on the basis of advice through an executive board paper to the executive board.
So could I ask you to take on notice to provide a copy of that paper?
Uh yeah, Senator will buy that on notice.
Uh thank you. Now, where does this function now sit? Is it within the corporate and enabling services group? Is that correct?
That's correct, Senator.
So who do you report to? Okay. So I don't want to cause an issue here, but why are you reporting? Well, I'll ask you, Secretary. Why why is the reporting line to Ms. Rule as opposed, given it's strategic element direct to you?
Yeah. So the way we see, or the way I see our corporate enabling function is it's really about you know all of the things that Ms. Anderson described around corporate governance are completely consistent with what I'm you know, what the role and functions are of that group. So I to my mind it makes sense for you know the the reporting line to go through our chief operating officer through to the executive board and myself.
All right. Where did it previously sit?
It sat across uh three different groups actually. So three branches have come together. Um the strategic policy branch previously sat within the um Office of the Chief Economist in our workplace relations group. Um the governance team sat within my corporate and in the
Okay. So was there previously, and it's a very important issue. Was there previously a closing the gap dedicated team?
Yes.