Human resource management in the Australian public service: Challenges and opportunities
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1002/pad.4230150322 |
| Date | 01 November 2006 |
| Author | Denis Ives |
| Published date | 01 November 2006 |
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AND DEVELOPMENT, VOL.
15,
319-334
(1995)
Human resource management in the Australian public service:
challenges and opportunities
DENIS IVES
Australian Public Service
Commission
INTRODUCTION
This article addresses Australia’s recent experience with Human Resource
Management in the public sector focusing on basic approaches and concepts that
may be of use to other countries, in their search for best practice.
In the past decade the Australian public service has experienced major reforms
that have had a significant impact on the work of public servants. The demands
placed on public servants are now greater than ever before, standards expected are
higher and roles more complex. There
is
a
focus on management and professionalism
in place of administration and bureaucracy.
In addition there are now more sophisticated expectations in the Australian
community about the ongoing nature and purpose of public sector activities at the
Commonwealth level. These expectations assume that:
the Australian public service provide a uniform and high standard of efficiency
and effectiveness right across Australia for the delivery
of
its services;
all Australians will have equal access to the services
of
the Commonwealth, and
will receive the same high standard of treatment;
the Australian public service will reflect the broad values
of
the Australian
community, in particular, it will provide a model of effectiveness and equality in
the management of its staff.
These expectations, added to the reforms of the past decade, bring complexity to the
nature
of
work and management pressures in the Australian public service.
The reforms have gone to the very heart of what is the role of the public service
and have raised many questions including those about the nature of government, the
scope of its functions, the way in which these functions are best performed and the
means of paying for them.
Central to these reforms have been concepts of efficiency, effectiveness, devolution
and accountability leading to a new focus on results and on improvement in the
quality of services to the public.
Denis lves
is
Public Service Commissioner, Public Service Commission, Edmund Barton Building, Barton,
ACT, Australia and member
of
the CAPAM Board
of
Directors.
CCC
0271-2075/95/0303
19-16
0
1995
by
John
Wiley
8c
Sons,
Ltd.
320
D.
Ives
MANAGEMENT
REFORMS
It has been recognized in Australia that public sector management is an important,
indeed critical, issue and that national objectives
will
not be achieved without a
substantial upgrading of public sector management skills and performance. In this
context, the key objectives of the Management Reform agenda pursued have been to
develop a public service that:
0
is more responsive and accountable to Ministers and the Parliament;
0
is more efficient, effective and equitable, with more rational means for the
distribution of resources to priorities and giving managers greater flexibility in
managing those resources; and
0
has more streamlined, flexible staffing policies, which allow managers to recruit
the best staff possible and achieve quality outcomes.
Major elements of the reform framework have included:
0
restructuring of departments and agencies into fewer larger portfolios;
0
major reforms in budgetary processes, including ongoing forward estimates;
0
a Financial Management Improvement Programme;
0
various commercial reforms and corporatization of major activities;
0
the devolution of decision making from central agencies to line departments, and
from central corporate services areas to line managers, that is, bringing them
closer to those immediately responsible for the delivery
of
services;
0
reform of classification structures and working arrangements;
0
a move to enterprise bargaining;
0
more streamlined and flexible staffing policies, including a range of personnel
management reforms based on devolution of responsibilities; and
0
an increased stress on performance and accountability of individual managers.
Initial reforms focused on structural, financial and industrial matters but,
increasingly, a more integrated approach is being adopted, which recognizes that
added to these must be other essential elements-culture and people management
practices.
The Australian public service is now turning to the challenges and opportunities
offered by human resource management in maintaining the momentum of the
Government’s reform agenda. There is a growing appreciation that an essential
priority of contemporary public sector management is people management.
It is being recognized that the achievement of corporate or programme goals relies
not only on strategic management and improved financial management but on clear
human resource management strategies. These include establishing a culture
accepting of new directions such as better teamwork, as well as allowing for
individual creativity and contribution, rewarding hgh performance and managing
poor performance, ensuring there is good communication within the organization as
well
as
with clients, and appropriate training and development.
While the pace and extent of change is increasing, the issue for a career service is to
shift from a service based on ongoing structural certainties to one based on an agreed
culture and enduring values and principles. This requires a more strategic approach
to
human resource management based on clarity of objectives and values. This
probably holds true in other public services generally.
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