1. Looking Forward: The Future of the Public Sector
Public Sector Forum 2016
Geoff Allan - Chief Operating Officer National Transport
Commission

2. 1968 - Pressures on government
• Changing community values
• Increasing computer power & data
• Newer faster media
• Increasing expectations of government
• Four Prime Ministers in four years

3. Response
• Appointed secretaries that
understood needs of ministers
• Increased sources of policy
advice

4. Royal Commission into Australian
Government Administration - 1976
The failure to define objectives and the inability to
measure success was the greatest source of
inefficiency in the public sector.
The establishment of objectives … for a department
or agency and for its constituent working units, will
make it possible to express objectives as targets in
quantitative form. In those cases, resources used
may be measured alongside results achieved.

5. Royal Commission
• Establish objectives for
departments and working units
• Express objectives as targets in
quantitative form
• Measure resources against
results
• Auditor-General to undertake
efficiency audits

6. 40 years of effort
• 1977 - Creation of Department of Finance (separate from Treasury)
• 1979 – HRSC Expenditure report - Parliament and Public Expenditure
• 1982 - Review of Cwth Administration (Reid Review) Management Improvement Plans
• 1983 - Reforming the Australian Public Service
• 1984 - Financial Management Improvement Program (FMIP) (inclfirst Diagnostic Study)
• 1985 - First Whole of Government program budget
• 1986 - Second FMIP Diagnostic Study
• 1988 - Third FMIP Diagnostic Study
• 1990 - HRSCFPA Not Dollars Alone: Review of FMIP
• 1996 - Charter of Government Performance
• 1997 - Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997
• 1999 - Budget outcomes/output based by program
• 2010 - Commonwealth Financial Accountability Review
• 2012 - Is Less More? Towards Better Commonwealth Performance
• 2013 - Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act

7. Future
Continuing
• Changing community
values
• Digital & technological
revolution
• Newer faster media
• Increase in expectations
of government
• Budgets unlikely to
increase
• More for less
• Continued focus on
– objectives
– measure
outcomes

8. Objective lessons
1. Ministers need to approve
2. Staff need to understand
3. One size does not fit all
4. Public should understand
objectives
5. Objectively measure your
results

9. Thank you