The high-profile failures of public-private partnerships on infrastructure delivery are mounting. But PPPs remain a vital economic model in tackling Australia’s $300-700 billion “infrastructure deficit”. The focus for governments now should be on strategic planning, integrating new projects into infrastructural networks, and ensuring better value for money, says Cassandra Wilkinson, a…
Central to the goals set out in the New South Wales government’s 10-year plan, NSW 2021, is the intention to improve the performance of the state’s economy. The overall objective is to make NSW not just the best performing state in Australia, but a leading economic and financial capital in…
The Mandarin is for public sector leaders and those interested in their work. We want The Mandarin to be the place that connects and helps people manage Australia better — for intelligent showcasing, discussion, collaboration and learning about public work and the people and many challenges behind it. To build this site we have consulted…
The New South Wales Department of Premier and Cabinet increased on-time payments by $10 million a year by changing two simple words in the heading of their infringement notices — from “enforcement order” to “unpaid fine”. This is just one example of public servant creativity coming from constraint, as national…
By all accounts, the recent GovHack was a triumph. More than 1300 hackers — about a third more than last year — logged on in Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Adelaide, Brisbane, Perth, Hobart, Ballarat, Mt Gambier, Cairns and the Gold Coast. Participants raved about how much they loved the government-sponsored hackathon,…
Social benefit bonds — public-private partnerships that incentivise community improvement — are coming. But they will need to become cheaper and easier to develop to catch on. SBBs, also known as social investment bonds, are a relatively new form of “government pays” PPP first trialled in the United Kingdom. Private investors provide funds to…
The scholarly bureaucrats, known as the mandarins, who ruled China for over 1300 years from the sixth century, knew about the need to adapt public leadership to the needs of the times. During that period, China absorbed the period of European colonialism, digested evangelising Christianity, combated multiple invaders, while managing…
It might seem like the one constant in government is change, but much of what has been written about government and public services in recent times suggests we are on the precipice of a major transformation. The pressures are well rehearsed and include changing demographics, increasing citizen expectations, the need…
There are concerns that a “haemorrhaging of skills” resulting from the dissolution of AusAID into the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade will undermine Australia’s aid program into the future. The simultaneous merger and aid budget cuts have led to a large number of DFAT staff applying for voluntary redundancies,…
Thanks to early legislation and strong commitment from those in leadership, the Australian public service continues to outperform the private sector on equality for women. But there is still room to improve. While women only comprise 9.2% of senior executives in ASX500 companies, they make up 41% of SES employees…
The Commission of Audit estimates that its recommendations could lead to a loss of 15,000 Australian public service jobs. But that is less frightening for the public service than it appears. Some are likely to arise from privatisations, which do not necessarily lead to job losses. For example, privatising the…