Australian public service commissioner stephen sedgwick

summary of Financial performance

Table 2 summarises the Commission’s financial performance in 2012–13.

Table 2: Summary of financial performance, 2012–13
	Budget estimate ($ million)*	Actual result ($ million)
Departmental
Program 1.1: Australian Public Service Commission
Program component 1.1.1: APS people and organisational performance	19.7	19.3
Program component 1.1.2: Investing in APS development and capability	21.8	22.7
Program component 1.1.3: Australian Government employment workplace relations	9.8	9.8
Total departmental	51.3	51.8
Administered
Program 1.2: Parliamentarians’ and judicial office holders’ remuneration and entitlements	59.9	59.3
Total administered	59.9	59.3
Total Outcome 1	111.2	111.1

* Full-year budget, including any subsequent adjustment made to the 2012–13 Budget

Departmental expenses were $0.5 million (1%) higher than budget as a result of conducting additional fee-for-service training programs.

Administered expenses were $0.6 million (1%) lower than budget with levels of remuneration and entitlements for members being lower than projected.

Table 2 should be read in conjunction with Table A2: Expenses and resources for Outcome 1, 2012–13 (Appendix A). The actual result includes the expenditure associated with the above-budget level of fee-for-service activities.

program 1.1—Component 1.1.1: aps people and organisational performance

objectives

The APS undertakes a broad range of activities related to policy, regulation, program implementation and program delivery.

The Commission’s objectives under program component 1.1.1 in 2012–13 were:

• to enhance employment frameworks within the APS that support effective deployment and management of human capital

• to advise government on amendments to the public service legislation and provide high- quality policy advice, and employment services, on matters covered by the Public Service Act 1999

• to manage and provide quality policy advice on the Commissioner’s statutory responsibilities for Senior Executive Service employment and recruitment of agency heads and statutory office holders

• to work with agencies to embed APS Values in the APS that are effective in driving performance and cultural change, and promote public service ethics and integrity

• to ensure a more systemic approach to APS-wide human capital and workforce planning through development of a human capital framework and workforce planning framework

• to streamline and improve APS workforce recruitment, induction, mobility and diversity strategies while upholding the merit principle and improve the employment brand of the APS

• to undertake agency capability reviews to assist agencies to improve institutional capabilities and strengthen accountability of agency performance

• to support the review, inquiry and reporting functions of the Public Service Commissioner and the Merit Protection Commissioner

• through reviews conducted by the Merit Protection Commissioner, to contribute to ensuring consistent standards of decision-making and people management practices across the APS

• to strengthen the performance management framework for the APS, providing evidence-based analysis of the current state of performance management across the APS to inform the debate

• to ensure that APS agencies have access to leadership and guidance on strategies to enhance agency-specific capability and leadership development through networks, forums and client engagement activities

• to develop public sector capability and capacity in partnership with developing countries on behalf of the Australian Government

• to deliver strategies under the APS Indigenous Employment Strategy, including undertaking research and analysis to inform initiatives to improve retention of Indigenous staff in the APS.

achievements

During 2012–13, the Commission’s achievements included:

• supporting the Minister for the Public Service and Integrity with the passage through the parliament of amendments to the Public Service Act 1999, which commenced on 1 July 2013

• developing and advising the government on amended Public Service Regulations

• developing the Australian Public Service Commissioner’s Directions 2013

• supporting agencies to implement the legislative changes by publishing detailed advice on action required, delivering information sessions and establishing an interactive question-and- answer page on the Commission’s website in the months before the new provisions came into effect

• updating a range of guidance material on employment matters ready for the commencement date

• working in partnership with agencies to develop resources to assist agencies to embed the revised APS Values and Employment Principles

• supporting the Minister with the launch of the new APS Values and Employment Principles on 18 June 2013

• developing best practice reasonable adjustment principles and the APS Indigenous Employment Strategy 2012–16 to support APS agencies to improve the employment outcomes of people with disability and Indigenous Australians

• administering the 2012 APS employee census to 159,917 employees with a 55% response rate, and developing and trialling an exit and entry survey to deepen our understanding of why people join the APS and why they leave

• completing research on performance management in the APS in partnership with several APS agencies, the Australian National University, the University of Canberra and the University of New South Wales, including the development of principles to promote a high-performance culture within agencies

• completing eight agency capability reviews and publishing four reports

• publishing the APS strategic workforce analysis and reporting guide developed in consultation with approximately 70 agencies

• completing the APS Classification Review and commencing work to address its recommendations, including the development of work-level standards applicable to classifications below the Senior Executive Service.