CANBERRA   |   MARCH 13, 2025

Join a network of leaders for presentations and panels to discuss all aspects of public sector capability.

ATTENDEES

SPEAKERS

SESSIONS

AUSTRALIAN PUBLIC SERVICE EMPLOYEES

The Mandarin's Frank and Fearless public sector survey 2024

A lifelong Canberra local, Katy Gallagher entered politics in 2001 to boost women’s representation in the ACT Legislative Assembly. Since then, she has dedicated her career to public life and delivering future-focused policies. The range of portfolios she holds makes her uniquely placed to lead the Albanese government’s effort to rebuild the public service’s capability after almost a decade of outsourcing and underfunding.

David Hazlehurst became CEO of Services Australia in January 2024, bringing expertise in customer-centred digital services, program delivery, whole-of-government stakeholder partnerships, and a career spanning senior roles in social and economic portfolios across the APS. Prior to leading Services Australia, David was Head of Secretariat for two reviews for the government: the National Disability Insurance Scheme Review and the myGov user audit.

Jody Broun is a Yinjibarndi woman from the Pilbara in Western Australia who has maintained strong connections to Country, community and culture throughout her life. Appointed NIAA CEO in February 2022, she is passionate about social justice, community-led co-design, and making a difference by changing the way the government does business with Aboriginal communities and stakeholders.

As well as being DTA CEO since 2021, Chris Fechner is head of the APS Digital Profession. Before joining the APS, he was Queensland's Chief Customer and Digital Officer and Chief Digital and Product Officer at Service NSW. He is now responsible for ensuring the DTA delivers on the government’s digital transformation agenda.

Subho Banerjee has held Deputy Secretary roles in the education, industry and climate change portfolios, focusing on vocational education and skills, science and climate change adaptation and negotiations. He has also been responsible for finance, human resources and governance functions in a number of departments, as well as contributing to whole-of-APS efforts on public service reform and Indigenous employment.

Barney Glover is a distinguished academic leader, an accomplished mathematician and mathematics educator with significant experience in developing strong relationships with the vocational education sector. He is well respected for his engagement with First Nations Australians and disadvantaged communities. He began his five-year term as Jobs and Skills Australia Commissioner last year.

Pia Andrews specialises in adaptive policy management, policy infrastructure, participatory governance, high trust and legitimate systems and operating models (including AI), citizen-centric design, service agility and pragmatic continuous innovation in the public sector and beyond. She is on a mission to transform public sectors to be more humane, responsive and effective at the speed of continuous change, public trust and perpetual urgency.

Dr Marcus Wigan is a genuinely multispecialty professional, having administered policy for the UK government, worked for US and European national academies and advised joint standing committees of federal Parliament. His expert knowledge covers physics and mathematics, Asian studies and development, business administration, international relations, ethics, organisational psychology, civil engineering and more. 

After starting her career as a private practice barrister and solicitor, Kate Driver realised she was destined to follow a less “planned” but more “intentional” path. So she left behind unfulfilling hours at her desk in Sydney and returned home to Canberra where she began an eclectic career in the Commonwealth public sector, including as General Manager of Questacon. She also co-founded the CoRE Learning Foundation. 

One of Australia’s most distinguished public servants, Andrew Metcalfe was a Commonwealth secretary for three departments over 12 years, most recently (until his retirement in August 2023) as Secretary of the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. He was also Australia’s Director of Biosecurity.

Marianne Broadbent works with companies and government organisations on their leadership, people, talent and capability challenges. Her career includes co-owning NGS Global Oceania, which was recently integrated into the Future Leadership group of businesses. Over nine years at Gartner, she was Senior Vice-President for Global Strategy/New Product Development and prior to that Group Vice-President of executive programs.

Andrew Podger’s public service career spanned a range of portfolios, specialising mostly in social policy and public management. He was Secretary of the Australian Department of Health and Aged Care from 1996 to 2002 and Australian Public Service Commissioner from 2002 to 2004. He is a regular columnist in The Mandarin.

Stephen Bartos worked in the APS for 25 years and was a deputy secretary of the Commonwealth Department of Finance. He has been NSW Parliamentary Budget Officer, Executive Director of a leading consulting firm, and before that Professor of Governance and Director of the National Institute of Governance at the University of Canberra. He is a regular columnist in The Mandarin.

Matt Beard is a renowned moral philosopher and ethicist. He combines extensive academic experience with applied work in supporting leaders and organisations to build ethical capability.

Danielle Elston is a seasoned public sector leader with over two decades of experience in driving reform, innovation and high-performance outcomes across complex regulatory and operational landscapes. She is also the co-host of The Westminster Tradition podcast, which explores lessons for public servants by dissecting some of the most significant government challenges and failures.

David Schmidtchen has more than 30 years’ experience in the public sector through careers in the Australian Army, consulting and government. He has practical experience partnering with government leaders to design and deliver transformation through professional education, organisational design and behaviour change. He writes regularly for The Mandarin.

Public service provocateur John Glenn is an experienced senior executive, negotiator and dispute resolver who has worked for industry and government. He has negotiated multinational government agreements, chaired and facilitated multinational working groups, and worked with the UN in establishing peace transition arrangements. He founded Australian professional services firm Kiah.

Glenn Archer is a leading industry and government technology expert recognised for his deep expertise in digital government. He has held a range of senior technology and management roles in the public and private sectors. His current research efforts are focused on digital government, AI and cybersecurity.  

Brenton Prosser leads major research in co-design for APS capability with Australian public sector leaders. Previously, he directed the National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling and led numerous multimillion-dollar national evaluations of health and social policy for Commonwealth departments.

At its core, capability covers everything from recruitment to employee retention, and skills training to continuous professional development, and using data for better decision-making. It also includes elements of ethics, craft, stewardship, values and leadership across many government disciplines, including technology, finance, national security and social services.

Full program announced shortly.

SKILLS AND CAPABILITIES PUBLIC SERVICE AGENCIES REQUIRE IN 2025 AND BEYOND

HARNESSING THE POWER OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN GOVERNMENT

The risks and challenges facing government departments and agencies in the future and what they will require of their employees and leaders. 

When it comes to modernising government processes, AI offers countless exciting opportunities. How can public servants take advantage of these?

CHAOS AS USUAL: WHAT PUBLIC SERVANTS CAN LEARN FROM CRISES

HOW THE APS CAN ATTRACT AND RETAIN THE BEST TALENT

How the public service can give itself the best chance to find and hold staff - especially future leaders - while lifting overall workforce capability.

During ongoing turbulence, do we need more reform or certainty and stability? By focusing on capability gaps, do we risk ignoring lessons from the past?

HEADLINE PARTNER

GOLD PARTNER

HOW MUCH ARE TICKETS?

Ticket price is dependent on release and if you are working in the public sector. Please visit the checkout page for full pricing information. For group ticket purchases, please contact our team directly at events@themandarin.com.au.

CAN THIS CONFERENCE BE USED AS PART OF MY TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT?

Yes. If you need further information to provide for internal sign-off, please contact our team by emailing events@themandarin.com.au.

HOW CAN I FIND MORE INFORMATION ABOUT SPONSORING?

For our media kit and more information, please contact raustin@themandarin.com.au.

Newsletters | About Us | Contact Us |  Terms & Conditions | Code-of-Conduct | Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2025 Private Media Pty Ltd. Publishers of themandarin.com.au. All Rights Reserved