Global MPM Insight

Innovations and Implications for the Public Sector 2 Invest in a Continuous Learning Ecosystem The pace of technological change renders the “train once” model obsolete. Success depends on building an ecosystem of continuous learning, where skills are refreshed, and new capabilities are acquired as part of the daily workflow, supported by professional communities of practice. 3 An Evidence Base is Non-Negotiable A strategy without data is merely an aspiration. Evidence base is critical. It allows us to measure our progress, identify emerging gaps, and dynamically adjust our strategy to ensure our investments are targeted where they are needed most. 4 Integration is the Key to Acceleration Our greatest progress has come from tightly integrating our workforce plan with the government’s overarching strategic goals, as laid out in the Data and Digital Government Strategy and the AI Plan. A workforce strategy cannot succeed in isolation; it must be the core engine for delivering the government’s mission. Conclusion Building a future-ready public service is a journey of perpetual evolution. An evolution made up of continuous learning, adaptation and collaboration. Australia’s Data, Digital and Cyber Workforce Plan 2025-30 and AI Plan for the APS offer clear evidence-based roadmap that embeds builds trust, uplifts capability and fosters innovation to reform and transform public service. Together, they build a strong public service that delivers best service to all Australians. Building on the themes of my keynote speech at the 2025 Asia Public Service Network (APSN) event in Seoul and reflecting on the strong partnerships and deep engagement across the members of the APSN, I believe the opportunities outweigh the challenges and global and regional partnerships like the APSN is the key to unlock the human potential. In closing, I wish to express my gratitude to the Global MPM Insight Team for inviting me to share these insights with our international colleagues through their report. In an interconnected world, our ability to learn from one another is our greatest collective asset. We look forward to continued partnership as we all strive to build public services that are truly fit for the 21st century. from strong debut to sustained leadership Australia’s Global Standing Australia has been recognised as a global leader in digital government, ranking 2nd overall in the OECD’s 2025 Digital Government Index. The Index measures the policy foundations and institutional capability that enable governments to deliver coherent digital transformation. The Index assesses how governments embed digital capability across a range of dimensions and rates government efforts to establish a coherent, human-centred digital transformation. Australia has been placed as first in the “digital by design” and “user-driven services” categories and overall placement of second place–an improvement from fifth place in 2023. Since 2023, Australia has lifted its standing from 5th to 4th, attributed to our continued maturity in common digital capabilities and stronger coordination across the Australia Public Service. Australia has also been ranked in the top 5 by the World Bank that measured 48 indicators across 198 economies. Australia has been identified as a global leader in how it embraces government technologies. Australia has improved on its previous achievement of 81.1% in 2022 and hit 98.5% in 2025. The World Bank Group has been measuring economies use of government technology (GovTech) since 2021. The 2025 GovTech Maturity Index Update places Australia in the Group A (top 5 performing countries) of world economies. Being categorised in Group A (Very High GovTech Maturity) reflects the tangible ease of how Australians interact with their government. for the Global Public Sector Implications and Learnings Our journey, while uniquely Australian, offers several insights relevant to our international partners. Workforce challenges such as AI readiness, cyber security, data governance are shared across borders. By exchanging practices, benchmarking capabilities and building interoperable frameworks, governments can accelerate progress and reduce duplication. Australia’s engagement through the OECD and regional networks like the APSN demonstrates the transformative potential of shared learning, collective uplift and coordinated investment in the public service of the future. 1 Leadership in the AI Age is Different Leading a digital workforce requires more than just sponsorship. Leaders must activate and accelerate innovation by cultivating and fostering psychological safety for experimentation, model data-driven decision-making, and be able to ask discerning questions about the ethical implications of new technologies like AI. Global MPM Insight Vol.5 16 17