MasterCraft Series - Stronger together: 15 years of APS & Jawun advancing change

Rachel Bacon 
Dr Rachel Bacon is the Deputy Commissioner - Head of APS Academy and Capability at the Australian Public Service Commission. Rachel has also been appointed to the IPAA ACT Council where she works to promote excellence in public administration. Prior to this Rachel worked at the Department of the Prime Minister & Cabinet (PM&C), as Deputy Secretary Public Sector Reform, helping to shape and deliver a suite of reform initiatives to make people’s interactions with government simpler, easier – and make life inside the public service understood and valued. Over the previous four years, Rachel has worked for the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts as Deputy Secretary of the Regional, Cities and Territories Group, delivering place-based policy and services for communities around Australia. Rachel has also spent time in the Department of Environment and Energy, running the Policy Analysis and Implementation Division, and as Deputy Chief Executive Officer with the Northern Territory Government’s Department of the Chief Minister. Rachel has led a number of taskforces (many based in PM&C) to deliver whole of government priorities in areas such as environment regulation reform and Australia’s engagement with Asia, and has worked in teams to improve implementation capability, deliver strategic policy projects, and support government in areas such as counter terrorism, native title and refugee law. Rachel’s PhD focused on administrative law and organisation change.

Antonio Di Dio 
Associate Professor Antonio Di Dio grew up in rural Italy and Australia and has been a GP for over 30 years. He still practices part time in Canberra, as well as being the full time director of the Professional Services Review. He has been passionately interested in practitioner well being for over 30 years, and still takes calls for a state Drs4Drs service. Antonio sits on the Board of both the Medical Benevolent Association and Drs Health Services, as well as being the Executive Chair of the National Leadership Alliance on practitioner wellbeing. He was awarded the AMA Presidential Medal in 2020 for services to doctors health and to refugees.  Associate Professor Di Dio chairs the Australian Health Regulators Network, and works to improve the safety of patients and the experience of those undergoing review. He is the SES Champion of the Public Sector Neurodiversity Community of Practice. Antonio was the AMA ACT Pres-Elect/President for 5 years, and served on Federal Council, the Board, and numerous committees over years. He sponsors literary and arts ventures, teaches medicine at ANU and travels the Australian Public Service giving presentations on workplace culture, psychosocial safety and burnout prevention. He also writes a regular Canberra paper column on kindness, collects many nerdy things, and shares a house with a wonderful family and too many books.