The Covid-19 pandemic presented a unique challenge for the public sector, as senior finance leaders had to react rapidly to enable their organisations to support governments’ dual aims of saving lives and protecting livelihoods.
In the initial phases of the crisis, governments in many countries responded by increasing spending substantially. Senior finance leaders and their teams had to act decisively to ensure that additional funding allocated for healthcare and support programs benefited those it was intended for, as quickly as possible.
Evolving financial leadership in the pubic sector
This initial pandemic response saw faster decision-making, as processes were streamlined and finance teams were brought into the development of policy at an early stage.
These changes were seen as beneficial by the senior finance leaders we consulted, who were eager to ensure that they were retained and built upon in the public sector.
While the circumstances of the pandemic were exceptional, the public sector faces a legacy of challenges which have built up since 2020, as well as new and emerging risks.
'Leading recovery: the evolving role of senior finance leadership in the public sector' is a joint report with the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) and Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CA ANZ).
In our research, finance leaders identified 3 major areas where the public sector faces difficulties in the years ahead:
- Recruiting and retaining finance professionals
- Preparing for reducing budgets for public services
- Adapting to wider societal change, such as climate change, digitalisation and automation.
Read the full report and recommendations on the CA ANZ website.
Resources
A set of resources have been put together by CA ANZ along with the Department of Finance and the APS Academy. These resources will support you and your team into the post COVID-19 pandemic phase.
Video: Leading the recovery: The evolving role of a public sector CFO
This webinar, recorded in December 2021, includes senior leaders from the Australian Public Service wider public sector leaders. (Watch time - 60 Minutes)
Article: Building a toolkit for the future of the Australian public service
In this article Amy Fox FCA, Assistant Secretary in the Department of Finance, talks about the toolkit of knowledge and experience she has built over 20 years in the public service. (Read time 5 minutes)
Video: The Future of our profession
This public sector seminar, recorded in September 2022, features Carla Jago FCA, Steven Walker FCA and Charlotte Evatt FCA. (Watch time 55 minutes. The panel discussion begins 15m 30s into the video recording.)
Further Information
For more information on these or other public sector finance tools and resources:
• email the Department of Finance APS Accounting and Finance working group
• connect with David Jukes from Chartered Accountants ANZ on LinkedIn