Background
“Your success as a manager is directly related to how well you lead and connect with your people”
The reality of Australia’s changing demographics—an ageing population, critical skill shortages and a shrinking proportion of younger people entering the labour market—presents ever increasing and acute capability issues for organisations.
The Australian Public Service (APS) workforce itself is also changing. APS employees today are now more likely to pursue higher educational levels. Many expect greater diversity within their careers and more flexible working arrangements. They are keen to pursue jobs that are interesting and to maintain a good balance between work and other aspects of their lives. As a result, agencies are experiencing an increased readiness and capacity of people to ‘move on’ if their work experience does not measure up to their expectations.
The impact of these factors is felt most acutely by line managers, who must balance day-to-day management with ensuring they have an ongoing capability to deliver business results. They face increasing challenges in their ability to attract, develop and retain the people they need to produce those results.