By Marlee Law, Senior Advisor, APS Workforce Planning, Australian Public Service Commission.
The APS Centre of Excellence for Workforce Planning is exploring the future workforce needs of the APS and what this means for the skills and capabilities of public servants. As agencies across the APS grapple with the ever changing capability of technology, workforce planners and managers alike, must consider what skills are required to get the most out of their employees and the technology they use.
CSIRO has released their Our Future World Report, that identifies global megatrends out to 2042, which aims to guide government policy and strategic over the coming decades. In this report CSIRO has identified 7 megatrends that are likely to impact the way Australia’s live and work over the next 20 years. These megatrends will be vital for the APS to consider when determining the future skills required for the public service to address global challenges, and to continue delivering on government objectives.
What future skills do we expect to see?
Future public servants will need a variety of technical and no-technical skills in order to deliver of government objectives in a fast changing world. There will be a growing need for technical data and digital skills to support technological advancement, and regulation of personal data and digital tools. Cyber security, data safety and privacy protecting are increasingly areas of concern for government and citizens alike.
The jobs we expect to see in the near future include:
- Algorithm bias auditor
- Natural disaster forecaster
- Meta-verse and Virtual Reality Systems Planner
- Data regulation officer
- Citizen rights advisor
- Human-machine teaming manager
The way we design jobs will also need to change. As emerging roles appear, the way we work together and with technology will evolve and adaptability of the workforce will become increasingly important to tackle this.
It’s not just technical skills
In addition to the technical skills future public servants will be required to have a series of employability skills. Employability skills are soft skills that are transferable across roles and are highly valued by employers, essential for effective performance in the workplace.
Employability skills in the digital age include:
- Learning ability and agility
- Critical and agile thinking
- Creativity and imagination
- Translating knowledge and skills to different contexts
- Problem solving
- Collaboration, empowerment and teamwork
- Self-awareness and resilience
- Transparency and trust
- Digital fluency and data analysis
Enhancing these skills will allow our workforce to shift and change rapidly to support the development in the work the public service will conduct in order to meet citizen’s needs.
How does the APS workforce get there?
Delivering for Tomorrow: The APS Workforce Strategy 2025 and the APS Reform Agenda have identified that the skills and capabilities of the APS will need to address growing global challenges. The work for the Australian Public Service Commission and the APS Reform Office underpins the development of public service capability to ensure public servants are ready for the change that is coming.
If you would like to know more about future skills of the APS, please contact APSWFP@apsc.gov.au.