Canberra seeks vendor fluent in digital transformation to modernise public service

The Australian Public Service Commission (APSC) wants to modernise the government's workforce, heading to market for a the provision of the design and delivery of an "intensive" digital transformation development program for Senior Executive Service (SES) staff within the public service.

The statement of requirement, published Tuesday, explains the vision of the APSC is to create a "flexible, efficient, and high-performing Australian Public Service (APS) that delivers quality outcomes for government, business, and the community".

The APSC's Centre for Leadership and Learning has partnered with the Digital Transformation Agency (DTA) to deliver a Building Digital Capability Program the APSC hopes will accelerate its digital transformation agenda.

The program consists of four areas, which includes a training marketplace, talent attraction, talent retention, and a revamped culture.

See also: 8 digital transformation resolutions for CIOs in 2018 (TechRepublic)

As a result of the Building Digital Capability Program, the APSC is expecting public service staff to be better skilled to support digital transformation in their respective agencies or departments, which will in turn transform government services.

The Approach to Market (ATM) explains the APSC is seeking to partner with leadership and executive education experts to design, develop, and deliver a "longitudinal, multi-modal, executive leadership program", with the commission producing Learning Design Standards to guide the design and development of the learning solutions.

According to the ATM, the successful supplier must have the capability and capacity to deliver a program which includes a "variety of modes in accordance with best practice in blended learning". These modes include immersive and intensive face-to-face delivery, digitally delivered content, social media content, workplace-based learning, webinars, virtual classrooms, self-paced instruction, collaborative forums, and discussion groups with a variety of approaches.

"It is expected that the program will be delivered using agile processes allowing for the program to evolve and improve from cohort to cohort using participant feedback and evaluation results," the ATM states.

It is an expectation that the chosen supplier will work with the APSC to identify appropriate channels to attract, engage, and retain participants in the program, by developing, as one example, a digital solution that manages the user "journey" from program awareness, through digital delivery of content and ongoing monitoring and reporting.

The supplier will also be required to work with the Centre's Talent Strategies and Evaluation Team on detailing evaluation and reporting techniques.

Watch this: Four steps to successful digital transformation (TechRepublic)

The Australian government is implementing a digital transformation agenda to transform the way it delivers services to citizens, business, and other users. The DTA -- formerly the Digital Transformation Office -- was created to help lead that transformation.

Although kicking off a handful of digital transformation projects earlier in the year, the government outlined its series of initiatives in its Budget 2017-18, intending to modernise and consolidate its systems, as well as train staff members in digital skills.

"A number of Commonwealth agencies are taking advantage of technology and other innovations to provide more productive and efficient ways of working such as establishing flexible working environments, including converting offices to open plan and activity-based working facilities, to enable co-location and improving remote access technology to allow staff to work from anywhere," the government said in its Budget 2017-18 documents.

The APS upgrade project will see a AU$350 million investment over three years from the government in order to modernise processes and systems.

"This measure, which is fully funded from the additional efficiency dividend applied in the 2016-17 Budget, provides for investments to advance the collection and use of government data in the development of evidence-based policy, including people-centred policy design," the government explained in May.

"The measure enhances service delivery through the Digital Transformation Agency's development of whole-of-government platforms, supports the development of digital capability, and further modernises systems to enable greater collaboration across the APS."

The one year contract with the APSC includes an extension option of either two additional periods of one year each, or additional services at the government's discretion.

The ATM closes February 2, 2018.

More on digital transformation in government

• ATO called out for not tracking costs in digital transformation program
• NSW Department of Justice transforms back end with ServiceNow
• Government-wide SAP deal expected to save IT coin
• Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission to upgrade software stack
• Victorian Supreme Court to undergo technology overhaul
• The desire to be mobile sent Noosa Shire Council to the cloud
• Audit finds Human Services not tracking Medicare payment costs
• Electoral Commission exploring how technology can simplify voting process
• Australian Bureau of Statistics ditches Cisco for Skype
• ASIC seeks externally managed data analytics service for financial stats
• CASA has AU$9m for someone to handle its digital transformation
• DTA and Human Services give myGov a 'timely' makeover