Management and accountability
Performance against the Client Service Charter
Consultants and consultancy services
Commonwealth Disability Strategy
Governance
The core elements of the department’s governance system are leadership, strategic direction, accountability, performance, controls and assurance. These elements come together in a holistic governance approach to support the department’s strategic themes of openness and accountability, fair and reasonable dealings with clients and well trained and supported staff.
All departmental staff must have a good understanding of the department’s governance system in order for them to carry out their roles effectively. People in leadership roles have the further responsibility of ensuring that those in their teams are clear about the policies, procedures and business rules that govern their work and that all staff participate fully in departmental performance management, planning, accountability and assurance processes.
Review of governance
The department commissioned an independent review of its governance arrangements in January 2007. The review found that ‘substantial improvements have been made since July 2005 to the department’s governance systems, processes and structures’, indicating that the importance placed on cultural reform, behaviours and standards, accountability and stakeholder engagement in the department is paying off. During 2006-07 there was also an expanded emphasis on the department’s governance system, including induction and executive leadership programmes.
Further improvement in our governance arrangements will occur in 2007-08 as recommendations from the review are progressively implemented, including better education of staff on governance, clearer lines of accountability and a more strategic focus on departmental priorities.
In July 2006 the department implemented a comprehensive strategic business planning framework as a key element of its governance arrangements.
The department’s planning process aligns its business at the operational level with its strategic goals, through a cascading series of plans from the high-level DIAC Plan through to branch and section level plans. This strategic planning framework has enabled the department to work on a business and cultural transformation programme while continuing to deliver its day-to-day business.
The DIAC Plan
The DIAC Plan clearly defines the department’s business direction, including its purpose, strategic themes and priorities, outcomes and outputs. The department assesses its progress in advancing its strategic priorities through key actions and related performance measures that are reviewed each year.
On 22 June 2007 the secretary launched the DIAC Plan 2007-08. The plan was finalised after consultations with staff and key stakeholders to increase its accessibility in content and language.
The DIAC Plan also addresses important cultural issues, such as ‘what we value’ and a leadership model which describes expected behaviours that all staff understand and put into practice.
Accountability and performance reporting
The department plans at every level of the organisation – divisional, service delivery network, branch and section. The department maintains accountability through bi-annual reporting to the Executive Management Committee on progress against the department’s plans.
In January 2007, the department conducted its first performance reviews, with the Executive Management Committee noting consistently good mid-cycle progress on the delivery of planning outcomes across all divisions and the service delivery network.
The department’s planning framework integrates key governance and accountability measures. These include budget, risk management, workforce planning and stakeholder analysis. In the coming year the department will continue to work to strengthen the integration of these elements. It will consider how they drive and support our business and integrate them more effectively throughout our planning process.
Fraud measures
The effectiveness of risk management, including fraud risk management, within the department depends to a significant degree on establishing processes to identify, analyse and manage risk. A key outcome for the year included undertaking a high level assessment of the department’s activities and finalising the DIAC Fraud Control Plan 2006-08.
This plan was endorsed by the Fraud, Integrity and Security Committee (FISC) in November 2006. It was subsequently endorsed by the department’s Audit and Evaluation Committee and the Executive Management Committee. Copies have been provided to the minister, the assistant minister and the Australian Federal Police.
The Fraud Control Plan complements a chief executive instruction on fraud control which was re-issued on 26 March 2007 to incorporate departmental structural changes. The plan presents recommendations and action items to address fraud risks and to ensure compliance with the Fraud Control Guidelines of the Australian Government.
Key actions identified in the Fraud Control Plan that have been addressed include:
- implementing a programme of rolling fraud risk assessments to look at potential departmental exposures in greater detail – this programme has been closely monitored by the FISC
- linking fraud management with business planning, risk management and financial management – the department has started work to ensure that these links are made
- developing a fraud control framework to be made available to all staff through the intranet to ensure that staff at all levels know of their responsibilities and have correct information about fraud reporting mechanisms
- reviewing and revising departmental training packages to incorporate fraud and to raise fraud awareness among our staff.
The department conducted the first of the rolling risk assessments in the final quarter of 2006-07 focusing on financial and payroll processing and associated interaction with the information system.
A report summarising the analysis and mitigating strategies identified in that assessment was tabled at the FISC on 22 May 2007. A number of risks were identified, with ratings from low to moderate. A register of these risks and their respective owners is being maintained and mitigation actions monitored. Reporting against these will be provided regularly to relevant governance committees.
Governance and leadership
The Governance and Leadership Prominent Speaker Programme, established by the secretary for senior executives, continued in 2006-07 with a broad range of speakers.
The programme included presentations by: the Australian Public Service Commissioner, Ms Lynelle Briggs; the Auditor-General, Mr Ian McPhee; the Commonwealth and Immigration Ombudsman, Professor John McMillan; and the President of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, the Honourable John von Doussa, QC. Major-General Mike Smith, CEO of Austcare, gave the leadership group some important insights into the complexities of governance and leadership in a large non-government organisation.
The impact of global and national trends on the work of the department was also highlighted with a presentation on the Intergenerational Report 2007 by Mr David Tune, Treasury Executive Director, Fiscal and Corporate. During 2006-07, approximately 60 SES officers attended each presentation.
Senior management committees
Following the review of governance, the secretary decided that a number of adjustments should be made to the department’s senior management committees, to streamline their operation and improve their focus on strategic issues. These changes will come into operation on 1 July 2007.
The arrangements in place during 2006-07 are reflected in figure 24.
The EMC is the key senior management committee and assists the secretary to set the strategic direction of the department in consultation with the minister and is responsible for ensuring that risks are properly identified and managed. The EMC is responsible for internal allocation of the department’s budget and makes all key decisions regarding financial management.
Membership of the EMC in 2006-07 consisted of the secretary, deputy secretaries, chief financial officer, chief lawyer, the national communications manager and manager, strategic policy group.
There were 50 EMC meetings scheduled between 1 July 2006 and 30 June 2007. Of the 50 meetings, six were deemed as special meetings convened at the request of the secretary.
Following the recommendations of a review of the department’s governance by Mr Paul Hickey, the membership and structure of the department’s governance committees was amended. The changes came into effect on 1 July 2007. The EMC was renamed the ‘Executive Committee’ (EC). The EC membership will comprise the secretary, deputy secretaries, the chief financial officer and chief lawyer, with other senior executives co-opted from time to time as required.
The Change Management Steering Committee was wound up, with change management now falling under the EC responsibility. The Fraud, Integrity and Security Commitee was also wound up at the same time.
Corporate Leadership Group
The Corporate Leadership Group (CLG) is a forum where senior leaders across the department meet to share information about business risk and change, to discuss the broader strategic environment in which the department operates, and to negotiate agreements on joint operational responsibilities.
Each of the remaining committees is directly responsible for:
- monitoring the areas of risk of which they have ownership
- determining broad directions and providing support to the managers charged with dealing with those identified risks
- reporting to the secretary, and any relevant management committee that assists him, on strategic issues of greatest significance.
In 2006-07, there were 11 CLG meetings, of which one was a special meeting held at the request of the secretary. Agenda items considered by CLG have included policy proposals, research findings, whole-of-government approaches and commonwealth public service initiatives.
The DIAC Performance Management Committee (DPMC) brings together senior representatives from each of the department’s policy and programme delivery divisions within the National Office, the state and territory offices and the overseas network. The DPMC has particular responsibility for ensuring client needs are met effectively and efficiently while assuring programme performance in line with the government’s expectations.
In 2006-07, the DPMC met on six occasions. It has focused on translation of the department’s strategic priorities into operational plans and priorities for service delivery staff. It has also overseen the establishment of performance management boards within each policy and programme division to provide assurance of programme integrity and practice management groups with key programme areas which are tasked with identifying opportunities for business improvement across the department’s service delivery network.
Internal audit
Internal audit is a fundamental element of the department’s governance framework. It operates primarily to provide the secretary with independent assurance that a robust internal control framework is in place and departmental outputs and activities are operating effectively, efficiently and lawfully.
The internal audit function is managed by the Governance and Assurance Branch (which reports directly to the secretary) and operates under the authority of the Internal Audit Charter. The Internal Audit Programme (IAP) is primarily delivered by an external provider, Ernst & Young. The department also manages a supplementary panel of external providers with expertise in audit, risk management, fraud control and business continuity management services.
The department works cooperatively with the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) to coordinate overall audit activity within the department, and to ensure there is no duplication of the audit effort.
The ANAO is invited to the Departmental Audit and Evaluation Committee (DAEC) meetings and is regularly offered the opportunity to meet privately with the DAEC to discuss issues of mutual interest. The ANAO also attends DAEC’s Financial Statements Sub-Committee meetings.
The annual IAP is one of the department’s principal risk mitigation tools and an integral element of our assurance and risk management arrangements. The IAP is designed to closely align internal audit activity with the key risks the department faces.
The IAP for 2006-07 was developed following a rigorous analysis of our risk profile that was created after extensive consultation with our senior managers. The initial IAP was approved by the DAEC and endorsed by the EMC.
Quality assurance
In the post-Palmer and Comrie inquiries environment, the department has made a priority of addressing quality assurance.
In consultation with a wide range of stakeholders, the Governance and Assurance Branch developed a principles-based National Quality Assurance Framework. This promoted the basic principles of quality assurance and provided guidance on the design and review of quality assurance processes. The framework ensures that quality assurance methods and principles are applied consistently, enabling programme managers and the DAEC to identify trends and emerging portfolio-wide risks.
The department has had quality assurance processes in place for some time in different areas of the department. These ‘control self-assessment’ tools monitor performance and compliance using internally-developed checklists. Periodic reports are made to the DAEC on the level of compliance with controls and on remedial action proposed or undertaken to address identified shortcomings.
Risk management
During 2006-07, the department continued to integrate formal risk management practices into a range of governance activities, including business planning, contract management and internal audit planning. All divisions, state/territory offices and overseas regions had risk management plans in place in 2006-07. The department has drawn on this information in compiling risk profiles that were reviewed by the audit committee and endorsed by the EMC.
The department provided training and distributed promotional material to help raise awareness among staff of risk management principles and to promote an understanding and knowledge of our risk management framework. A network of risk management contacts in the department met regularly to discuss risk management issues and a Helpdesk was available to assist staff to develop risk management plans.