The 86 agencies included in the survey were:

• Aboriginal Hostels Ltd
• Administrative Appeals Tribunal
• Attorney-General’s Department
• Australian Agency for International Development
• Australian Broadcasting Authority
• Australian Bureau of Statistics
• Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research
• Australian Communications Authority
• Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
• Australian Crime Commission
• Australian Customs Service
• Australian Electoral Commission
• Australian Film Commission
• Australian Government Information Management Office
• Australian Industrial Registry
• Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies
• Australian Institute of Family Studies
• Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
• Australian National Audit Office
• Australian National Maritime Museum
• Australian Office of Financial Management
• Australian Public Service Commission
• Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency
• Australian Research Council
• Australian Securities and Investment Commission
• Australian Taxation Office (A.T.O.)
• Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre
• Australian Valuation Office Incl. in A.T.O.
• Australian War Memorial
• Bureau of Meteorology
• Centrelink
• Child Support Agency
• Comcare
• Commonwealth Grants Commission
• ComSuper
• CrimTrac Agency
• CRS Australia
• Defence Housing Authority
• Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
• Department of Communications, Technology and the Arts
• Department of Defence
• Department of Education, Science and Training
• Department of Employment and Workplace Relations
• Department of Family and Community Services
• Department of Finance and Administration
• Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
• Department of Health and Ageing (incl. Therapeutic Goods Admin.)
• Department of Immigration, Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs
• Department of Industry, Tourism and Resources
• Department of the Environment and Heritage
• Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
• Department of the Treasury
• Department of Transport and Regional Services
• Department of Veterans’ Affairs
• Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency 2
• Family Court of Australia
• Federal Court of Australia
• Federal Magistrates Service
• Food Standards Australia New Zealand
• Geoscience Australia
• Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority
• Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission
• Insolvency Trustee Services, Australia
• IP Australia
• Migration and Refugee Review Tribunals
• National Archives of Australia
• National Blood Authority 35
• National Capital Authority 82
• National Library of Australia 492
• National Museum of Australia 246
• National Native Title Tribunal 290
• National Occupational Health and Safety Commission 96
• National Oceans Office 47
• National Science and Technology Centre 189
• Office of Film and Literature Classification 39
• Office of National Assessments 60
• Office of Parliamentary Counsel 47
• Office of Professional Services Review 30
• Office of the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions 457
• Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman 82
• Office of the Employment Advocate Incl. In DEWR
• Office of the Federal Privacy Commissioner 41
• Productivity Commission 192
• Royal Australian Mint 119
• Social Security Appeals Tribunal Incl. In FACS
• Torres Strait Regional Authority 44

Background

Business confidence in Australia has been strong and corporate profits have been growing. The Reserve Bank of Australia noted that ‘the Australian economy is now in the fourteenth year of an expansion which has made substantial inroads into the economy's surplus productive capacity. Over recent months, it has become increasingly clear that remaining spare capacity in the labour and goods markets is becoming rather limited.'¹

The Treasurer has indicated that ‘the combination of solid output growth, moderate inflation and a 28-year low in unemployment provides a sound platform for further sustained improvement in Australia's economic wellbeing.'²

However, the government has highlighted some challenging population and labour force trends in the 2002–03 Intergenerational Report³ and in Australia's Demographic Challenges⁴ in 2004. For many entities, a key business risk, which could impact on economic growth, is skill shortages. Many industries are experiencing pressures from shortages in unskilled physical jobs, through to tradesmen, teachers, health care workers and specialist white-collar professionals.

In the Australian Public Service (APS) the report entitled Organisational Renewal⁵ produced by the Management Advisory Committee in 2003, and the Senate Finance and Public Administration References Committee report Recruitment and Training in the Australian Public Service⁶ in 2003, recommended that agencies undertake workforce planning. The Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) produced a better practice guide⁷ in 2001 to facilitate progress.

Within five years 23 per cent of the APS workforce is eligible to retire.⁸ However this does not represent the crest of the wave. The current cohorts of 40–44 years and 45–49 years each represent more than 16 per cent of the APS workforce and as they enter the greater than 50 years category over the next 10 years, the proportion of the workforce eligible to retire within a five-year period is expected to swell. Already skill shortages exist in the areas of accountancy, and to a lesser extent, legal officers, economists, project managers and information technology professionals.

Workforce planning practices in the APS are influenced by the size of the agency, its complexity, and the context in which it is operating. The Department of Defence (Defence), for example, with large numbers of staff has the capacity and the need to apply a great deal more resources to workforce planning than do smaller agencies. However, all agencies rely on specialist skills in certain areas and organisational capability may be adversely impacted if appropriately skilled staff are not available.

Audit objective and methodology

The objective of the audit was to consider the status of workforce planning by APS agencies against the background of the ANAO's 2001 Better Practice Guide Planning for the Workforce of the Future, in light of the recommendations made in the MAC Organisational Renewal 2001 and the Senate Finance and Public Administration References Committee report Recruitment and Training in the Australian Public Service 2003. Workforce planning was defined as a continuous process of shaping the workforce to ensure it is capable of delivering organisational objectives now and in the future.

To conduct the audit the ANAO surveyed 86 APS agencies⁹ and selected 10 for further examination. Nine agencies (from a range of sizes covering small, medium and large) were selected for review on the basis that they had a workforce planning process in existence, the process exhibited elements of better practice, and the agency was anticipating an increase in demand for the services of the agency and/or labour. These agencies were selected with a view to identifying better practices across the service. One agency was reviewed as a follow-up to a previously conducted audit.

This audit developed only four criteria for assessing workforce planning practices and has set out to outline, by way of example, a simplified framework of how agencies might proceed with their workforce planning efforts. The examples provided aim to demonstrate how an agency might undertake a certain activity: agencies can then transfer the idea to their own context. The ANAO considers that all agencies, regardless of size, should give consideration to their future workforce needs as a matter of prudent management practice, whether or not they are anticipating shortages. The level of resources applied should be appropriate to each agency's identified needs but the key elements contained in the criteria require consideration by senior managers.

The ANAO set a reasonably high standard in assessing the workforce planning practices of APS agencies. The ANAO feels this is appropriate in the context of the changing demographics of the Australian population and the need for agencies to meet any challenges this poses for their workforces. The priority given to these challenges is particularly important in light of our observation that the timeframes for development of effective practices are long and the results sometimes uncertain.

Most importantly, the theme of organisational capability is embedded within the criteria with a view to ensuring that agencies that address them would be well placed to effectively administer government programs and achieve the Government's desired outcomes. Agencies should, however, consider the examples noted in this report and adapt them where relevant to their own circumstances.

Key audit findings

Status of Workforce Planning in the Australian Public Service (Chapter 2)

The Australian Public Service Commission's (APSC) State of the Service Report reports that 41 per cent of agencies had policies, strategies or frameworks in place to ensure they have the skills and capabilities needed for the next 1–5 years.¹⁰

The ANAO survey indicates that 24 agencies (28 per cent of 86 surveyed) report having an established workforce planning process in place. Of those that do not have an established process, 30 agencies are formulating a workforce plan or strategies at this time, while 27 intend to undertake workforce planning but are yet to begin. As noted in paragraph 2.3, five agencies currently have no plans to undertake workforce planning.

The smaller percentage indicated by the ANAO survey is a result of a more specific question relating to workforce planning processes and is considered to be reasonably consistent with the APSC results given the different questions asked. However, the ANAO concluded that the survey results, obtained by both the ANAO and APSC, are likely to overstate the extent of workforce planning in the APS. The ANAO acknowledges that agencies have been diligent in seeking to provide a realistic assessment of their activities. However, the audit fieldwork undertaken suggests that the results reported in the survey tended to be more positive than the actual evidence suggested. A possible explanation is that those who are informed and have the necessary skills rate themselves lower, as they are aware of the complexities involved. Higher ratings can, however, be the result of a lack of knowledge in this area.

Agencies reported various challenges and impediments to progressing their workforce planning, citing a lack of understanding of what workforce planning means in practice, the difficulty in raising awareness and gaining acceptance from line managers, a lack of resources, the inability to collect relevant data, a lack of experience in forecasting, and the challenge of integrating workforce planning into the business planning framework.

The ANAO also considered agencies' progress in workforce planning in relation to their age profile, anticipated demand for services and hence labour, and current skill shortages. The survey results indicated no relationship between these risk factors and the general level of progress in workforce planning. However, the ANAO did note that workforce planning was given greater consideration by those agencies that perceived the consequences of a shortage of staff to be greater.

Embedding an effective workforce planning process into an organisation is a time-consuming process. Based on discussions with agencies, the ANAO estimates that two to five years, to establish an effective process, is not uncommon. A number of iterations have generally been required to improve the processes. The ANAO results also indicate that agencies with a greater level of experience over a longer period of time were more likely to report associated positive impacts on organisational capability. It is therefore important for the APS as a whole, that agencies can draw on the knowledge of those who have made progress in implementing effective systems. For this reason this report has focused on the better practice features displayed in workforce planning systems.

Assessing Human Capital Requirements (Chapter 3)

A key element in workforce planning is considering the implications for the workforce of the strategic direction of the agency. It is therefore essential for an agency to first clearly articulate its strategic direction and identify the organisational capabilities needed to deliver on commitments into the future, before workforce planning can be undertaken.

In making an assessment of agencies' practices the ANAO was looking for an assessment of the demand (workforce needed) and supply (current workforce) dimensions of the workforce to support the achievement of the organisation's desired capability. The ANAO concluded, based on examinations of practices within selected agencies, that an assessment of the demand for, and supply of, labour was rare.

In order to provide guidance for agencies in this area the audit has outlined examples of better practices identified for all agencies to consider. A noteworthy example was obtained from the workforce planning for Australian Defence Force personnel. A part of the methodology considers the demand/supply shortfall in each occupational group and senior staff relate this to the impact on organisational capability. For this purpose four levels of risk and risk acceptance are used that indicate the priority that should be accorded to correcting the underlying problem as well as guiding the level of reporting. The ANAO considers that relating the shortfalls to the impact on organisational capability is an essential element of workforce planning that should be adopted, in principle, by all APS agencies.

It should be noted that the application of this concept could be much broader than shortfalls in occupational groups. Defence also applies it in its workforce considerations of major capability investments. At the present time, an additional application by APS agencies could be to apply it in a consideration of the impact on organisational capability of the loss in competencies and corporate knowledge of retiring staff.

Consideration of external labour market information was, in most of the reviewed agencies, sporadic and ad hoc. It is essential that agencies keep abreast of the context in which they are operating and developments in areas of skill shortages. Further, while it was generally considered appropriate to include the contingent workforce¹¹ in planning processes, the extent of their inclusion was limited in almost all agencies. Only one example of the consideration of wider workforce dependencies was noted, such as the workforces of other entities on which agencies rely.

While many agencies have made efforts to integrate workforce and business planning, the ANAO considers agencies could do more by linking the workforce planning to organisational capability as previously discussed. The ANAO also observed that annual budget constraints, and the relatively short-term focus of operational planning, is perceived to hinder efforts to plan for the longer-term.

Assessing Workforce Characteristics and Competencies (Chapter 4)

Agencies need to know their workforce, both in the context of workforce characteristics and workforce competencies, in order to identify workforce-planning issues. Based on the survey results and audit examinations the ANAO concluded that agencies have a reasonable grasp of many of their workforce characteristics, but less so in relation to competencies. While agencies are able to produce many outputs in relation to the demographic profiles and other workforce characteristics, there are limited examples of turning data analysis into strategic information. Agencies need to become more sophisticated in combining sources of information to produce quality information to aid decision-making.

A number of agencies have competency frameworks in place that are being linked to performance and learning management systems. In the context of workforce planning such systems can facilitate the identification of occupational groups or competencies required by the organisation. However, agencies do need to consider how this information can be used in conjunction with their demand and supply forecasting efforts that are often produced by classification level.

A useful contribution these systems can make to workforce planning within agencies is the identification of mission-critical occupations. Only isolated examples of this were noted. Regardless of the lack of identification of these occupations many agencies did, at least, report some form of succession planning under development. This is largely a result of the focus placed on this area in the MAC Organisational Renewal report.

Implementation of Strategies (Chapter 5)

Many of the strategies adopted by agencies reflect the priorities of the MAC Organisational Renewal report including flexible employment, monitoring profiles, retention of mature age workers, surveys to inform attraction and retention strategies, employer of choice strategies, and occupational health and safety. All the strategies noted above are useful, and agency efforts in this area are to be commended.

Based on audit examinations the ANAO concluded that the link between analysis and strategy is not yet well developed. While the ageing demographic is the most common and widely publicised issue there are existing workforce issues to be addressed in the short term. Generic strategies will not necessarily address particular risks to the agency. That is, a clear link between workforce risk analysis and strategies to address those risks was not particularly evident in the APS agencies examined.

Agency-specific strategies should be developed to focus on that agency's identified workforce risks both current, such as existing skills shortages in particular occupations, and longer term, such as the ageing workforce. It is anticipated that, as agency workforce planning processes mature, strategies will become more targeted based on the identified needs that arise from the demand and supply forecasting undertaken. Through this process organisational capability should also improve. However, transition plans may need to be implemented in order to engage in simplified workforce planning processes until more tailored methodologies are developed.

Of interest to the ANAO is the extent to which the development of generic strategies of this sort is symptomatic of the lack of focus on organisational capability within agencies' workforce planning practices, or still broader, a need for better specification of functional capability requirements. Until that focus is developed, agencies will be unable to target their efforts and funds to provide
cost-effective solutions to identified workforce risks. Furthermore, strategies derived from workforce planning efforts should extend beyond the human resource management sphere and include all relevant business strategies. While some examples were noted where significant workforce impacts resulted from changing business strategies, these tended to be by-products of other business activities rather than identifiable outcomes of the workforce planning processes.

Interagency cooperation may be required by those agencies with identified skill shortages. Competition between agencies for the same staff is a salient example of this and should alert agencies to the need for collaboration and joint initiatives. This may include initiatives on both the demand and supply side of agency workforce needs. The more traditional areas of collaboration are on the supply side in areas of recruitment and training. However, agencies may be able to consider demand side initiatives to alleviate staff shortages. The APSC may have a role here in keeping abreast of shortages and promoting shared initiatives.

Measurement of Progress (Chapter 6)

The success of workforce planning practices will be judged by whether it contributes to achieving the agency's mission and strategic goals. Within the current context of demographic change, however, it will also be judged by its contribution to avoiding or dealing with shortages in mission-critical occupations and roles.

The survey results indicated that the majority of agencies do not have an appropriate measurement framework in place to assess their workforce planning activities. Even among the agencies examined in audit fieldwork few were found to have processes in place for monitoring workforce-planning efforts. Although agencies are in the early stages of developing systems in this area, reasonable examples from first-round attempts were observed in Insolvency and Trustee Services Australia, the Department of Education Science and Training, Australian Customs Service and the Department of Defence.

Despite this, the survey results indicated that agencies have a high level of confidence that their workforce planning activities will provide the capability needed. This suggests there may be a risk of over-confidence in agencies' ability to respond to the challenges that demographic changes pose.

Given the limited level of development in this area the ANAO did not expect to find completed reviews of workforce plans and associated strategies. Such reviews would, however, ensure that the anticipated benefits of workforce planning are accruing to agencies, that ongoing refinements are implemented and that assumptions made are still valid. Defence, with its long-term experience in workforce planning, is the one exception. Defence reviewed its approach documented in Report of the Strategic Workforce Planning Review 2003¹² and has made comprehensive changes as a result. The ANAO concluded that little information of the effectiveness of systems within other APS agencies exists at this time.

There is a risk in all of these efforts that the amount of data, and the way in which it is displayed, can swamp an understanding of the issues being presented. The ANAO encourages all agencies to determine the critical workforce data and information needed by the agency and to ensure that it is clearly and compellingly linked to the success of the business. The chosen measures should inform decision-making and be presented to the executive in a coherent assessment of the progress being made.

Overall audit conclusions

The ANAO found that while a number of APS agencies are undertaking workforce planning, few if any, could claim to have successfully embedded workforce planning into their business processes. Even the most advanced are only in the early stages of developing their systems.

A more thorough workforce risk assessment needs to be made by each agency to target their activities. Agencies need to consider the consequences of a particular skill or staff shortage, or alternatively, if shortages are not anticipated, consider the organisational capability to be developed. It is anticipated that, as agency workforce planning processes mature, strategies will become more targeted based on the identified needs that arise from the demand and supply forecasting undertaken. Through this process organisational capability should also improve.

The ANAO concluded that:

• an assessment of the demand for, and supply of, labour was rare;
• relating the shortfalls to capability is an essential element of workforce planning that should be adopted, in principle, by all APS agencies;
• consideration of external labour market information was, in most agencies, sporadic and ad hoc;
• agencies have a reasonable grasp of many of their workforce characteristics, but less so in relation to competencies;
• the link between analysis and strategy is not yet well developed; and
• little information on the effectiveness of workforce planning systems within APS agencies exists at this time.

The development time to generate effective workforce planning systems is significant and a considerable percentage of staff will be eligible to retire in five years. Agencies should ensure that workforce-planning systems inform the development of workforce and business strategies to meet desired organisational capability. The management challenges in developing workforce planning expertise, identifying and addressing workforce risks, and implementing appropriate strategies, are significant. For example, responding to skills shortages, assessing possible impacts on corporate knowledge and embedding flexible work practices, to name only a few, take time to implement, embed, and make effective.

The ANAO also considers that it would be beneficial for the APSC to assess the external environment and the repercussions for the APS. This could usefully be reported in the State of the Service Report in order to inform agencies of the broader external environment, and also to allow agencies to gauge the extent to which they may be able to collaborate to overcome recognised shortages or associated impacts.

The collection of information on shortages across the APS as well as an assessment of their impacts on capability would also be of benefit. When considered over time such information should identify the scale of any existing shortages, as well as potential shortages and potential impacts on the delivery of government programs.

Such data collection is becoming increasingly important and it would therefore be advantageous if the APSC could develop this capacity soon in order to monitor the impact on the APS workforce as the Australian population and workforce ages.

What needs to be done?

Agencies need to focus attention on the workforce risks specific to the agency with clear reference to a consideration of organisational capability. Based on the findings of the audit, agencies are encouraged to:

a) undertake a workforce risk assessment in relation to their desired organisational capability. This should include an assessment of the workforce implications of the strategic direction of the agency. It should also consider the likelihood and consequences of staff shortages, in overall staff numbers and in relation to mission-critical occupations or competencies. Both short- and long-term consequences should be considered;

b) document this assessment in the form of a workforce plan. This should include:

 - an assessment of the demand for (workforce needed), and supply of labour (current workforce);
 - consideration of the impacts of any shortages and surpluses on organisational capability;
 - an assessment of the external labour market as it relates to the agency, the agency's reliance on the contingent workforce, as well as its dependence on the workforce of other entities for service provision;
- the identification of mission-critical roles and/or competencies;
- human resources and other business strategies that relate specifically to the risk assessments; and
- a means of monitoring progress over time to ensure that the strategies are effective;

c) adopt simplified processes, where the agency is inexperienced in workforce planning, that can be refined and developed as experience is gained; and

d) ensure that workforce planning is integrated into the broader business planning process to ensure proper alignment with operational capacity.

The ANAO has made two recommendations as a result of the audit.

The first recommendation is directed to agencies to focus attention on the need for each agency to undertake a workforce risk assessment and to ensure that organisational capability is a core component of this.

All agencies agreed to the first recommendation indicating that they recognise the importance of conducting a workforce risk assessment and doing so with reference to organisational capability. Most agencies have recognised that a consideration of the audit criteria, developed to assess agency progress in workforce planning, does not suggest the adoption of a particular model or a uniform approach, but rather key areas to be considered in developing the approach. In this way dimensions such as agency size, a stable or dynamic environment, management structures, and other variables can also be factored into the approach.

The second recommendation is directed to the APSC, and proposes an assessment of the broader labour market and the repercussions for the APS, including an aggregation of information supplied by APS agencies on shortfalls, and their potential impacts on organisational capability. The APSC agreed with qualification to this recommendation.

The APSC notes that responsibility for workforce planning, including the identification of and response to shortages, rests with agencies. Demographic characteristics and changes are reported in the State of the Service Report and topical issues and themes are included when new evaluative material is available. Workforce planning is one of these and has been reported in the last two reports. The APSC also notes that they collect information on the categories of skills in which agencies have difficulty recruiting, via the annual survey, and that the APSED database has the capacity to include employee qualifications.

These issues are also considered by the MAC including the Organisational Renewal report and the current project on ‘Managing and Sustaining the APS Workforce'. The Commission has for a number of years taken a collaborative approach to working with agencies on developing and promoting shared, better practice approaches to human resource management issues, through initiatives such as the People Management Benchmarking Study, the Senior Executive Leadership Capability Framework, the Integrated Leadership System, the HR Capability Model, and facilitation of networks where agencies meet to discuss issues of common concern. The APSC notes its key position to facilitate collaboration between agencies and it will continue to assess and as considered appropriate, instigate such opportunities for collaboration within ongoing priorities.

However, the APSC advises that ‘it is not feasible for the Commission to regularly assess the repercussions for the APS of changes in population and workforce demographics within the broader Australian labour market. To undertake such an assessment in a useful and meaningful manner would involve significant extra resources beyond those currently available. The inclusions of this type of broader assessment in the State of the Service Report would typically be as a one off where such an assessment was seen as a priority for the year'.

The ANAO agrees that responsibility for the identification of, and response to, shortages rests with agencies. The ANAO further recognises that this initiative could require additional resources, and that there are difficulties in collecting data on skills shortages, but sees value to the broader APS in augmenting the largely qualitative information available at this time.

The APSC has an important role in providing a whole of service perspective in reference to the challenges posed by skill shortages in the shorter term, and demographic changes in the longer term. Importantly, Recommendation No.2 proposes that impacts on organisational capability be considered by agencies and reported to the APSC. The main thrust of the recommendation is designed to achieve this assessment and to facilitate its consideration by senior level APS staff.

In terms of cost-effectiveness, the ANAO considers that this approach would be considerably more efficient than the alternative of each agency seeking to assess the external environment. Indeed, a number of smaller agencies may not have the research capacity to undertake the task. More importantly, including risk information in the State of the Service Report is expected to provide a catalyst to the improvement of workforce planning practices within the APS and aid collaboration by agencies. Responses to the draft report by other agencies indicate that they consider this would make a positive contribution to agencies workforce planning efforts and they have displayed a willingness to pursue co-operative arrangements. Appreciating that resources are always a consideration this information could be collected by the APSC on a periodic, rather than an annual, basis.

The full text of the APSC's response is included in Appendix 1.

Recommendations

Recommendation No.1

The ANAO recommends that agencies identify workforce risks specific to their agency with clear reference to a consideration of organisational capability.

Recommendation No.2

The ANAO recommends that the APSC:

a) regularly assess the repercussions for the APS of changes in population and workforce demographics within the broader Australian labour market.
b) collect information on shortages across the APS and assess their impacts on capability.

This could usefully be reported in the State of the Service Report, in order to complement existing analysis and to inform agencies and assist facilitation of discussions between them. It could also facilitate possible collaboration to overcome recognised shortages or associated impacts.

Agencies' Responses

The 10 agencies included in audit examinations and the Australian Public Service Commission were asked to respond to the audit report and to comment on the two recommendations. Their detailed responses are included at Appendix 1. The remaining 75 APS agencies were provided with the audit report but were not required to respond. Nine of these agencies responded and their responses are also included in Appendix 1.

All 10 audited agencies and the APSC agreed with Recommendation No.1.

Recommendation No.2 was agreed with qualification by the APSC. All 10 audited agencies agreed with recommendation 2a). Eight agencies agreed with recommendation 2b) and two, DIMIA and Defence, agreed with qualification.

Footnotes

1 Reserve Bank of Australia, Statement by the Governor, Mr Ian MacFarlane, Monetary Policy [Internet] Reserve Bank of Australia, Sydney, 2005, available from <http://www.rba.gov.au/Media Releases/2005.html> [accessed 7 April 2005].

2 Australian Parliament 2004, 2005–06 Budget Paper No.1 Budget Strategy and Outlook 2005-06, (circulated by The Honourable Peter Costello, MP, Treasurer of the Commonwealth of Australia), Canberra, p. 1–3.

3 Australian Parliament 2002, 2002–03 Budget Paper No.5 Intergenerational Report, (circulated by The Honourable Peter Costello, MP, Treasurer of the Commonwealth of Australia), Canberra.

4 Social Policy Division, The Treasury 2004, Australia's Demographic Challenges, The Treasury, Canberra.

5 Management Advisory Committee 2003, Organisational Renewal, Australian Public Service Commission, Canberra.

6 Senate Finance and Public Administration References Committee 2003, Recruitment and Training in the Australian Public Service, SFPARC, Canberra.

7 Australian National Audit Office 2001, Better Practice Guide For Managers – Planning for the Workforce of the Future, ANAO, Canberra.

8 Australian Public Service Commission 2004, State of the Service Report 2003–04, APS Commission, Canberra, p.173.

9 APS agencies as at 30 June 2004: See Appendix 4.

10 Australian Public Service Commission, op. cit., p.200.

11 Contingent staff are non-APS staff engaged on non consultancy contracts.

12 Department of Defence 2003, ‘Report of the Strategic Workforce Planning Review 2003', Department of Defence, Canberra.