2024 Network Awards – Teaching and Learning
Winner:
Professor Steven Roberts, Dean, College of Business and Economics, ANU and
Professor Vinh Lu and the team from the ANU Research School of Management
Judges’ comments
The Graduate Certificate addresses a critical gap in the representation of Indigenous people within the Australian Public Service (APS) workforce, particularly in management roles. The review committee was impressed by the high levels of support embedded in the program, which translates to high satisfaction rates among students. The program has clearly delivered positive outcomes in the APS, with alumni now working across multiple agencies and six employed in SES Band 1 roles. The program has garnered substantial Commonwealth funding due to its success in overcoming barriers to progression for Indigenous public servants.
The initiative
Indigenous Australians account for only 3.5% of the Australian Public Service (APS) workforce, mainly in low classification levels with high separation rates and short career tenure. This is due in part to a lack of formal academic qualifications with many Indigenous public servants located in regional and remote areas.
The ANU Management Program in partnership with the National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA) is a multi-award-winning and bespoke Graduate Certificate of Management for First Nations APS employees Australia-wide. Comprised of four modules (i.e., Government Decision Making and Indigenous Communities in Contemporary Society, Evidence-Based Management, Technology and Project Management, and Organisational Behaviour), this tailored program creates an innovative pathway for Indigenous employees to tackle APS career barriers through (i) a culturally safe learning environment, (ii) contemporary management skills training within an evidence-based management framework, and (iii) an AQF Level 188 qualification.
Acclaimed for its academic rigor and well-rounded support mechanisms since 2021, the program will graduate 80 participants by 2024 with an 84% completion rate. The program achieves 98% of participants’ satisfaction in meeting their expectations, 96% in management knowledge enhancement, 92% in career progression, and 100% recommendation rate. Alumni have reported significant career confidence and major successes in job promotions and further postgraduate studies.
With two ANU College of Business and Economics (CBE) Awards, the program is a current nominee for two Vice-Chancellor’s Awards for Indigenous Education and for Program that Enhances Learning. It led to the ANU winning the 2024 ACT-NAIDOC Award for Non-Indigenous Organisation’s Contribution to the Indigenous Community.
How it was implemented
Following co-design sessions between the CBE and NIAA on upskilling Indigenous public servants in 2019-2020, we launch the pilot intake for Indigenous NIAA employees only in 2021. Since then, the NIAA has served as the lead partner representing all participating APS Agencies and Departments. Prospective applicants, who meet the program’s unique admission eligibility criteria, as agreed with the NIAA and approved by ANU Academic Board, undergo a rigorous nomination process followed by a formal application to ANU.
The academic program comprises a three-day on-campus induction and four modules over 10.5 months. Participants undertake each course as a cohort, travelling to Canberra for one week of intensive learning followed by seven weeks of online learning. A culturally safe learning environment is at the forefront of the program, as several participants are challenged by neurodiversity, socio-economic pressures, remote locations, and being first in family or community to undertake tertiary study.
The academic content is characterised as interactive, student-centred, rich in experiential learning and deeply grounded in culturally responsive pedagogies. The cohort culture enables culturally safe learning, motivating growth in autonomy and competence, as well as engendering the sharing of identities and a sense of belongingness. A framework of academic and wellbeing support built into the program has enabled participants to receive support alongside difficult life events. An alumna wrote: “The learnings have empowered me to enhance my career… It has allowed me to sit at the table, and to have conversations on how we are going to work towards Closing the Gap”.
Measurable outcomes
Renowned for its “life-changing” impact, the program has attracted the participation of nine sponsoring Agencies/Departments, with alumni now working across 14 Agencies/Departments. To the best of our knowledge, the program is the first of its kind in Australia serving the purpose of career advancement for First Nations Peoples in the public sector. The collaborative efforts in the program go beyond the boundary of the APS with two graduates from Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations in New South Wales and Northern Territory.
65% of commencing students did not have any prior tertiary qualification, 63% are located outside ACT, and 35% from regional and remote locations. The completion rate of 84% is significantly higher than the sector-wide rate. More than 50% of the alumni have gained higher-level acting role or promoted, all of whom have attributed their career success to the program. There have been six alumni in acting or substantial SES Band 1 roles, a dozen undertaking further studies and, most significantly, three Sir Roland Wilson Foundation Pat Turner Scholars!
A graduate wrote, “The biggest impact the program has had, however, was not necessarily on me, but rather on my daughters. Seeing me return to study has had a profound effect on them and how they see their future prospects in tertiary education.”
Photo: Vinh Lu