Government Innovator Spotlight Q&A: Michaela Geronima Doelman - CHRO, Washington State ESD

I’m the Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) for the Washington State Employment Security Department (ESD). I kind of got here by accident. Although public service was always where I wanted to be, HR wasn’t even on my radar of options, I just knew I wanted to help people like my parents did in their public service jobs. After graduating from college and working in Mexico for a couple of years, I moved back to the US in 2007 and wasn’t in the position to be picky about what job I could take, I just wanted one that paid the bills …

Transforming the judicial system with emerging technologies

At the recent Digital Justice Innovation event, we heard from Jessica der Matossian, Registrar, Digital Practice, Federal Court of Australia as she dived into how to trace the evolution of digital practice and technology in Australia’s courts. In this article she explores: Long before the start of COVID-19, technology provided a way of being more efficient and innovative. Some industries were therefore better prepared than others when the pandemic hit. The Federal Court of Australia was one of those. Jessica der Matossian, the Registrar of Digital Practice at the Court, based in Sydney, says that “technology alone doesn’t improve the …

Governance, Risk and Compliance - Canada

The profile of many workplaces all over the world has changed as a result of the pandemic. Most organizations previously conducted risk assessments and planned for the future, but a global pandemic was generally unforeseen and has forced many businesses and public sector institutions to re-assess and re-prioritize some of their practices, and to better incorporate risk into their planning. For instance, Beth Robb, the Director of Enterprise Risk Management at Alberta Health Services (AHS), says that risk now, more than ever, is about “ensuring that you’re taking a holistic view of the environment and the context in which your …

Why investing in technology is crucial for a modern council workplace

Today’s local government workplace continues to evolve to meet the needs of both employees and its community. The global pandemic has catapulted local governments across the country into a new world of remote working, agile policy making and rapid service design. “Modern workplace” is a term used to describe organisations who recognise digital collaboration, technology and tools as fundamental elements of their future. Remote working, new technologies and culture changes are just some of the things defining the modern council workplace. Attracting and retaining talent is a key issue for all organisations, and local government is no exception. Technology can …

Protecting Data and Mitigating Risk with Comprehensive Data Governance Frameworks

At the recent Public Sector Data Governance and Privacy event, we heard from Michelle Veljanovska, Director, Information Management, Analytics & Strategic Governance, Office of the Australian Information Commissioner as she dived into how to prioritise improving data literacy and building a data-driven department. In this article she explores: The first thing to consider is that “privacy isn’t (or shouldn’t be) a thing to be feared. Rather, it should be leveraged to build better trust and confidence for our interaction with government services.” To achieve this, it may be necessary to think of privacy as a journey. Usually only the essential …

DevOps Evolution in the Public Sector

SportAUS Connect essentially has two main features. The first is a digital identity, which is a “federated identity,” meaning that a person’s digital identity can be stored across multiple management systems. So “identity brokering and consent management are really important,” along with “SaaS – software-as-a-service – and SSO – single sign-on – integrations.” Many of these are “off-the-shelf applications, and that’s what we use.” The second feature is specifically around “data integration and sharing from federated data,” which maps data from multiple systems into a single database. This allows it to be accessed from anywhere, much “like a master data …

Taking a Proactive Approach to Supplier Diversity

At the recent Procurement Transformation virtual event, we heard from Parker Brigg, Assistant Commissioner, Strategic Procurement, Australian Taxation Office as he dived into how to take a proactive approach to supplier diversity. In this article he explores: The challenge to meet those targets “has evolved over time” and through that, the ATO realised that “the commitment to supplier diversity is in our organisational DNA. The ATO has a long heritage in supporting and engaging with small businesses, so supply diversity and Indigenous procurement fit very well within our organisational mission.” Six years ago, the senior leadership of the organisation recognised …

Integrating a Resilient Corporate Governance & Risk Culture

As a result, about two and a half years ago at a gathering of all the senior executives and directors – “about 30 staff from across the organisation” – a discussion began around “thinking differently about how we approach governance and risk within the organisation.” This is particularly important because the NAA is the “federal agency that collects records of Australian government decisions and actions as evidence to preserve the nation’s memory, identity and history,” and therefore needs to be well governed. The idea internally was to “get people to understand the benefits of effective governance, rather than it being …