Collaboration Circle

The Collaboration Circle is a new way of working that aims to build cultural competency and boost Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employment across the Australian Public Service. It is a structured collaboration between chief operating officers and First Nations employees from across the APS.

Senior leaders can use the Collaboration Circle as a mechanism to listen and learn from the lived experiences of First Nations members. First Nations members can use it to share their collective and extensive public sector experiences to shape solutions on matters relating to them.

The Collaboration Circle offers a safe environment for APS employees from different agencies and levels to work together respectfully on practical solutions to APS-wide issues affecting First Nations employees. This contributes to outcomes under Closing the Gap Priority Reform 3 and the APS Reform agenda.
 

Collaboration Circle members attending an in-person meeting at Old Parliament House in Canberra during the second pilot cycle, 17 September 2024.
Source: Australian Public Service Commission

The Chief Operating Officers Committee identified that agencies wanted to drive initiatives beyond those outlined in the Common Operating Picture of APS First Nations Initiatives and agreed that further collaboration between senior leaders and First Nations employees was needed.

During 2024, 2 cycles of the Collaboration Circle model were piloted, with a focus on cultural awareness training across the APS and retention programs for First Nations employees.

The Collaboration Circle identified that improvements could be made to strengthen a shared understanding of effective cultural awareness training, focusing on building knowledge beyond a foundational level. It also identified the opportunity to implement programs or initiatives with the sole purpose of retaining First Nations employees and applying a common retention definition.

The Chief Operating Officers Committee endorsed recommendations on these matters and committed to implementing actions within their agencies.

Following these successful pilots, the Collaboration Circle became a permanent sub-committee of the Chief Operating Officers Committee in January 2025.

The Collaboration Circle is making positive changes to further strengthen the public service and improve First Nations outcomes. The Collaboration Circle Secretariat can be contacted via CollaborationCircle@apsc.gov.au.

See also in this report

Capability and leadership in the APS – Partnership and engagement

Find out more

Australian Government (2024) Collaboration Circle driving cultural change, APS Reform website, accessed 15 July 2025.