Australian Public Service Commission Annual Report 2025-26

Commissioner’s review

The Australian Public Service Commission is entrusted as the steward of capability, integrity and workforce management across the Australian Public Service. The service is operating in an increasingly complex environment, shaped by changing community expectations, technological advances and challenges that increasingly cut across organisational, policy and portfolio boundaries.

In this context, our role is to strengthen the capability, integrity and workforce foundations that enable the APS to deliver for government and the Australian community, both today and into the future. The Commission’s people bring deep APS experience, professionalism and a strong sense of public purpose to this task. Their work helps agencies navigate complexity, strengthen capability and maintain the trust Australians place in the public service.

Throughout 2025–26, the Commission delivered on its statutory responsibilities under the Public Service Act 1999 (Public Service Act) while continuing to provide foundational support and quality advice to the service. This report reflects our work to strengthen APS capability, maintain public trust, support a high-performing workforce and help embed reforms that will continue delivering value to government and the community over the long term.

Building capability remained a central focus of our work. Through the APS Academy, APS Professions, leadership development, talent initiatives, capability reviews and workforce planning activities, we continued investing in the skills, expertise and institutional capability needed across the APS. This year also provided an opportunity to reflect on a decade of APS Talent Councils, which has strengthened the APS's approach to identifying and developing future leaders, building leadership pipelines and supporting succession planning across the service. The APS Academy celebrated its fifth year of operation, highlighting its role in supporting learning, leadership and stewardship across all career stages.

During the year, we also continued supporting implementation of the Strategic Commissioning Framework. This work is about more than reducing reliance on external providers. It is an investment in institutional knowledge, organisational resilience and APS capability. By strengthening capability within agencies and supporting informed procurement and contract management practices, the framework helps ensure critical expertise remains within the public service while delivering long-term value for government and the community.

Integrity remains fundamental to public service. During the year, we continued to support agencies to uphold the APS Values, Employment Principles and Code of Conduct by providing advice and practical support. The APS Values are more than obligations to be met. They shape how we work, lead and make decisions, and are central to maintaining the trust placed in the APS. In a rapidly changing environment, maintaining that trust depends on a continued commitment to integrity, accountability and public service professionalism.

We played a key role in administering workforce policy, delivering workforce reporting and insights, and we helped agencies make informed decisions about their people and future workforce needs. Through this work, we supported the APS to strengthen its role as a model employer, fostering workplaces that are inclusive, adaptable and capable of attracting, developing and retaining the talent needed to serve the Australian community.

The year also marked an important transition for APS Reform. The reforms introduced over recent years have strengthened APS capability, integrity and workforce management across the service. While the formal reform program concluded, the work of reform is far from complete. Our focus now is continuing to embed reforms into everyday practice and ensuring they make a tangible difference to the Australian community.

Looking ahead, we have an opportunity to build on the foundations reflected in this report. For the Commission, that means focusing our efforts where we can make the greatest difference: providing practical and evidence-based support to agencies, strengthening leadership and workforce capability, supporting talent development and succession planning, and helping build the institutional resilience required for future challenges.

Jacqui Curtis PSM

Australian Public Service Commissioner

Read the Australian Public Service Commission Annual Report 2025-26