Sally Dooley is the trainer for the EL1 & EL2 Strategic Thinking & Advanced Problem-Solving Workshop at Cliftons Canberra from 4 – 5 February. Photo: Supplied.
Adaptive Leadership Skills Workshop
Date: Until 11 February
Time: 9 am – 12:30 pm
Location: Online
Email: [email protected]
Overview
Three concise half-day sessions for fast-track learning and practical implementation.
- Explore resilience tools to effectively navigate setbacks
- Gain an understanding of emotional intelligence and its significance in personal and professional contexts
- Develop practical strategies for effective communication
- Craft a personal action plan to apply your newfound skills in various real-world scenarios.
Trainer Dr Karen Whittingham is one of Australia’s leading executive management development specialists, having worked with thousands of executives to transition them into senior leadership roles quickly and effectively.
Practical Risk Management: More Than Just Ticking Boxes
Date: 2 February
Time: 9:30 am — 3:30 pm
Duration: One six-hour face-to-screen session
Location: Virtual
Email: https://apslearn.apsacademy.gov.au/user_login
This course is designed for Commonwealth officials whose role requires them to engage with and apply their entity’s risk management framework to successfully deliver outcomes.
This learning experience was created by the Department of Finance in partnership with contracted service providers. The content is suitable for all federal officials, regardless of level or role, who need to understand basic risk management concepts and how risk is managed in the Commonwealth.
Achieving Value for Money
Date: 3 February
Time: 9 am — noon
Duration: Three-hour face-to-screen session
Location: Virtual
Email: https://apslearn.apsacademy.gov.au/user_login
This course provides a discussion on value for money, what that means and how it applies when conducting procurement and contract management activities. Key rules underpinning the Commonwealth Procurement Rules (CPRs) are achieving value for money, encouraging competition, and accountability and transparency.
When undertaking procurement and managing a contract, the Commonwealth must deliver value for money. When conducting procurement activities and entering, extending, varying or managing a contract, you must justify or defend the decision made in a way that the public would agree achieves value for money.
This learning experience has been provided by the Department of Finance. The content is suitable for all officials who are new to procurement, may need a refresher, or who want to move to a role in procurement. It will benefit officials working in procurement on an ad hoc basis, regular procurers, and delegates.
Enhancing Emotional Intelligence
Date: 4 February
Time: 9 am – 12:30 pm
Location: Online
Email: [email protected]
Overview
Unlock the strategies needed to cultivate self-awareness and empathy for personal growth and team success.
- Understand the impact of emotional intelligence on success
- Identify your strengths, growth areas, and emotional triggers
- Enhance empathy and social awareness for deeper connections
- Apply strategies in teams with a personalised action plan.
Trainer Dr Karen Whittingham is one of Australia’s leading executive management development specialists, having worked with thousands of executives to transition them into senior leadership roles quickly and effectively. She is an organisational psychologist passionate about people’s success and facilitating their careers to rise.
EL1 & EL2 Strategic Thinking & Advanced Problem-Solving Workshop
Date: 4 – 5 February
Time: 9 am – 4:30 pm
Location: Cliftons Canberra
Email: [email protected]
Overview
Master strategic thinking, empower teams, and conquer complex challenges.
- Apply practical, outcome-driven models for strategic decision-making
- Explore a systematic approach for problem analysis and strategy formulation
- Understand your role as an executive leader in empowering others to address challenges
- Overcome common roadblocks to resolve complex problems.
Trainer Sally Dooley is an engaging and experienced facilitator, speaker, and executive coach. Sally has worked with thousands of leaders and individuals over 20 years in a wide range of leadership, team, and personal development areas. She is passionate about excellent leadership and helping to shape cultures that facilitate high performance and wellbeing for sustainable growth.
Designing for Safety: Preventing Domestic Abuse in Products & Services
Date: 6 February
Time: 11 am – 12:30 pm
Location: Online
Email: [email protected]
Adapt your design, processes and safeguards to better protect users. This complimentary seminar introduces the hidden risks embedded in common platform and service design. It will outline the risks built into platforms, products, and systems — from identity verification and account access to data visibility and customer workflows.
Participants will learn how design choices can unintentionally enable abuse and harm, and how teams can identify red flags, strengthen safeguards, and embed safety-led thinking into products and operations. When we design for safety, we don’t just prevent abuse. We disrupt it.
Attend this free seminar to understand why recognising technology-facilitated abuse is essential for anyone involved in designing or delivering products, services or digital systems. You’ll learn how your platforms may be unintentionally enabling monitoring, control and harm.
Facilitator Catherine Fitzpatrick unmasks and disrupts financial abuse — exposing how domestic abusers weaponise everyday products and advising governments, regulators and businesses internationally on how to close the loopholes.
A former bank executive turned social entrepreneur, Ms Fitzpatrick pioneered financial safety by design after uncovering widespread abuse in online banking and leading industry-wide reforms to stop it. Her Designed to Disrupt reports and Respect and Protect campaign have driven world-first reforms across more than 10 sectors to ban product misuse and make 20 million customers safer.
Embedding Risk Management into your Entity’s DNA
Date: 6 February – 3 March
Time: 9 am – 4:30 pm
Duration: Two 7.5-hour face-to-face sessions
Location: Australian Capital Territory — MoAD (Old Parliament House)
Email: https://apslearn.apsacademy.gov.au/user_login
This course is designed for Commonwealth officials who are preparing to, or currently work in, a role where they are responsible for implementing their entity’s approach to managing risk.
Typically, you have the responsibility for establishing your entity’s risk management frameworks and systems and building its risk management capability.
If this is not your role, we suggest you register for the Practical Risk Management course. This course will build your understanding of the concepts of managing risk and provide you with the tools to manage risk at a program or project level.
This learning experience has been provided by the Department of Finance, and the content is suitable for APS 4 – EL 2 APS officials responsible for establishing risk management frameworks and systems and building the risk management capability in your entity.
APS 5-6 High-Performance & Leadership Workshop
Date: 10 – 11 February
Time: 9 am – 4:30 pm
Location: Cliftons Canberra
Email: i[email protected]
Overview
Build the confidence, capability and mindset to lead effectively and take the next step in your public sector career.
- Understand your leadership style, strengths and values in action
- Communicate with clarity, confidence and influence
- Support and guide teams through challenge, change and growth
- Strengthen collaboration and trust across diverse stakeholders
- Create a personal development plan to accelerate your leadership journey.
Trainer Liz Stephens is an experienced coach, with an extensive career in the public service. Following her successful command tenure at the 1st Recruit Training Battalion, Liz established Ripple Impact, drawing on her experiences to help others be their best selves.
In her “day job”, Lieutenant Colonel Stephens is a facilitator, coach and mentor at the Australian Command and Staff Course.
QLD Public Sector AO7-8 Leading & Managing Change
Date: 10 – 11 February
Time: 9 am – 4:30 pm
Location: Cliftons Brisbane
Email: [email protected]
Overview
Lead your team through change with clarity, resilience and a shared vision.
- Understand your leadership style, strengths and values in action
- Communicate with clarity, confidence and influence
- Support and guide teams through challenge, change and growth
- Strengthen collaboration and trust across diverse stakeholders.
Trainer Michael Collins is one of the region’s leading talents. He is a leadership and change expert with more than 25 years of experience in roles across Australia, New Zealand and Asia. He has served in executive positions within the Australian Defence Force and Coca-Cola Amatil. As a trusted adviser, thought leader and seasoned practitioner in leadership assessment and development, Mr Collins combines practical experience with academic insight.
6R Relational Leadership Capabilities Skills Lab (EL2s)
Date: 11 February
Time: 9 am – 1 pm
Duration: Four-hour face-to-face session
Location: Australian Capital Territory — MoAD (Old Parliament House)
Email: https://apslearn.apsacademy.gov.au/user_login
This program involves an interactive skills lab and mentoring session that equips leaders with the relational skills embedded in the 6R framework to foster pro-integrity, stewardship, psychosocial safety and high performance.
The interactive workshop, facilitated by an accredited psychologist, provides a safe and structured space for participants to reflect and learn to develop skills and strategies to build strong authentic relationships, resolve conflict and foster a culture of psychological safety, integrity, performance and continuous growth among peers.
This content has been provided by the APS Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Unit, Australian Public Service Commission, and is suitable for EL 2 — SES Band 2.
