Kathryn Thomas will be the facilitator at the EL1-EL2 Women in Leadership Masterclass from 15 September — 4 November. Photo: Supplied.
Organising Around Risks with Professor Malcolm Sparrow
Date: 9 — 10 September
Time: 9:30 am — 4:30 pm
Location: Online
Email: [email protected]
Effective risk control requires vigilance (to understand new threats), nimbleness (the flexibility to organise around risks that don’t fit well with existing structures) and skill (to fashion and implement surgical and tailored responses).
Facilitator Professor Malcolm K Sparrow will focus on the ‘’why’’ and the ‘’how’’ of organising around risks or harms at this exclusive two-part seminar. It examines the motivation for developing a capacity for risk-based work, and considers a broad range of implications for organisations that want to devote more of their resources and attention to problem-centric operations.
The hope is not to displace or de-emphasise functional and process-based competence, but to add a capacity for risk-based work, learn how to organise and support that capacity, and understand how to integrate different forms of work within a single organisation.
Professor of the Practice of Public Management at Harvard’s John F Kennedy School of Government, Malcolm K Sparrow is a leading international expert in regulatory and enforcement strategy, security and risk control.
NT Women in Leadership Workshop
Date: 10 — 11 September
Time: 9 am — 4:30 pm
Location: Oaks Elan Darwin
Email: [email protected]
Overview
Enhance your effectiveness as a leader in an evolving professional landscape.
- Develop your individual leadership style.
- Build confidence to lead authentically and effectively.
- Learn the art of confident communication.
- Strengthen your ability to influence.
Mentor, coach and time-management expert Barbara Clifford helps people transform stress into strength. Known as ”The Time Tamer”, Barbara works with clients across Australia and around the globe, supporting business leaders, Aboriginal organisations, government agencies and not-for-profits to replace burnout with balance. She draws on deep expertise in emotional resilience, prioritisation, conflict resolution and influential communication.
University of Canberra Open Day Fest 2026
Date: 12 September
Time: 10 am — 3 pm
Location: University of Canberra, Bruce campus
Entry: Free, registration required
Combining a campus showcase and a lively street fair, the University of Canberra (UC) Open Day Fest brings everyone together on Saturday, 12 September.
APS Employee — Return to Study. Come along to this specific session for APS employees at UC Open Day Fest. Learn how you can use your work experience to gain admission to UC and our range of courses, available credit and more. In addition, have your free updated LinkedIn headshot taken and sit down with one of our careers advisers for a free 15-minute guidance session. Two sessions will be held in the Clive Price Suite (upstairs, inside refectory) at 10:30 am and 1 pm.
Come and see us at the Adult Learner Hub, where you can chat to our career advisers about your future, have a free LinkedIn headshot taken, or join an industry session to learn about how your work and life experience could count towards entry or credit for a UC degree.
Extend your time on campus and enjoy the free live music festival, as well as exhibitions from SLAM! Pro Wrestling and some of Australia’s best woodchoppers as they showcase their impressive skills. Hit up the local food and drink stands or relax at the Capital Brewing Beer Garden. On top of all that, there are academic and student meet-and-greets, campus and accommodation tours, family activities (including a jumping castle and passenger train) and lots more.
UC Open Day Fest is about more than what you study; it’s about meeting people, discovering possibilities and finding a place where everyone belongs.
Visit UC’s website to learn more and register for the event.
QLD Public Sector AO 7-8 High-Performance & Leadership Workshop
Date: 15 — 16 September
Time: 9 am — 4:30 pm
Location: Cliftons Brisbane
Email: [email protected]
Overview
Enhance key leadership skills and capabilities to drive success, inspire high performance and lead effectively.
- Enhance your emotional intelligence to advance as a leader.
- Influentially engage stakeholders on complex and sensitive issues.
- Learn adaptable leadership strategies to excel in times of change.
- Discover career planning and pathways in Queensland public sector roles.
Trainer Martin Brooker specialises in personal and organisational change, drawing from his rich leadership experiences and culture change initiatives. Recognised with awards such as the Conspicuous Service Cross and a Commendation for Distinguished Service, he shares authentic insights into leadership challenges.
A passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion, Martin serves as an R U OK? community ambassador.
Women in Governance: Journeys So Far
Date: 15 September
Time: 7 am — 9 am
Location: Rendezvous Grand Hotel Melbourne
Email: [email protected]
Build meaningful connections. Connect with a community of governance professionals who understand the opportunities and challenges of their industries. Expand your network, exchange ideas and build relationships that can support your career long after the event ends.
Gain practical career insights. Learn how accomplished women have navigated career pivots, overcome setbacks and embraced opportunities for growth. Take away practical advice you can apply to your own professional journey.
Invest in your professional development. Whether your goal is to secure your next role, strengthen your leadership skills or expand your influence, you’ll leave with fresh perspectives and actionable ideas to help elevate your career.
Be inspired by diverse career pathways. There is no single route into governance. Hear how three women followed different paths, made different choices and found success in their own way — proving that your career doesn’t have to look like anyone else’s.
Leave energised and empowered. Walk away with new ideas, greater confidence and a renewed sense of what’s possible for your future in governance. Sometimes the most valuable career advice doesn’t come from a textbook — it comes from hearing the stories of those who’ve walked the path before you.
EL1-EL2 Women in Leadership Masterclass
Date: 15 September — 4 November
Location: Canberra & online
Email: [email protected]
This immersive program is designed to strengthen and guide your public sector career. Move beyond your technical expertise and excel in more complex roles and scenarios.
Specifically designed for EL1-2 leaders and directors, this highly interactive masterclass will equip you with the tools and strategies to lead with greater impact and confidently take on more senior roles in the public sector.
Learn how to overcome the common internal and external barriers to success faced by women in the workplace, enhance and refine your current leadership skills, and develop new capabilities to take the next step in your career. Set a career plan, seize progression opportunities, and learn how to purposefully lead yourself, your team and your organisation into the workplace of the future.
This course is cognisant of the Executive Level Standards and is designed to reflect and align with the expectations of these roles. It will support and enhance the capabilities and behaviours required of EL1-EL2 roles.
Facilitator Kathryn Thomas has a global career of more than 20 years as a management consultant and learning leader, and specialises in unlocking performance for people and their organisations.
First Nations Women in Leadership Masterclass
Date: 15 September — 5 November
Time: 9:30 am — 4:30 pm
Location: Sydney, Brisbane, Darwin
Email: [email protected]
Realise and nurture your natural leadership. First Nations women hold vital roles as carers, teachers, healers and leaders in their workplaces, families and communities, so it is crucial that there are strong, capable and centred women in these roles.
The Hatchery has partnered with Ngemba woman, leader, speaker and facilitator Lil Gordon to deliver a series of immersive and culturally informed masterclasses to ensure that First Nations women have the opportunity to reflect, connect and grow into the best versions of themselves and allow their work, life and community to thrive.
Using Lil’s framework of “the five Rs” — Respect, Reflection, Responsibility, Relationships and Reciprocity — you will find your driving purpose, reflect on your values, grow your confidence and cultivate your networks to build your story as a deadly First Nations woman in leadership.
Find your centre, chart your goals, lead people authentically and step into your power at this unmissable learning opportunity. Join Lil to learn how to create the world that you want to live in, one that will continue to grow and thrive for generations to come.
Lil is First Assistant Secretary, First Nations Outcomes, Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts.
MasterCraft Series Workforce Planning for Leaders
Date: 17 September
Time: 11 am — 12:30 pm
Duration: One 60-minute face-to-screen session
Location: Virtual
Email: https://apslearn.apsacademy.gov.au/user_login
This MasterCraft Series event presents leaders with an opportunity to understand and address workforce challenges in their teams. The session will provide evidence-based workforce insights, highlight priority workforce risk areas, and articulate leaders’ roles in addressing and mitigating workforce risks within their teams.
The session will demonstrate workforce management tools and strategies that can help leaders address these risks and build engaged, highly capable and high-performing teams.
Presenters are:
- Senior adviser, Australian Public Service Commission (APSC), Grace Liew
- Director, Workforce Strategy & Planning, APSC, Sally Lowe.
This event is suitable for all staff.
MasterCraft Series — SRW Scholars — Partnerships to Close the Gap
Date: 22 September
Time: 1:30 pm — 2 pm
Duration: One 60-minute face-to-screen session
Location: ACT
Email: https://apslearn.apsacademy.gov.au/user_login
Too often, policy engagement happens to communities rather than with them. Traditional approaches can position Indigenous peoples as problems to be managed rather than partners with valuable expertise.
This session would offer a different path forward. Drawing on our research in co-design and public policy, we will explore how the APS can build genuine partnerships that centre on Indigenous people’s lived experience and knowledge systems in policy development. Addressing the Closing the Gap Priority Reform 3, we are aiming to move from consultation to co-design; from stakeholder management to authentic collaboration.
Presenters are:
- Public policy manager at the Productivity Commission working on the review of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap, Natalie Bryant
- Leading the Equity and Tertiary Branch, Australian Tertiary Education Commission, Dr Claire Sainsbury.
Facilitator is Dr Anthony Cowley, who is contributing to the design and integration of performance and partnership functions under the Department of Social Services Grants Hub.
This event is suitable for all staff.
Lunch and Learn — Wayfinder: Building an AI-Guided Workflow Agent
Date: 23 September
Time: 12:30 pm — 1:15 pm
Duration: One 45-minute face-to-screen session
Location: Virtual
Email: https://apslearn.apsacademy.gov.au/user_login
Join the creator of Wayfinder, Richard Brasier, for a behind-the-scenes look at the journey from initial idea to working AI-guided workflow platform. The session will cover key design decisions, development challenges, lessons learned and how Wayfinder combines conversational AI, workflow automation and document generation.
Richard is Assistant Director-General, Skills & Training, Australian Signals Directorate. Facilitator is product manager for the GovAI Exchange and Cloud Services, Department of Finance, John Tooth.
This event is suitable for all staff.
