Learn how to become a key decision-maker at the EL1 & EL2 High-Performance & Leadership Workshop at Cliftons Canberra from 28-29 May. Photo: Supplied.
MasterCraft Series – Upholding Integrity: Safeguarding Against Workplace Grooming and Corrupt Conduct
Date: 22 May
Time: 1 pm – 2 pm
Duration: One-hour face-to-screen session
Location: Virtual
Email: https://apslearn.apsacademy.gov.au/user_login
Would you know if you are being groomed? You may be deliberately targeted, manipulated, and exploited for private gain or access to information, under the guise of a friendship. The Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity, later subsumed into the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), investigated corruption issues related to cargo inspections by the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment and its staff. It created a video to explain how grooming of a public official leads to inappropriate or even illegal behaviour. Find out how public servants can avoid or mitigate these situations and ask questions of our panellist.
The presenter will be NACC Deputy Commissioner Nicole Rose. Ms Rose brings to the NACC diverse experience in law enforcement, intelligence and regulatory environments. She was previously the CEO of the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre, CEO of CrimTrac, Deputy CEO of the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission and Deputy Secretary of the Criminal Justice Group in the Commonwealth Attorney-General’s Department.
This event is suitable for all staff.
EL1 & EL2 High-Performance & Leadership Workshop
Date: 28 – 29 May
Time: 9 am – 4:30 pm
Location: Cliftons Canberra
Level 2, 10 Moore Street
Email: [email protected]
Overview
Deep-dive into the essential skills to become a key decision-maker.
- Evolve into a strategic decision-maker
- Build high-performing, autonomous teams
- Influentially engage stakeholders on complex and sensitive issues
- Leverage adaptable leadership to prosper in times of change.
Trainer Sally Dooley is an engaging and experienced facilitator, speaker and executive coach. Over 20 years, Sally has worked with thousands of leaders and individuals 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. Sally has a master’s in training and development, and is an international bestselling author, a TEDx speaker and a speaker coach.
Responding to the Complexities of Coercive Control in Family Violence
Date: 28 May
Time: 9:30 am – 4:30 pm
Location: The Sebel Brisbane
Email: [email protected]
This masterclass focuses on better identifying, assessing and supporting women experiencing coercive control. Coercive control is front of mind for people working in the domestic and family violence (DFV) sector. In some states, recent legislative changes demand a shift in how we understand and address domestic and family violence.
While addressing coercive control has long been a key responsibility in the DFV sector, this change has added complexity to how practitioners assess for, intervene, and advocate when working with clients. This masterclass offers a practice-focused, interactive, and reflective approach to deepening practitioners’ understanding of coercive control and its impact.
Facilitator Grace Jennings is a social worker and trainer with Relationships Australia NSW. She has worked with both victim-survivors and users of violence. Her PhD research explored online and digital programs for users of violence, and the influence of extending typical programs beyond just in-person service delivery.
Grace has taught and lectured in social work at university and is currently the practice specialist for family safety at Relationships Australia NSW. Her research interests include gender-based violence, in particular exploring interventions with users of violence.
NSW First Nations Women in Leadership Workshop
Date: 28 – 29 May
Time: 9 am – 4:30 pm
Location: Cliftons Sydney
Email: [email protected]
Overview
Achieve personal, professional, and community success as an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leader.
- Understand and align your cultural and corporate responsibilities
- Infuse cultural values into your corporate role
- Enhance self-awareness and lead with resilience
- Handle setbacks constructively.
Trainer Jenny Turner is a proud Walbunja woman and co-founder of Indigenous Women in Business (IWiB), a 100 per cent Indigenous-owned business registered with Supply Nation. With more than 10 years of experience, Jenny empowers First Nations communities through strategic sales consulting and leadership development.
She has held senior roles at Glisk and PMP, specialising in business development and project management. Jenny’s leadership has also contributed to training more than 9000 people annually in agile project management and change management, making a significant impact in both the corporate and Indigenous business sectors.
NSW Public Sector Grades 11-12 Strategic Thinking & Advanced Problem Solving
Date: 29 – 30 May
Time: 9 am – 4:30 pm
Location: Cliftons Sydney
Level 13, 60 Margaret Street
Email: [email protected]
Overview
Develop strategic thinking and advanced problem-solving abilities required of Grades 11-12 officers. The workshop covers:
- Practical, outcome-driven strategic thinking and problem-solving models
- A structured systems thinking approach to analyse problems and formulate strategy
- Stakeholder engagement principles to work collaboratively on organisational issues
- Your role as a leader, empowering others to solve problems.
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.
She teaches organisational psychology at UNSW and works with ASX-listed companies and large public sector organisations to drive engagement, inclusion, and performance.
MasterCraft Series – Integrity and complexity in the APS
Date: 29 May
Time: 11 am – noon
Duration: One-hour face-to-screen session.
Location: Virtual
Email: https://apslearn.apsacademy.gov.au/user_login
Hear from senior leaders in the APS and academia about how they deal with integrity in their roles. Acting with integrity in decision-making, interacting with colleagues and stakeholders, and how we build ethical leadership are critically important in today’s public service.
This MasterCraft Series event discusses and highlights the role of integrity, particularly in the APS as it depends on trust, transparency and ethical decision-making. Every action and decision APS employees make should reflect these values, building trust not only within the APS but also with the wider community.
Leadership plays a vital role in modelling ethical behaviour, as managers’ actions often set the tone for the rest of the team. Integrity, however, is not solely the responsibility of leaders — it should be embedded across the APS, with every individual understanding their role in maintaining the APS’s trustworthiness.
Presenters include:
- Deputy chair of the recently established Australian Research Council Board, and fellow and member of the Council of the Academy of the Humanities, Professor Susan Dodds.
- Registrar of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Corporation, Tricia Stroud.
- Retired public servant Ron Brent, who worked for 10 years as the National Film and Sound Archive director. He also spent seven years as Deputy Commonwealth Ombudsman, and six months as Commonwealth Ombudsman. He then retired to take posts as the first Australian Aircraft
- Noise Ombudsman and the initial chair of the Australian Research Integrity Committee.
This event is suitable for all staff.
Public Sector Mental Health & Resilience for Personal Wellbeing & Performance
Date: 29 May
Time: 9 am – 4:30 pm
Location: Online
Email: [email protected]
Overview
Psychological skills training for professionals and teams.
- Understand the psychology of change and how to respond to uncertainty
- Explore ongoing impacts on the workplace and in your personal life
- Understand the five key domains that influence your behaviour in social situations
- Establish a regular self-care routine, both at and out of work.
Trainer Melissa Harries is a psychologist and specialist in developing proactive interventions to enhance employee wellbeing. She draws on more than a decade of experience working with the Australian Army, where she ran a military mental health unit supporting 1200 soldiers. As the founder of the Parramatta Psychology Clinic, established in 2012, she provides EAP counselling with a focus on managing mental health in the workplace and fostering adaptability.
Master Cognitive Capacity & Prevent Burnout
Date: 29 May
Time: 9 am – 12:30 pm
Location: Online
Email: [email protected]
Learn how to use neuroscience strategies to work smarter, not harder. Unleash your performance potential, effortlessly. In today’s high-pressure work environment, traditional approaches to productivity often lead to burnout and diminished performance.
Cognitive energy is the foundation of high performance and optimising it is the key to avoiding burnout. It’s not the hours that we work that lead to fatigue – it’s how we work those hours that’s important. Overspending cognitive energy is unnecessary and will fast-track you to hindered performance.
The good news is that with some neuroscience, we can increase our cognitive energy so that issues such as “Zoom fatigue” can be a thing of the past. This seminar introduces neuroscience-based strategies that shift how you work, think, and achieve. It will discuss the neuroscience of cognitive energy with a focus on what it is, why it’s important and tips for optimising it to make high performance feel easier and free from burnout in any work environment. It will also include practical strategies for high achievers.
Facilitator Vanessa Bennett is the CEO of Next Evolution Performance – a global high-performance coaching business – using neuroscience to help driven leaders and teams to optimise profitability, productivity and energy and to decrease their effort, sickness, burnout and mental health problems. This ensures that success, and therefore profitability, is sustainable.
Leadership Strategies Series 2025: In-person
When: 3 – 4 June; 17 – 18 June; 22 – 23 July
Where: East Hotel, 69 Canberra Avenue, Kingston
Cost: Ticket prices vary; find out more at Kim Vella Leadership
As a leader in the public service, do any of these points resonate with you?
- I feel overwhelmed all the time, like I’m spinning plates that could drop at any moment.
- I’m always under pressure with competing priorities, limited resources, and an ever-changing geopolitical landscape.
- I’m worried the hard work I put in isn’t recognised.
- I walk into meetings and feel anxious about what to say.
- I don’t usually think about my wellbeing. I just want to make it through another week.
- I feel like I’m never enough, and don’t know what could change that.
If any of these do resonate with you, you’re not alone.
The skills every public sector leader needs to thrive in today’s environment are next level – yet they’re rarely taught. Instead, we rely on outdated leadership models that will leave you feeling stressed, exhausted, and helpless. Join respected executive leadership coach Dr Kim Vella, with the support of esteemed industry professionals, for a new leadership skills pathway: The Leadership Strategies Series.
This workshop series gives you access to 32-plus hours of in-person collaborative learning, including:
- Cutting-edge leadership strategies
- Coaching from PS experts and industry professionals
- Advanced psychometric tools
- Personalised assessments
- Individualised feedback
- Tailored action plans.
The Leadership Strategies Series is delivered in two stages: Essentials level and Enhanced level. Each level comprises two full-day workshops, with a six-week break in between to apply your new skills. You’ll also have the opportunity to join a facilitated peer mentoring session during this time to discuss challenges and insights.
Become the APS leader you can be – confident, balanced, insightful, and authentic – by levelling up your leadership skills with the Leadership Strategies Series.
Advanced Policy Workshop
Date: 3 – 5 June
Time: 9 am – 4:30 pm
Location: Online
Email: [email protected]
Overview
Elevate policy development, drive impactful changes, and manage complex issues.
- Apply higher-level strategic thinking and influencing skills
- Navigate complexity and manage change, risk, and opportunity
- Assess evidence and context for policy change
- Improve stakeholder engagement and consultation processes.
Trainer Dr Jeremiah Brown, a lecturer in public policy at the University of Melbourne’s School of Social and Political Sciences, focuses on the intersection of social policy, freedom and financial wellbeing. His research, influenced by Amartya Sen’s capability approach, explores how societal disadvantages limit individual freedoms in democratic settings.
Dr Brown earned his PhD in political theory from the University of Melbourne in 2018 and teaches political theory and social science research methods.
