Dr Craig Fowler*, 26 November 2026
Are you: a better coach for having played the game at highest level; a superior baron of a media corporation if you started as a desk journalist; a smarter tech billionaire for having cut code; an out-performing venture capitalist if once a failed entrepreneur; a far-sighted head of NASA if you journeyed as an astronaut; or a more compassionate general if you had combat experience?
Does any of this apply to contemporary leadership in the public service? Our public service leaders are overwhelmingly recruited on merit from within their own clonal ranks as professional, neutral and specialists in ‘public policy and process’. Their knowledge of industry sectors upon which they may advise on policy, laws and programs might be characterised as both ‘vicarious’ and ‘partnered’.
Vicarious as they have no, or limited, ‘firsthand’ experience of working within such industries; partnered as their relationship and effective engagement with industry stakeholders is mandatory.
Information assembled from the career profiles of the current Australian Public Service (APS) Senior Executive Service (SES) confirms its members are mostly career long public servants. Their private sector work experience is limited, overwhelmingly in ‘consulting’ and well less than 4 years, and not within the likes of ASX200 companies, large private firms, or in national charities.
In the USA, senior SES leaders are mostly merit-based appointed from within the public service. But there is a discrete SES entry point for direct external recruits, at most 25% per agency but capped at 10% government wide. This allows for a minority proportion of senior SES appointees having significant private sector work experience in diverse disciplines e.g. management, finance, technology, innovation, agrisciences, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, legal and regulatory.
The APS SES supports, and can seek advice from, some 550 statutory and non-statutory ‘advisory’ bodies. The majority are linked with Health and Aged Care, Infrastructure Transport and Regional Development, Climate Change Energy and Environment, Treasury, Defence, and Agriculture Fisheries and Forestry. Very few operate cross agency.
As example, a government-wide National Research Foundation is needed, akin to those effective in the USA or Germany, to overcome long known fragmentation of Australia’s research system spread across multiple portfolios.
Such ‘advisory’ bodies provide for one structured approach to engagement with APS SES leaders. Effective external relationships work best if run in good faith in accord with the APS Charter of Partnering and Engagement. However, activities will be muted if, in any way, they raise conflict of interest or integrity so risking (overzealous) scrutiny by the National Anti-Corruption Commission.
Despite past urging, the APS-SES draws in minimal talent from the private sector. Being good at ‘public policy and process’ of itself does not guarantee exceptional public sector leadership. Real world policy application is complicated. Appointable private sector CEOs require sharp knowledge as well as credible experience of the industry in which they are expected to succeed. They can better strategically assess the merits of advice, through the long lens of their own work experience.
So, high-potential next gen SES candidates should ideally have both public service exposure and nous, plus deep private sector experience. At minimum the SES and next level executive teams need to be made up of a mix of expertise and experience. Look at US models, adapt best elements.
Without stronger shake up, people of exceptional talent and private sector experience will prefer to take their chances in the freer rough and tumble of the private sector, put off by the reputation of the politicised, risk averse, achieve-nothing-fast, constricting squeeze of the public service.
The opposite and positive is true. National public service leadership whilst challenging is immensely rewarding and impacting, coast to coast. The APS SES and its next level executive needs bolder reform, rather than remain complicit in mostly self-perpetuating their own kind.
A more detailed essay on this topic written by Craig can be downloaded from the following link.
*Dr Craig Fowler
Dr Craig Fowler’s diverse experience in Public Administration and Higher Education in Executive roles makes him exceptionally well qualified to reflect on the topic of diversity in career experience and its potential benefits for senior executive service (SES) leadership in the public sector.
Craig’s career spans a unique intersection of roles across government, private consultancy, academia, and research, providing an insider’s view of how diverse professional experiences influence leadership effectiveness.
Having held executive roles in organisations such as Ernst & Young, the South Australian Government, and the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER), Craig has firsthand knowledge of the expectations, challenges, and strategic priorities of both the public and private sectors.
His tenure in research and innovation-focused organisations, coupled with his board and advisory roles at TAFE SA and Future Skills Organisation, demonstrates his ability to navigate complex, multidisciplinary environments where diverse perspectives are essential.
Craig’s expertise in policy analysis, organisational development, and strategic planning equips him to critically examine leadership frameworks and the skills required for success in high-level public sector roles. Furthermore, his academic grounding, extensive credentials, and experience with industry-government relations underscore his ability to connect career diversity with broader public sector outcomes.
This combination makes him uniquely suited to explore the transformative potential of varied career pathways for SES leaders.
Comentarios