EP#161: Can Australia’s public sector keep up? Innovation, trust and power

In this episode of Work with Purpose, we discuss how a widening gap between external change and internal capability in the public sector is becoming a major threat to both public trust and effective government.

As governments navigate social media distortion, geopolitical instability, cognitive warfare and rapid advances in AI, many public institutions are still operating in rigid, slow-moving ways better suited to an earlier era.

Guest host Michelle Ainsworth, former ABC politics editor and Churchill Fellow, speaks with Sir Geoff Mulgan, Professor of Collective Intelligence, Public Policy and Social Innovation at University College London alongside IPAA National Secretary Samantha Palmer, about why trust in government now depends on more than competence alone.

Australia’s public service stands out internationally for its relative stability, integrity and institutional strength. Our panel discuss how Australia can use this advantage more ambitiously: to test new ideas, design better institutions and build models other democracies can learn from. The conversation explores how governments can respond to ethical failures more effectively, why public services need to become more transparent and conversational, and what it will take to avoid a new wave of AI-related public sector scandals.

Key tips

1. Trust is built through both competence and integrity. Public confidence depends not just on delivering results, but on being seen as honest, accountable, and guided by clear moral purpose.
2. Governments need to innovate more systematically. Public institutions cannot afford to remain rigid while technology and public expectations move quickly around them.
3. AI should be tested, staged, and governed carefully. Strong procurement, user testing, ethical oversight, and in-house capability are essential to avoid costly failures.

Work with Purpose is produced by contentgroup in partnership with IPAA ACT

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