PM&C APS Employee Census Results 2024

This report highlights the main findings of the PM&C Employee Census (the Census) results for 2024.

Overview

In 2024, the department saw the highest ever employee participation in the Census, with a 91% response rate providing valuable insights into employee sentiment. Overall, the results remained relatively consistent with 2023 and continued to build on our historically engaged workforce.

The Census results include 6 key indices that draw together responses to multiple questions into single themed measures. PM&C’s index scores remain stable and continue to track above the APS wide and other APS policy agency averages, as follows:

  • Engagement: 78%
  • Immediate Supervisor: 80%
  • SES Manager: 76%
  • Communication: 73%
  • Innovation: 67%
  • Wellbeing: 72%.

Key strengths

The results reflect a workforce who are highly committed, capable and engaged. Some of our key strengths to celebrate and continually foster are:

  • Our highly engaged workforce - Engagement levels remain high and there is a strong sense of pride for working at PM&C, with clear commitment to our goals and purpose. 89% of respondents are proud to work at PM&C and 92% suggest ideas to improve our way of doing things. These results reflect a dedicated workforce with 97% of respondents willing to go the 'extra mile' when required.
  • Integrity, Stewardship and Inclusiveness - This year the Census asked new questions about working in the APS. 83% of respondents said their workgroup demonstrates stewardship, and 84% said the PM&C culture supports people to act with integrity. 86% of respondents support and actively promote an inclusive work culture with 70% stating they can draw on their diverse background, skills and experience in their work. 
  • Effective and supportive leadership – Respondents rated their immediate supervisor highly, with 90% agreeing their immediate supervisor cares about their health and wellbeing. 92% indicated their supervisor ensures they deliver what they are responsible for, and 82% reported their supervisor is invested in their development. 76% of respondents indicated that their SES manager creates an environment that enables employees to deliver their best, scoring 10 percentage points above the APS.

Areas of focus

Although our results were very positive overall, there are always areas that can be improved. In our 2024-25 Action Plan these are:

  • Promoting a safe and respectful workplace – PM&C aims to provide a safe and respectful workplace for all employees. 9% of respondents reported having been subject to harassment or bullying in the previous 12 months. Although 2 percentage points below the APS average, this was an increase from 8% in 2023. Pleasingly, there was a 5 percentage point increase in those reporting bullying and harassment behaviour. 
  • Workload management - 19% of respondents described their workload as ‘well above capacity – too much work’ with a further 39% indicating their workload was ‘slightly above capacity – lots of work to do’. PM&C is committed to ensuring employee workloads are reasonable, enabling a balance between work and personal commitments, as well as a safe workplace environment with manageable and sustainable demands.
  • Engagement with Leadership – Analysis of EL2 respondents suggests responses related to leadership were variable. Initiatives are needed to cultivate a sense of leadership in this cohort by boosting engagement with SES and encouraging collaboration.
  • Local focus – While PM&C’s overall results are positive and consistent across years, our analysis indicates they may obscure challenges faced in different work areas. We recognise the importance of understanding local variations in results and continue to promote local census action planning.

Progress on our 2023 Action Plan

We are proud to have progressed well on our actions from the 2023 PM&C Action Plan.

  • Progressing the Inclusion & Diversity Strategy, has been a priority for PM&C over the last 12 months. Of the 32 actions in the plan, 19 are complete and 13 are well progressed (as at end of September 2024). This has been reflected with 82% of respondents indicating PM&C is committed to growing the diversity of our workforce. We continue to implement the Strategy in 2024-25. PM&C has also recently launched the Reconciliation Action Plan: Innovate 2024-2027 which envisions a future where the knowledge, perspectives and contributions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are integral to all we do.
  • A Change Management and Consultation Toolkit was launched internally and promoted in mid-2024 offering advice on conducting genuine consultation with staff and providing change communication tools / templates. In 2024, 74% of respondents agreed when changes occur, the impacts are communicated well within their workgroup, a 4 percentage point improvement from 2023. 
  • In 2023, Executive Broad, Group SES and PM&C’s Inclusion and Diversity Committee received presentations related to their Census results, providing SES with greater insight into local action planning. Local level action planning was actively promoted, including the provision of an action planning template and action planning workshop guide to assist teams. This is an action item taken forward in 2024-25.

Where to from here

A tailored agency 2024-25 Census Action plan has been developed based on our results. The action plan recognises our priority areas outlined above and actions to demonstrate our commitment to continuous improvement.

In addition to the Census Action plan, PM&C continues to make great strides through a range of workforce initiatives, many of which are driven by ongoing APS Reform priorities. More information on how we support our workforce and build capability can be found in PM&C's Corporate Plan 2024-25 and Annual Report 2023-24.

More detail

For more detail about interpreting, benchmarking and comparing the Census results, we recommend visiting the Australian Public Service Commission’s Census page and reading the explanatory guide for more technical information.