An improvement in the behaviour of government departments would bring ‘substantial’ benefits to the Australian business community and the national economy
A major report by the Australian Small Business Commission highlights that government departments and agencies across Australia can clearly improve the way in which they conduct business with the private sector.
And an improvement in their behaviour would bring ‘substantial’ benefits to the Australian business community and the national economy.
More than 50 senior government officials and business leaders were interviewed for the report which studied government departments and agencies and their ‘model’ business behaviour.
The report, by Deloitte Touche Tohamatsu, confirmed that all agencies regularly behave in a businesslike manner but there is room for improvement which would result in major benefits for the economy.
Sarah Court, Commissioner, Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, said that ‘Attitudes of the leader filter down through the organisation – set the tone. This means that model leadership in the public sector is as important as in the private sector’.
The report says that government agencies can lead the way in showing how business should be conducted, influencing all the other sectors of the business community to act in a similar manner.
The result will be a ‘raising the bar’ of Australian business standards – improving the overall quality and productivity of the business environment.
It is expected that the benefits, which should be felt by all Australian businesses, will be particularly noticeable in the small-business community.
