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Joining a state public sector board lets directors apply their expertise for the public good. But seats are limited, selection is opaque and boards vary widely in purpose, independence and governance responsibilities.
State public sector boards take many forms, ranging from fully independent statutory authorities to advisory bodies and boards with governance responsibilities similar to private sector directors.
“There’s really such huge diversity,” says AJ Brown AM, a professor at the School of Government and International Relations at Griffith University.
Boards can include statutory authorities that are fully independent of government, such as the Queensland Crime and Corruption Commission board.
Other statutory boards, including that of the Queensland Reconstruction Authority, for example, play a primarily advisory role, making funding recommendations to the authorities’ chief executives and staff, while remaining independent of government.
While some advisory boards are established by law, many are set up ad hoc by ministers or departments. However, even statutory boards often have broadly defined roles, with legislation simply requiring the minister to consult an advisory committee that may include experts or community representatives.
Some boards function more like private sector corporate directors, including those overseeing state-owned corporations or corporatised government entities such as Sydney’s WestConnex project.
Ministerial approval
In almost all cases, appointments to state public service boards are approved by the relevant minister, regardless of the selection process. This applies whether the minister selects members directly or considers recommendations from the department, authority or existing board.
“Some ministers are more open to really focusing on getting the right skillset because delivery by that board is important to them,” says Carol Mills GAICD, director of the Institute for Public Policy and Governance at the University of Technology Sydney.
“In other cases, there are things like making sure they [board appointees] don’t supplant the responsibilities of the minister and don’t take over the role of a minister. So ministers may be more cautious.”
The minister’s final say can also cause considerable delays while decisions sit on the minister’s desk.
Tips for prospective directors:
Watch for advertisements seeking directors, but be aware many roles are not publicly advertised.
Add your name to a register of potential directors if one exists in your state.
Let ministers’ offices or board chairs know you’re interested.
Network with relevant stakeholders to increase visibility.
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Recruitment and selection
There is no standard recruitment or selection process for state public sector boards.
“It’ll depend on the law that creates the entity or the authority or the board. Some may be prescriptive as to the appointment procedure and require advertising, but typically not,” says Brown.
“For most governments and most statutory authorities or boards, it’ll simply just say the minister may appoint, and typically it’ll say a term. There might be some other criteria or whatever, but there’s actually often no guarantee that the board role will be advertised at all.”
This creates obvious difficulty for people wanting to secure a board position. As such, Brown suggests approaching the relevant minister’s office to express interest and highlight expertise and experience. Candidates can also contact the agency or board chair.
Sometimes, the minister’s office or agency board will directly approach potential candidates when a vacancy arises, so it can pay to make interest known.
“To be fair, most governments try to find people to fill vacancies on different sorts of boards, believing they’re appointing people who are competent and will make a genuine contribution to the role. Usually, they’ll ask their agency to make recommendations,” says Brown.
In some cases, an agency may recommend to the minister that a role be advertised or expressions of interest sought, including required skills, and then run a structured process.
“There are a lot of government-owned corporations in particular, or statutory authorities, or health and hospital boards where the existing chair and board do reviews of how the board is performing — what skills it feels it needs, whether they’re being filled or not — and then they target people accordingly,” says Brown.
The role of skills and networks
Decision making in the public sector is often hierarchical, with recommendations going to a minister or agency head who makes the final decision.
Experienced director skills in collective decision making can therefore be valuable on state boards. Directors who have completed an AICD course or similar can also contribute to boards of organisations subject to the Corporations Act 2001.
Some states maintain a register of potential directors, which candidates can join, but there is no requirement that appointments come from this list.
“You won’t really be told whether you’ve ever been looked at on that register or what you might be considered for,” says Mills, who suggests potential board members try networking.
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