Navigating public sector governance requires a unique skillset, as directors must balance independence and integrity within complex systems of accountability and ministerial oversight.
When you’re governing in the public sector, you’re not just overseeing an agency, you’re navigating a system — one that demands governance skills sharp enough to cope with its complexity.
For Ken Davies PSM, whose career spans decades of government leadership, key to governance roles are power, purpose and the public trust.
“You’re there to represent the government of the day and to implement [its] policies,” says Davies, who serves as Deputy Chancellor of the Council of Charles Darwin University — an appointment of the Northern Territory (NT) Administrator — and as chair of the Menzies School of Health Research board.
“There’s a huge level of responsibility… but there are also layers of accountability,” he notes, and cautions the work of delivering public services has grown “increasingly complex”.
Davies would know. After commencing his 47-year public service career in 1978 as a teacher at Papunya, a small First Nations community about 240km north-west of Alice Springs, he rose through the ranks to hold chief executive roles in eight agencies, ultimately serving as the NT’s top public servant before his retirement in February this year.
Highlighting the myriad of government entities across the country, Davies explains that legal obligations can be specific to each entity, in some cases even set out in legislation. This means directors who oversee these entities must not only meet all the usual private sector company board requirements, but also bespoke laws — and do it all under the auspice of a government minister.
Public scrutiny, political complexity: What sets these boards apart
“In the public sector, there’s a range of checks,” says Davies. “I was having a conversation this morning with a director of an organisation and saying, ‘Look, you're in receipt of public money coming from a government… we need to make sure all the records being made, particularly around meeting agendas, are available; that conflicts have been declared and there’s accountability around performance and the way budgets are spent.’
“There is a high level of scrutiny.”
But, according to Davies, public sector boards begin from a position of strength, with directors able to draw on the broad and deep legal, policy and budget advice of the public service.
Still, he reminds directors that conflict-of-interest protocols are vital, especially for those straddling both operational and governance responsibilities. He adds that integrity in these roles depends on recognising when to step back — or step aside.
Additionally, public boards must navigate relationships with ministers and their offices, so when major decisions are needed, government backing is already in place.
At the same time, because governments come and go, stewarding institutional integrity is “mission-critical”.
“It's a lot to navigate,” says Davies.
As such, strong board induction is vital — and often needs revisiting to ensure everyone stays aligned with their responsibilities and the organisation’s remit.
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Key points to consider:
Public sector governance demands unique capabilities. Directors must navigate complex systems of accountability, legislation and ministerial oversight, while maintaining independence and integrity.
Tailored governance training is essential. Standard corporate governance models don’t fully address the political and operational realities of public administration, underscoring the need for bespoke offerings.
Strong governance safeguards public trust. As scrutiny and complexity grow in government organisations, robust, effective governance is critical to ensuring public confidence.
Getting it right — and wrong: Why tailored training matters
In a landscape of rising public expectations and increasingly complex systems, Davies notes strengthening the governance capabilities of people serving on public boards is important.
He lauds the internal work done by the public service on governance, but points to a need for ongoing skills refresher training tailored to public service — a lack of which has contributed to some historic failures.
“The ‘Robodebt’ issue is a classic case,” says Davies, referring to the unlawful automated debt-recovery scheme that exposed deep failures in inter-agency oversight and governance.
As such, he calls for more tailored opportunities.
“The [AICD] agenda is really clear around what good board governance is really all about,” he says, adding that directors working in government need to understand how to apply those principles with a public sector lens to emerging challenges.
Ground truth and governance: connecting strategy to impact
Increasingly, public sector governance involves overseeing complex collaboration across agencies and with the non-government sector, requiring buy-in from top to bottom. Ground-level engagement is therefore vital for boards to remain fully informed, accountable and ensure effective service delivery — a global imperative for modern public administration.
Davies recently visited Timor Leste, where the Menzies School of Health Research has a large footprint, including many local employees.
“Part of my role as the director was to… get some hands-on experience about impact,” he says, adding that for a board to operate with an evidence base, sometimes you must see the work first-hand.
With higher levels of scrutiny and pressure mounting on public institutions — including hybrid and external boards that must balance government agendas with community outcomes — he says building strong governance capability should be an ongoing investment.
Public vs private governance: A different game
Unlike private boards focused on profit and shareholder returns, public sector boards must answer to ministers and, fundamentally, the public.
While private meetings target growth, public sector strategy centres on answering: “What does the government and community need, and how do we deliver it fairly, accountably and at scale?” This demands a distinct set of governance capabilities.
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