The head of the Digital Transformation Agency has pointed to artificial intelligence\u2019s potential to \u201clift productivity\u201d across the federal government\u2019s program delivery amid a \u201creally strong fiscal constraint\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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The agency\u2019s CEO Chris Fechner indicated that AI had already \u201cproved itself to be more than equal\u201d in carrying out certain functions such as \u201ctaking minutes, doing actions, [and] drafting first versions of documents\u201d<\/p>\n
Speaking on a Public Sector Network webinar, Fechner said: \u201cThere are many things that take an enormous amount of white-collar effort.<\/p>\n
\u201cArtificial intelligence has proved itself to be more than equal in reducing complexity.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the great things about artificial intelligence, I believe, is that it should reduce the cost and time of doing things that aren\u2019t particularly fun or interesting, allowing us to spend more time on things that have a greater impact.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fechner, whose agency led the federal government’s six-month trial of Microsoft Copilot<\/a> last year, noted mounting pressure on the Australian Public Service (APS) to contain program costs, especially given the compound impact of project failures.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is a really strong fiscal constraint, and making sure that our programs around delivery and policy are promoted means that our internal costs need to be heavily scrutinised,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI think the success of all the initiatives we bring forward needs to have a stronger guarantee.<\/p>\n “We can\u2019t have failures, because a failure has double the impact: you don\u2019t get what you need, and you\u2019ve spent the money.\u201d<\/p>\n As such, using AI \u201cto provide the right augmentation\u201d, alongside skills and capabilities, could play a key role in lifting productivity across the public sector.<\/p>\n Fewer $100 million projects<\/p>\n Fechner, who was named DTA CEO in 2021, also pointed to federal procurement\u2019s role in inhibiting productivity, noting that Commonwealth projects average \u201cgenerally between two and three years\u201d in length.<\/p>\n \u201cWe think it should be half that,\u201d he said. \u201cWe think it should be even less than half that in some cases.<\/p>\n \u201cIt shouldn\u2019t be $100 million projects, it should be $20 million projects. The more we can actually realise value in shorter periods with lower costs, the more likely we are to be successful.<\/p>\n \u201cWe also have evidence that the longer a project runs, the less likely it is to realise its originally intended benefits.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s also about simplifying things,\u201d he added. \u201cInstead of looking at 100 things, we look at 10 things and make decisions on those so that we can move to value quicker.<\/p>\n GovERP \u201cnot fallen into a hole\u201d<\/p>\n His comments come off the back of the government\u2019s efforts to find reusability within the failed GovERP project, after the program was found to have \u201cproduced little of functional value\u201d.<\/p>\n