In this special holiday bonus, inaugural CE of Centrelink Sue Vardon AO joins Danielle and Caroline to talk through her submission to the Robodebt Royal Commission. Her submission outlines the changes in Centrelink that made Robodebt possible - as well as the things that have stayed the same.
She also takes us through her career, from being the only social worker in Wagga Wagga through to leading the establishment of Centrelink.
Along the way, she covers the difference between being a 'customer' and a 'recipient', the snap back of bureaucratic and hierarchical cultures, the value of operational experience and much more.
Grab at around 1 hr 6 min is Commissioner Holmes and Kathryn Campbell AO CSC and Bar, November 11 2022.
This podcast was recorded on Kaurna land, and we recognise Kaurna elders past and present. Always was, always will be.
Sue Vardon AO has 23 years of experience as a public sector Chief Executive, including CE of the Office of Public Sector Reform, the Public Service Commissioner and the CE of the Department for Correctional Services in South Australia. She was inaugural CE of Centrelink in 1997, a position she held until 2004. She finished her full-time public service career as CE of the South Australian Department for Families and Communities. She was the first Telstra Businesswoman of the Year.
Now for some appropriately bureaucratic disclaimers....
Those of us in the employ of the State Government speak in a strictly personal capacity, consistent with the Public Sector Code of Ethics that permits public servants to promote an outcome in relation to an issue of public interest - in this case, the betterment of the public service.
Nothing we say should be taken as representing the views of the Government or our employers.
While we have tried to be as thorough in our research as busy full time jobs and lives allow, we definitely don’t guarantee that we’ve got all the details right.
If you want rigorous reporting on Robodebt, we recommend the work of Rick Morton at the Saturday Paper, Chris Knaus and Luke Henriques-Gomes at the Guardian, Ben Eltham at Crikey, Julian Bajkowski at The Mandarin, and of course, the Robodebt Royal Commission itself.
Please feel free to email us corrections, episode suggestions, or anything else, at thewestminstertraditionpod@gmail.com.
Thanks to PanPot audio for our intro and outro music.
'Til next time!
The Essendon Footy Club supplements scandal (part 3): regulation in a changing world
The Essendon Footy Club supplements scandal (part 2): what’s it like to investigate Australia’s biggest sports codes?
The Royal Commission we should have? The 2013 Essendon Football Club supplements scandal
Sue Vardon AO, inaugural CE of Centrelink: On learning while in the job
Sue Vardon AO, inaugural CE of Centrelink: On lawyers
'Do it now, get it right later': payment (in)accuracy in Centrelink - setting the stage for Robodebt
Mr Bates v Post Office part 4 - the roll out of Horizon
Mr Bates v Post Office part 3 - accepting a lemon
Mr Bates v Post Office part 2 - a very poor procurement
Mr Bates v Post Office - shades of Robodebt?
16. Taking responsibility - lessons from Robodebt
Bonus Episode: Dr Darren O'Donovon on centering the victims of Robodebt, the fragmentation of knowledge and accountability, and the creation of moral discomfort
15. Behavioural insights in Robodebt: at last, an argument!
14. The Grinch that stole Christmas
13. Pink Batts and Robodebt - lessons not learned
12. Robodebt as algorithm (part 3) - Jurassic Park ICT and AI
11. Robodebt as algorithm (part 2) - random number generator decision-making
10. Robodebt as algorithm (part 1) - junk data and Swiss cheese
9. Why is it hard to hear whistleblowers? The lessons from Robodebt
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