Talent needs to be reskilled and upskilled internally

The ability to reskill and upskill the existing workforce at scale will be critical to filling digital requirements.

To meet the drastic increase in the demand for technical capability in the next 5 years, the APS will need to consider reskilling (in
terms of specific capability) at scale in a more strategic and whole-of-service way. According to the 2023 ACS Digital Pulse,
206,000 tech workers were reskilled over the 5-year period to meet 2021 tech worker demand.1

Currently, the APS digital workforce relies heavily on contractors — with ICT roles being the second most outsourced — primarily
due to persistent talent shortages. However, continued reliance on contractors is not sustainable.

At a continued growth rate of 7%, the APS digital workforce is projected to grow by nearly 4,000 over the next 5 years.2 During this period, 500 people will enter through digital graduate programs and traineeships. However, approximately 1,800 members of the digital workforce are projected to retire over the same period.

This leaves a predicted shortfall of over 8,000 people required to enter APS digital and ICT roles in the next 5 years.

Figure 1: Securing the digital workforce for 2030

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DTA Analysis 2025

  • Figure 1: Data table

Reskilling and upskilling to fill critical capability shortages

Capability shortages are a high risk for many digital projects in the APS. 71% of agencies reported critical digital workforce gaps in the Agency Survey,3 and 74% of agencies identified resourcing as a key risk in the Approved Programs collection.4

To meet future demands, the APS must consider building required talent in-house and at scale. Reskilling may leverage available VET  offerings, and potential strategic partnerships with the sector, as suggested in Emerging Priority 1.

  • Questions for agency consideration:

  • Exploring whole-of-APS opportunities:

Case Study 2: Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA)

Australia's largest bank employing 49,000 people has needed to think outside of the box to ensure they have the digital workforce for now and the future. They have several reskilling programs on offer: CloudUp for Her: a learning program to become an AWS Cloud practitioner. Career Transition Program: a pathway for people wanting to reskill into tech. Technology Associates Program: an alternative entry pathway to a technology career. CBA is embracing a non-programmatic approach to reskilling, focusing on upskilling/reskilling on the job with key points of formal learning to drive skills upward, then practicing in the flow of work. Reskilling is viewed as a key strategy for talent retention and is deployed to ensure those impacted by automation can transition and continue adding value to the business.

Reconsider Education Requirements

Diversify Location Strategy

  1. Australian Public Service Commission, State of the Service Report 2023-24, 2024
  2. Digital Transformation Agency, APSED custom request RFI 2086 projection analysis, June 2024
  3. Australian Public Service Commission, APS Agency Survey 2024, 2024
  4. Digital Transformation Agency, Approved Programs Collection, December 2024