Core principles of public sector management are explored. Students consider the value their organisation creates, the impact of their authorising environment on operations and the capabilities involved in delivering value to stakeholders.

Students examine key economic principles and their application to public sector activities – to support decisions in allocating scarce resources, pricing and delivering goods and services. This subject explores how government intervention, through both private sector regulation and the public provision of services, can be used to achieve the best outcomes for citizens.

This subject offers a framework for considering government responses to contemporary public problems. Students are encouraged to think analytically about problems, identify alternative ways of tackling them, and assess the likely results of changes in current policies and programs. Emphasis is given to the role of effective teamwork and clear communication in any well-functioning advisory system.

Informed decision-making requires a critical appraisal of the available evidence. Students learn to dissect evidence to assess its quality and usefulness.

This subject focuses on the internal and external factors that influence the successful management of public sector organisations. It examines the distinction between routine problems and crises or ‘wicked problems’. Students explore techniques that enhance efficacy, system-thinking and contextual awareness in public sector managers.

The development and implementation of public policy requires an understanding of the applicable elements of law, convention, practice and ethics. This subject develops the capacity of public managers to operate effectively and appropriately within a democracy governed by the rule of law.

This subject examines the role of leadership in assisting communities and organisations to deal with change. Contending perspectives on the complex nexus between leadership and change are used to examine the styles of leaders, the dynamics of leader– follower relations, and their implications for stability and change in the public sector.

The capstone of the EMPA, this subject involves the practical application of the skills and knowledge gained throughout the degree. Designed to replicate specific aspects of the workplace environment in government, the work-based project requires students to bring a complex task to a successful conclusion within a team that spans working backgrounds, disciplines, organisations and jurisdictions.

Public Financial Management covers a range of resource management practices that underpin policy-making in contemporary government, including fiscal rules to guide government spending and borrowing, multi-year expenditure frameworks that capture the longer-term impacts of current policy decisions, and performance-based budgeting to inform the level and relative priority of funding allocations. This subject exposes participants to the practical realities of public financial management, equipping participants with key conceptual and practical knowledge to integrate financial and non-financial performance in the public sector, and to apply it to generate public value.