Now in its fifth year of operation, Family Safety Victoria seeks to cement its role as a steward for an ambitious and ground-breaking program of system reform. The nature of this work is difficult and demanding, and while high levels of public interest in eradicating family violence has mobilised resources and efforts across the system, they have also raised an expectation that positive outcomes will be delivered.
The pace of the establishment of Family Safety Victoria, the pressure to establish foundations for system change and to rapidly deliver reform, together with the disruptions caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, have meant that up until now our organisation has had limited time and space to look inward. The People and Culture Strategy offers the first opportunity for Family Safety Victoria to consolidate and set a positive and affirming direction forward for investment in our workforce.
The nature of the reform work is inherently complex and involves working with a broad and diverse network of sector and community partners. The recommendations of the Royal Commission into Family Violence highlighted the need for “…each sector or component of the system to reinforce the work of others, to collaborate with and trust others, to understand the experience of family violence in all its forms, to look outwardly, to be open to new ideas and new solutions.”1
Our employees act as leaders in the sector and need to continually engage and connect in a meaningful way with Victorian communities. The importance of an open, constructive and collaborative work culture that enables us to listen, learn, and lead, has never been clearer.
Family Safety Victoria also operates in a rapidly changing public sector landscape, where fiscal constraints require public sector workforces to deliver solutions to complex social problems with unprecedented levels of efficiency and where change and complexity have become the norm. This is driving a program of significant transformation both in the department and across the Victorian Public Service to enable increased efficiency, mobility, collaboration and innovation.
Working for Family Safety Victoria offers our employees an opportunity to be part of and contribute to positive reform on a scale not yet seen in the family violence sector. The work is challenging, yet meaningful. Successfully operating in an environment of such complexity, scrutiny, pressure and change requires high levels of sustained performance and the ability to continually adapt and innovate. Our people need to be supported and developed to help them rise to new challenges, to learn and grow, be adaptable, and be resilient.
Family Safety Victoria has a lot to offer our employees. And while change of this scale takes time, our commitment to supporting and developing our workforce is enduring.
References
1 Royal Commission into Family Violence Summary and Recommendations, p.7
Updated