Culture at Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C)

PM&C has a very flat hierarchy. Often our senior officers will sit at desks on the floor with us instead of in offices and as a junior in the organisation I have a significant amount of face time with my seniors. The organisation is extremely social and organise events at team, branch and division levels.

In my Division, the culture is amazing. There is constant support and my First Assistant Secretary has set the standard. The Department as a whole is not great. The I&D team has provided no support to staff. This includes not supporting First Nations staff in the lead up to and following the recent referendum. There has also not been any support provide to staff affected by the current Hamas and Israel war.

The culture is dependent on the leadership within Divisions. I have had very different experiences within my rotations. Overall, it has been a positive experience in terms of team culture, but I have experienced poor and inappropriate leadership. Having Networks at the Department does influence good relationship building in terms of support but at the end of the day it all comes back to individual behaviours and what is prioritised by the Department. I would say if you are not Anglo Saxton, your experience of the Department would be extremely different.

Flexible in most areas Positive and kind feedback Close contact with SES

I think the culture varies significantly between different branches. However, I've been very satisfied. My team recognises that there will be a need to work late at times, but has been very supportive of me taking time off/using flex time to compensate. Socialising between team members has been great and management have actively encouraged it and gotten involved in social events.

- mostly younger workforce of individuals under 40/30 - many people are friends with their co-workers and socialise in their free-time, have lunch or coffee together (also great exchange with non-immediate co-workers from other areas of the department) - culture strongly depends on work area: Level 2 (International, National Security) are much more strict and hierarchical, corporate dress code, less individuality, no smartwatches/phones during in work area, traditional seating in smaller pods, directors and above in own office, no working from home arrangements, expectation of long hours every day, still great camaraderie/cooperation and teamwork between colleagues who all feel (special?) like they work towards a greater good, high/constant engagement with Prime Minister and PMO (much more than in any other field of work in PM&C) - other areas (in less secure zones) have hot-desking arrangements (no own seat) with directors and Assistant Secretaries on the floor with workers, people have no issues occupying the same chair if they wanted as lots of WFH arrangements and seating areas are never fully utilised, great culture, more relaxed, less uptight, hardly any corporate dress code, easier movement and more open, relaxed seating arrangements, less hierarchical

There is a structured hierarchy in the Department. It's nothing to be worried about, as people here are supportive of each other, and some teams work to a pretty flat structure in practice. Your teammates and supervisors are normally happy to help with anything. Generally, there is good sense of teamwork and cooperation throughout the Department - we're all working to get the best outcome. There are plenty of social events, networks to get involved with, and events held with external organisations and neighbouring departments, so you can meet people outside of the department with ease. Teams will sometimes have social events outside of work hours. You could also get involved in social sport, book clubs, choirs, etc. Staff at PM&C tend to be outgoing and happy to meet new people. Most people are willing to meet for a coffee and a chat!