The Electoral Commission won the Excellence in Improving Public Value Through Business Transformation at this year’s Deloitte IPANZ Public Sector Excellence Awards.
The tradition of voting on election day in schools and community halls had not been working for all voters, with a low point in 2011 where one in four eligible voters did not cast a vote. The Electoral Commission saw the need to turn their operating model on its head, to make voting part of everyday life and take voting to the people.
Alicia Wright, Chief Electoral Officer, will describe the challenge laid down to Commission staff to identify locations where people would be in everyday life, and to establish services where and when the customer would be there. Instead of looking for a voting service, the service would come to you at the supermarket, in shopping malls, on your way to the bus or train, and at tertiary institutions.
A data driven approach combined with strong and collaborative public and private partnerships, delivered more services at the 2017 General Election at a lower cost per voter, while maintaining the security and integrity of the vote and a high level of voter satisfaction (94%). Participation in the 2017 General Election was the highest since 2005 (79.8%). 2.6m people voted, with 47% or 1.2m casting their vote in advance of election day, up from 29% in 2014 and 14% in 2011.
This seminar provides an opportunity to hear more about what was required to make the business transformation successful, including the challenges, lessons learned and where to next.