APS6 – EL1 Women in Leadership Masterclass
Lift your APS career by becoming an inclusive & trusted leader who delivers with impact
Choosing to lead at the APS6 – EL1 level is a watershed moment in your career, and the skills and behaviours that you cultivate now will become the cornerstones of your APS senior leadership in the years to come. This intimate and engaging masterclass is designed to provide you with the crucial skills and behaviours to step out of being a technical expert and ready yourself for more senior leadership.
This highly engaging two day masterclass has been specifically designed for women in APS 6 – EL1 leadership roles to build your understanding and capability to deliver more of what your SES requires of you. It will help you navigate the APS context, be more influential, find your voice, have greater confidence leading diverse and hybrid teams, and set yourself up for success for the rest of your career.
Seasoned commonwealth public service leadership coach and facilitator Kylie Holyland will take you on a journey of lightbulb moments and strategically grow key skills to excel in the APS. Carve out your own leadership plan, network with peers at the same stage as you and walk away refreshed, inspired and more confident in your leadership and the path ahead.
Your event experience
Walk away with a toolkit of concepts, tools and techniques that are endorsed by the APS capability framework
Small group-based activity sessions to translate theory into practice
The support and guidance of a seasoned, knowledgeable and engaging APS leadership coach and facilitator
Build new connections and a local support network of like-minded peers from across the Commonwealth Public Service
Kylie Holyland (She/Her)
Team and Leader Coach, Coaching and Leadership
Kylie is a confident accredited coach, trainer and facilitator, great at delivering short courses and workshops tailored to emerging leaders in the APS. Kylie’s particular strength is in helping people understand who they are, their strengths and talents, and what they need to let go of in order to confidently step into their own light. Kylie has been Program Coach of the APS-wide mentoring program WILES – Women in Law Enforcement and Strategy, and has been a lead facilitator of the APS Academy’s SES Orientation Program. As a full-time executive coach, Kylie has worked with 1000s of leaders and teams at all levels of organisations, helping them to shift their mindset and behaviour to transform their work and life. Prior to 2013, Kylie spent 25 years working as an internal HR consultant providing HR advice and support to a client base of SES and EL managers in the public sector.
Kylie Holyland (She/Her)
Kylie is a confident accredited coach, trainer and facilitator, great at delivering short courses and workshops tailored to emerging leaders in the APS. Kylie’s particular strength is in helping people understand who they are, their strengths and talents, and what they need to let go of in order to confidently step into their own light. Kylie has been Program Coach of the APS-wide mentoring program WILES – Women in Law Enforcement and Strategy, and has been a lead facilitator of the APS Academy’s SES Orientation Program. As a full-time executive coach, Kylie has worked with 1000s of leaders and teams at all levels of organisations, helping them to shift their mindset and behaviour to transform their work and life. Prior to 2013, Kylie spent 25 years working as an internal HR consultant providing HR advice and support to a client base of SES and EL managers in the public sector.
Kylie brings energy and fun to her sessions, and has a knack for creating safe learning spaces. She believes it is important to you that she is professionally skilled, ethical and expert in her work and has worked hard at her craft. She holds International and Australian coaching credentials and is a Professional Certified Coach with the International Coach Federation, (ICF). Kylie has studied neuroscience, HR, NLP, mediation and conflict resolution, and psychology. Kylie is a past-president of the ACT Branch of the International Coach Federation, and is a current member of a range of Australian professional organisations including ICF, AHRI, IPAA, the Resolution Institute, and the Australian Institute of Management.
Key benefits
Cultivate your leadership mindset, grow your confidence & master high-performance habits
Learn strategic decision-making & problem-solving techniques, tips & tricks
Overcome imposter syndrome, hold the floor & communicate with confidence & influence
Become a more inclusive leader, develop coaching skills & create a strong team culture
Lead with curiosity, self-reflection & manage your well-being to avoid burnout
What’s new in 2026?
- An exciting new facilitator who knows what it takes to lead in the APS
- Revised agenda with the perfect balance of valuable concepts and practical tips
- Understand exactly what your superiors are looking for, straight from the person who trained them!
- Plan for the realities of a career as a woman and a leader with tips to manage self, life and work
Who will attend?
Current & emerging women in leadership roles who are ready to stretch themselves, have greater impact and lean into leading in their public sector organisation. This Masterclass is suitable for women working as:
- Team Leader
- Assistant Manager/Director
- Senior Officer
- Senior Advisor
- Senior Analyst
- Project Officer
- Inspector
This masterclass is also relevant for other supervisors with broader leadership requirements.
Agenda
Times shown are in AEST
Acknowledgement of Country & Opening remarks
Registration & welcome
- Housekeeping, Rules of the Room and Introductions
Session 1: Mastering your leadership mindset
- What is it to be a woman leading in the APS in 2026?
- Understanding the APS context and where you fit as an APS 6/EL 1 leader
- Defining inclusive leadership and expectations of APS leaders
- APS Secretaries’ DRIVE model
- APS Craft capabilities
- The leadership mindset: Modelling what good leaders do
- What do you need to let go of to step up and lead at this level?
Morning break
Session 2: Strategic decision making & problem solving
- Understanding the science behind how women make decisions and solve problems
- Balancing management (task) with leadership (people)
- Connecting your people to the why: Taking an outcomes-focused approach through better problem definition
- The core of APS reform: Human-centred leadership and accountable decision making
Lunch break
Session 3: Communicate with confidence & influence
- Stepping up to lead with confidence
- Overcoming imposter syndrome
- How to hold the floor: Finding your voice
- Communicating clearly and cleanly in a digital workplace
- The art of receiving feedback
Afternoon break
Session 4: Your high-performance habits
- Working with intention: Being productive vs. being busy
- When are you a contributor and when are you an impact player?
- Prioritising: The key habit to being more effective, having more time and setting your boundaries
- Influencing upwards and anticipating the needs of your SES
Summary & Close of Day One
Welcome, reflections & learnings from Day One
Session 5: Leading inclusively
- The 2026 team
- Making the most of differences to elevate your people and teams
- Building trust and being trustworthy
- Getting your people and teams comfortable with challenge and uncertainty
Morning break
Session 6: Creating a strong team culture
- Getting results: Engaging and motivating people
- Lifting performance by setting clear expectations, accountabilities and consequences
- Letting go of control by delegating work more intentionally
- Guiding your people and teams through change
Lunch break
Session 7: Leading with curiosity & taking a coaching approach
- The gift of listening and asking better questions: Seek to understand and to be understood
- Developing your coaching skills as a manager
- Using a coaching approach to help others shift perspective and think more systemically and strategically at work
Afternoon break
Session 8: Leading yourself
- Defining resilience as a leader
- Up is not the only way to grow: What are the APS experiences to seek out?
- Managing the seasons of your career: Predictable changes for women that can impact your work effectiveness
- Building a great pit crew: The importance of trusted mentors, sponsors and allies
Action planning & summary
- Making self-reflection a habit: Why is it so hard?
- Action planning: Next steps
- Key takeaways and wrap-up
Close of Day Two & Close of Masterclass
Location:
Canberra CBD – Location to be confirmed closer to the date
Benefits of attending in-person: This is the perfect networking opportunity for leaders, in an environment that will set you up to build new connections and a support network of like-minded peers!
Food & catering requirements: Catering is provided at all in-person The Hatchery events. Dietary requirements and special needs are to be communicated to event organisers one week prior to the event commencing. Please identify yourself to The Hatchery staff upon arrival to ensure all your needs are met.
Dress code: The event dress code is Business casual.
Pricing
Early bird savings until 3 July
+GST
Early bird pricing
Save $700
Early bird savings until 31 July
+GST
Early bird pricing
Save $500
Early bird savings until 28 August
+GST
Early bird pricing
Save $300
Standard rates after early bird
+GST
Save with our group discounts!
Groups of 5+ save 10% | Groups of 10+ save 20%
I found this to be a great opportunity to meet other women in the APS, share experiences, discuss challenges faced by women in the workplace, build confidence and develop a toolkit of techniques, resources and networks to help me along my leadership journey.”
Laura Dennis
Senior Assessment Officer, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, April 2026
I gained so much from attending this masterclass. The facilitators were engaging and really tailored the program to our needs as attendees. I could not recommend this more!”
Chloe Knox
Senior Policy Officer, Department of Finance, April 2026
The training focuses on YOU as you build relationships, share knowledge, and converse with the other attendees. I thought it was very valuable as a personal development/leadership course.
Susan Ha
Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security, April 2026
Kylie seamlessly intertwined evidence-backed coaching with her own experiences, and what resulted was a balanced and specific experience that was minute by minute, tailored to what the room needed. Brilliant.”
Madeleine Wenczel
Senior Assessment Officer, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, April 2026
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