Understanding the intricacies of the policymaking process can help you, as an aspiring political leader, to navigate the complex landscape of idea generation, stakeholder engagement, advocacy and legislation – enabling you to drive meaningful change in your communities through effective policymaking.
In this series of bite-sized videos featuring the Hon Mary Wooldridge we look at the vital roles of various actors, stakeholders and institutions in creating effective policies.
By using gender pay equity and the Workplace Gender Equality Amendment (Closing the Gender Pay Gap) Bill 2023 as a case study, Mary offers valuable insights from her current role as CEO of the Workplace Gender Equality Agency, as well as her extensive political experience.
- Video 1: The policymaking mix
- Video 2: The policy ‘window’ or catalyst for change
- Video 3: Engaging your stakeholders
- Video 4: Policy implementation and impact
About The Hon Mary Wooldridge
As CEO of the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA), Mary leads the Agency in driving gender equality in workplaces ensuring that women and men are equally represented, valued and rewarded. Mary brings to the role a wealth of experience from a distinguished career in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. Mary served from 2006 to 2020 in the Victorian Parliament, including a term as Minister for Mental Health, Community Services and Women’s Affairs.
As Minister, Mary worked to implement the National Plan to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children 2010-2022 and was instrumental in establishing Our Watch, the national family violence prevention agency. Mary was the Minister responsible for signing Victoria up to the National Disability Insurance Scheme. She established the Victorian Commission for Children and Young People, including the nation’s first Aboriginal Commissioner, Parkville College – an award-winning Public School in Youth Justice Centres and Australia’s first Mental Health Complaints Commissioner and the Family Drug Treatment Court.
Prior to being elected to Parliament, Mary was the CEO of The Foundation for Young Australians and worked with McKinsey & Company and Consolidated Press Holdings.
Video 1: The policymaking mix
What are the vital elements that transform innovative ideas into impactful policies?
Mary shares her expertise on how great ideas evolve into effective policies, emphasising the importance of listening to communities, building a solid evidence base, and navigating the challenges of implementation.
Video 2: The policy ‘window’ or catalyst for change
What are the conditions that might open a policy ‘window’ or moment for your proposed policy to break through?
As outlined in the APS Academy Policy toolkit, ‘What is a ‘policy window’? economist John Kingdon argues in the Multiple Streams Approach that a policy window for significant policy change can open only – and then briefly – when 3 separate streams come together:
- The problem must be well understood by government and experts, and the broader community
- The solution needs to be available and feasible
- Above all, the political will has to be forthcoming at the right time.
As you watch our second video, consider what factors were at play that created a ‘policy window’ for the gender pay gap legislation.
Video 3: Engaging your stakeholders
Engaging key stakeholders is a vital step in the policymaking process, ensuring diverse perspectives are heard and policies are shaped to address real-world needs, leading to more effective and sustainable outcomes.
In this video, Mary describes the various actors and stakeholders engaged throughout the policymaking process across two successive governments.
She also discusses the important role that the media has played in normalising the idea of the gender pay gap and creating the opportunity for an ongoing conversation about gender pay equity.
Video 4: Policy implementation and impact
In our final video we learn about the tangible, real-real world results of our policymaking case study.
Here, Mary discusses the implementation and demonstrated impact of the Closing the Gender Pay Gap Bill on employers, employees and the broader conversation about workplace gender parity and culture.
