Corporate Plan FY26-FY29

This Plan builds on the considerable progress we made as an agency in the last 12 months, my first as the agency head. While we have changed our brand to the Tax Ombudsman – to increase the community’s awareness and understanding of what we do – our purpose, ambitions and goals remain the same. We exist to improve the fairness and integrity in the administration of Australia’s tax and superannuation systems. 

Corporate Plan FY17 – FY21

Introduction

The Inspector-General of Taxation’s 2017-18 Corporate Plan outlines how the Office of the Inspector-General of Taxation (IGT) intends to deliver against its purpose over the upcoming four years. This document, which covers the 2017­-18 to 2020-21 reporting periods, is required under paragraph 35(1)(b) of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 (PGPA Act). It sets out our purpose, operating environment, planned performance and capability as well as risk oversight and management.

Purpose

The IGT is an independent statutory agency. Our role is to improve tax administration in Australia through:

  • maintaining an effective and efficient complaints handling function;
  • identifying and prioritising areas of tax administration requiring improvement; and
  • conducting reviews and making recommendations for improvement to the Government, the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB).

Operating environment

The environment in which we operate continues to evolve. Our key functions are investigating individual complaints and conducting broader reviews into tax administration issues. These functions provide us with the opportunity to interact with a broad range of stakeholders to gain real time insights into emerging issues, identify areas for potential improvement and offer independent assurance about the tax system where appropriate. This is particularly important in light of the complexity of tax laws and its administration. Our operating environment is influenced by our relationships with stakeholders and their expectations regarding the delivery of our services. Our key stakeholders are:

  • the general public, including taxpayers, tax practitioners and their representative bodies;
  • Parliamentarians and Parliamentary Committees;
  • the Government, including the Treasurer and the Assistant Treasurer;
  • the ATO and the TPB;
  • other Government agencies, such as the Treasury, the Commonwealth Ombudsman, the Australian National Audit Office and the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprises Ombudsman; and
  • international organisations, including overseas revenue agencies and counterparts.

Critical to our role is our ability to anticipate and respond to changes, including increasing community expectations for more effective complaints handling and associated improvements to the tax system. Adapting to this changing environment remains an ongoing challenge for the office.

Four year outlook

Over the next four years our focus will be on improving and establishing strategies to fulfil and manage the above expectations. We anticipate an increase in the number and complexity of complaints as awareness of our role and satisfaction with our service becomes more widely known.

We will also continue to maintain a programme of reviews, which is increasingly guided by real-time insight on themes and issues emerging from our complaints handling work. Similar to previous work programmes, the IGT will continue to consult with the broader community, including taxpayers, tax practitioners and their representative bodies to identify and prioritise the tax administration issues of most concern.

Performance

We seek to fulfil our purpose through a range of deliverables. These are set out in the tables below, along with how they will be measured. The performance framework is intended to inform Parliament as well as ensure that IGT staff are aware of the impact of their work and how the deliverables achieve the fundamental goals of the IGT.

Deliverable 1 – Effective handling of tax administration complaints

  • Actively investigate complaints in a fair, independent and timely manner.
  • Provide understandable reasons for our decisions.
  • Maintain cooperative relationships with the ATO and TPB.
  • Identify and share improvement opportunities, internally and also with the ATO and TPB, to ensure effective delivery.
  • Provide training and development to staff in order to maintain a tax specialist complaints handling team.
Measures2017-182018-192019-202020-21
Feedback provided by stakeholders about the IGT’s complaints handling function through such means as surveys, consultative forums and case studies.
Feedback from the ATO and the TPB about the IGT’s complaints handling function (via regular inter-agency meetings).
Feedback from staff about the IGT’s complaints handling function (via internal complaints meetings).
Measuring efficiency through such means as the percentage of complaints received compared to complaints completed.
Measuring the effectiveness of our decisions through such means as the percentage of complaints not requiring an internal review of the original decision.

Deliverable 2 – Identify and prioritise areas of tax administration for improvement

  • Analyse data and feedback obtained from complaints together with consultation with stakeholders to identify broader tax administration issues.
  • Allocate resources appropriately to priority areas.
Measures2017-182018-192019-202020-21
Emerging themes identified from our complaints handling function.
Issues identified from stakeholder forums, such as consultation undertaken to develop our work program.
Issues identified from investigations directed by the Minister or requested by Parliament, Parliamentary Committees, the Commissioner of Taxation or the TPB.
Prioritise identified issues.

Deliverable 3 – Conduct reviews and make independent recommendations for improvement to Government, the ATO and the TPB

  • Being responsive to the community, including the Government, the ATO and the TPB in making effective recommendations for improving tax administration.
  • Allocating resources to conduct reviews appropriately.
Measures2017-182018-192019-202020-21
Conduct reviews and investigate identified issues
Report the findings and recommendations of the reviews

These measures will be assessed in the annual performance statement.

Capability

Our people are our success and are highly valued for their work. Our strategy is centred on employing and retaining experienced tax specialists with the ability to provide a professional, effective and independent service to the community. We are also committed to workplace diversity, for example as evidenced in our Gender Equality Action Plan 2017-19. We seek to provide a challenging and supportive environment in which our staff are inspired to provide the best outcomes. We will continue to enhance our capability through multi-skilling, training and development opportunities that are responsive to our requirements and the evolving needs of the broader community. Feedback received from external stakeholders and from our staff is also used to improve our service delivery. Over the next four years, we will continue to enhance our business capability and use technology to innovate and improve the way we manage and deliver our services. Our strategies include information management and technological solutions to manage our complaints handling function and identifying the resources required to support our existing and future organisational needs. A focus for the future is to improve our systems to efficiently identify emerging issues that arise from complaints, from which we can allocate resources to conduct broader reviews.

Corporate plan integration

Our corporate plan is directly linked to the Portfolio Budget Statement, the Risk Management Policy and Framework and is reported in the annual report as part of our annual performance statement. Risk management is an integral part of the IGT’s business planning and governance processes. Our processes also need to reflect the size and specialist function of the office. We have established and maintained appropriate systems of risk oversight, management and internal controls in accordance with section 16 of the PGPA Act and the Commonwealth Risk Management Policy.

Risks are identified, regularly monitored and reported through our Risk Management Policy and Framework, including use of our Risk Register. Risks identified through these processes are considered and discussed by the IGT’s management team and reported to the Audit and Risk Committee. This Committee is established and structured in accordance with section 45 of the PGPA Act and the PGPA Rules. It meets on a periodic basis to consider audit and risk matters including fraud control. The IGT addresses corporate and operational planning matters through:

  • an annual forward planning process to set strategic priorities;
  • periodic meetings to review and document operational priorities, as well as discuss internal guidelines, procedures and governance issues;
  • periodic internal training and other information-sharing sessions; and
  • a forward plan of review activities.

Our key risks include:

  • efficiently delivering our complaints handling service to enhance the taxpayer experience;
  • providing timely, accurate and high quality reports to Government with effective recommendations;
  • developing and maintaining professional relationships with our stakeholders;
  • attracting and retaining specialist staff with requisite skills and capabilities; and
  • managing our budgets and allocating resources appropriately to ensure efficient delivery of our services.

Effective management of these risks requires a holistic approach and therefore responsibility for managing these risks rests with all our staff. Details of our programme expenses can be found in the 2017-18 Portfolio Budget Statements.

Corporate Plan FY15 ‑ FY19

Telephone: (02) 8239 2111 Facsimile: (02) 8239 2100

IGTO Crest

Level 19, 50 Bridge Street Sydney NSW 2000 GPO Box 551 Sydney NSW 2001

  The Hon Josh Frydenberg MP Assistant Treasurer Parliament House Canberra ACT 2600 Dear Minister I am pleased to present the Inspector-General of Taxation’s 2015-16 Corporate Plan, as required under paragraph 35(1)(b) of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 (PGPA Act 2013). This plan covers the reporting periods 2015-16 to 2018-19. It sets out our purpose, operating environment, planned performance and evaluations, capability as well as risk oversight and management. I will report on this plan progressively through my Annual Reports for the reporting periods 2015-16 to 2018-19. Yours sincerely Ali Noroozi Inspector-General of Taxation


Purpose

Our role is to improve tax administration through investigation of tax complaints, conducting broader reviews, public reporting and independent advice to Government and its relevant agencies. Our objectives are to:

  • Establish and maintain an effective and efficient complaint handling function;
  • Identify and prioritise areas of tax administration for improvement; and
  • Conduct reviews and make recommendations for improvement to Government, the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB).

Operating environment

The environment in which we operate has evolved considerably since the establishment of the Office of the Inspector-General of Taxation (IGT). Our original function of conducting systemic reviews into tax administration issues has been expanded to include investigating and handling individual complaints. This expansion complements our original role by providing us with the opportunity to interact with a broad range of stakeholders to gain real time insights into emerging problems and seek to prevent them from becoming systemic issues. This is particularly important in light of the complexity of taxation laws and its administration. Our operating environment is also influenced by our relationships with stakeholders and their expectations regarding the delivery of our services. Our key stakeholders are:

  • the general public including taxpayers, tax practitioners and representative bodies;
  • ministers, members of Parliament and Parliamentary Committees; and
  • public sector agencies, notably the ATO, TPB and Treasury.

Critical to our role is our ability to anticipate and respond to changes in our environment, including increasing community expectations for more effective complaint handling and associated improvements to the tax system. Over the next four years we will focus on improving and establishing strategies to fulfil or manage these expectations. Our corporate planning process is evolutionary and we are committed to adjusting our plan over time based on the changing environment.

Performance

ObjectiveStrategyMeasures
Establish and maintain an effective and efficient complaint handling function.Actively managing complaints received and taking appropriate and timely action, including referrals to relevant agencies.   Making improvements to our systems and processes to ensure effective delivery.   Providing training and development opportunities to staff.Complaints received compared to complaints actioned by the IGT.   Proportion of complaints that are actioned promptly.   Feedback provided on the complaint handling process from complainants, the ATO and the TPB.
Identify and prioritise areas of tax administration for improvement.Identify themes and emerging issues from complaint handling and through broader consultation with stakeholders.   Allocating resources fairly and equitably to priority areas.  Issues identified from complaints.   Consultation with stakeholders on broader reviews.
Conduct reviews and make recommendations for improvement to Government, the ATO and the TPB.Being agile, responsive and innovative in making recommendations.   Allocating resources to ensure reviews are appropriately progressed.Recommendations made to address recurring issues arising in complaints as well as broad concerns raised during wider consultation.   Implementation of recommendations agreed to by the ATO and the TPB.

Capability

To facilitate the delivery of our new complaint handling service and to better manage our increasing workloads, we are increasing our staffing levels. Accordingly, our systems, processes and general workplace have been expanded to accommodate and assist our new staff. Our workforce planning strategies are centred on employing, developing and retaining professionals with strong taxation knowledge and experience to ensure the efficient delivery of our services. We will continue to enhance our capability through training and development opportunities that are responsive to our requirements and the evolving needs of taxpayers and the general community. Our business planning strategies include information management and technological solutions to manage our complaint handling service and identifying the resources required to support our existing and future organisational needs. We will continue to enhance our business capability and use technology to improve the way we manage and deliver our services. We will also allocate our resources appropriately to ensure efficient and effective delivery of our complaint handling service as well as conducting broader reviews.

Risk management

Risk management is an integral part of our business planning processes. We have established and maintained appropriate systems of risk oversight, management and internal controls in accordance with section 16 of the PGPA Act and the Commonwealth Risk Management Policy. Our risks are identified, monitored and reported through our risk management framework and risk register which acts as a central repository for all identified risks. Our key risks include:

  • Efficient delivery of our complaint handling service that enhances the taxpayer experience;
  • Providing timely, accurate and high quality reports to Government with sound recommendations;
  • Developing and maintaining constructive and cooperative relationships with our stakeholders;
  • Attracting and retaining professionals who have the requisite skills and capabilities; and
  • Managing our budgets and allocating resources appropriately to ensure efficient delivery of our objectives.

Effective management of these risks requires a holistic approach and therefore responsibility for managing these risks rests with all our staff. Details of our programme expenses can be found in the 2015-16 Portfolio Budget Statements.

Corporate Plan FY16 ‑ FY20

Telephone: (02) 8239 2111 Facsimile: (02) 8239 2100

IGTO Crest

Level 19, 50 Bridge Street Sydney NSW 2000 GPO Box 551 Sydney NSW 2001

  The Hon Kelly O’Dwyer MP Minister for Revenue and Financial Services Parliament House Canberra ACT 2600 Dear Minister I am pleased to present the Inspector-General of Taxation’s 2016-17 Corporate Plan, which outlines how the Office of the Inspector-General of Taxation (IGT) intends to deliver against its purpose over the upcoming four years. The IGT Corporate Plan has been prepared in accordance with paragraph 35(1)(a) of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 (PGPA Act) for the 2016 17 period, covering the 2016-17 to 2019-20 reporting periods. It sets out our purpose, operating environment, planned performance and capability as well as risk oversight and management. Yours sincerely Ali Noroozi Inspector-General of Taxation


Purpose

The IGT is an independent statutory agency, established in 2003. Our role is to improve tax administration in Australia through:

  • maintaining an effective and efficient complaints handling function;
  • identifying and prioritising areas of tax administration requiring improvement; and
  • conducting reviews and making recommendations for improvement to Government, the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB).

Operating environment

The environment in which we operate continues to evolve. We have dual responsibilities for conducting broad reviews into tax administration issues and investigating individual complaints which is an expansion of our original function. Our complaints handling and review function provides us with the opportunity to interact with a broad range of stakeholders to gain real time insights into emerging issues. This is particularly important in light of the complexity of tax laws and its administration. Our operating environment is also influenced by our relationships with stakeholders and their expectations regarding the delivery of our services. Our key stakeholders are:

  • the general public including taxpayers, tax practitioners and representative bodies;
  • Ministers, members of Parliament and Parliamentary Committees;
  • public sector agencies, notably the ATO, TPB and Treasury; and
  • international organisations, including overseas revenue agencies.

Critical to our role is our ability to anticipate and respond to changes, including increasing community expectations for more effective complaints handling and associated improvements to the tax system. Adapting to this changing environment remains an ongoing challenge for the office.

Four year outlook

Over the next four years our focus will be on improving and establishing strategies to fulfil and manage the above expectations. We anticipate an increase in the number and complexity of tax administration complaints as awareness of our role and satisfaction with our service become more widely known. We will also continue to conduct programme of reviews. However, we will increasingly be guided by themes emerging from our complaints handling work which we anticipate will provide real time insights into emerging issues. Similar to previous work programmes, the IGT will consult with the broader community, including taxpayers, tax practitioners and their representative bodies to identify and prioritise the tax administration issues of most concern.

Performance

We seek to fulfil our purpose through a range of deliverables. These are set out in the tables below, along with how they will be measured. The performance framework is intended to inform Parliament as well as ensure that IGT staff are aware of the impact of their work and how the deliverables achieve the fundamental goals of the IGT.

Deliverable 1 – Effective handling of tax administration complaints

  • Actively investigate complaints in a fair, independent and timely manner.
  • Provide understandable reasons for our decisions.
  • Maintain positive and cooperative inter-agency relationships with the ATO and TPB.
  • Identify and share improvement opportunities, internally and also with the ATO and TPB, to ensure effective delivery.
  • Provide training and development to staff in order to maintain a specialist complaint handling team.
Measures2016-172017-182018-192019-20
Feedback provided by stakeholders about the IGT’s complaints handling function, including providing assurance about the tax administration system (via surveys, consultative forums and case studies)
Feedback from the ATO and the TPB about the IGT’s complaints handling function (via regular inter-agency meetings)
Feedback from staff about the IGT’s complaints handling function (via internal complaints meetings)
Number of complaints received compared to complaints actioned by the IGT
Percentage of correspondence that meets IGT quality standards

Deliverable 2 – Identify and prioritise areas of tax administration for improvement

  • Analyse data and feedback obtained from complaints and consultation to identify broader tax administration issues.
  • Allocate resources appropriately to priority areas.
Measures2016-172017-182018-192019-20
Issues identified from complaints for further review
Issues identified from general stakeholder forums and work programme consultation for review
Issues identified from investigations requested by Ministers, the Parliament and Parliamentary Committees or relevant agencies
Prioritise identified issues

Deliverable 3 – Conduct reviews and make independent recommendations for improvement to Government, the ATO and the TPB

  • Being responsive in making effective recommendations.
  • Allocating resources to conduct reviews appropriately.
Measures2016-172017-182018-192019-20
Investigate identified issues
Report the findings and recommendations of the reviews

These measures will be assessed in the annual performance statement.

Capability

Our people are our success and are highly valued for their work. Our strategy is centred on employing and retaining experienced tax specialists with the ability to provide a professional and effective service to the community. We seek to provide a challenging and supportive environment in which our staff are inspired to provide the best outcomes. We will continue to enhance our capability through multi-skilling, training and development opportunities that are responsive to our requirements, the evolving needs of taxpayers and the general community. Feedback received from external stakeholders and our staff is also used to improve our service delivery. We will continue to enhance our business capability and use technology to innovate and improve the way we manage and deliver our services. Our strategies include information management and technological solutions to manage our complaints handling function and identifying the resources required to support our existing and future organisational needs. A focus for the future is to improve our systems to efficiently identify emerging issues that arise from complaints, from which we can allocate resources to conduct broader reviews.

Corporate plan integration

Our corporate plan is directly linked to the Portfolio Budget Statement, the Risk Management Policy and Framework and is reported in the annual report through the annual performance statement. Risk management is an integral part of our business planning and governance processes. The IGT’s risk management and corporate and operational planning processes reflect the size and specialist function of the office. We have established and maintained appropriate systems of risk oversight, management and internal controls in accordance with section 16 of the PGPA Act and the Commonwealth Risk Management Policy. Our risks are identified, monitored and reported through our Risk Management Policy and Framework and Risk Register. Regular monitoring of risk is undertaken, considered and discussed by the management team and reported to the Audit and Risk Committee. This Committee is established and structured in accordance with section 45 of the PGPA Act and the PGPA Rules. It meets on a periodic basis to consider audit and risk matters including fraud control. The IGT addresses corporate and operational planning matters through:

  • an annual forward planning process to set strategic priorities;
  • periodic meetings to review and document operational priorities, as well as discuss internal guidelines, procedures and governance issues;
  • periodic internal training and other information-sharing sessions; and
  • a forward plan of review activities.

Our key risks include:

  • efficient delivery of our complaint handling function that enhances the taxpayer experience;
  • providing timely, accurate and high quality reports to Government with sound recommendations;
  • developing and maintaining professional relationships with our stakeholders;
  • attracting and retaining specialist staff with requisite skills and capabilities; and
  • managing our budgets and allocating resources appropriately to ensure efficient delivery of our objectives.

Effective management of these risks requires a holistic approach and therefore responsibility for managing these risks rests with all our staff. Details of our programme expenses can be found in the 2016-17 Portfolio Budget Statements.

Corporate Plan FY18 – FY22

Introduction

The 2018-19 Corporate Plan of the Office of the Inspector-General of Taxation (IGT) is the agency’s primary planning document. It outlines our strategies in delivering our services to the community and achieving our purpose over the next four years. This document, which covers the 2018-19 to 2021-22 reporting period, is produced in accordance with paragraph 35(1)(b) of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013. 

It sets out our purpose, operating environment, capability, risks and performance information. Our corporate plan is an integral part of our performance framework and is directly linked to the 2018-19 Portfolio Budget Statements, the Risk Management Policy and Framework and the annual performance statement. Our success at achieving our purpose is reported in our annual performance statement which forms part of our annual report.

Figure 1: IGT Performance Framework

Our purpose

We are an independent agency established by the Inspector-General of Taxation Act 2003 (IGT Act), as the Taxation Ombudsman, to improve tax administration by undertaking the following activities:

  • providing a specialised tax complaints handling service to the Australian community;
  • identifying and prioritising areas of tax administration for improvement through our complaints handling service and consultations with the community; and
  • conducting reviews into these areas and providing independent advice and recommendations to Government, the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) through public reporting.

We adhere to the Australian Public Service (APS) values as set out in the Public Service Act 1999. We are committed to assisting the Australian community by providing tax specialist services to resolve taxpayer concerns and identify improvements in tax administration. Tax laws and its administration are complex. We play an important role in maintaining confidence in the Australian tax system by providing independent assistance and assurance to the community as well as advice to Government, the ATO and the TPB regarding improvements to tax administration.

Figure 2: The role of the IGT

Our operating environment

Our effectiveness in carrying out our responsibilities is dependent on our ability to manage and adapt to the environment in which we operate. Our operating environment is influenced by:

  • our key relationships; and
  • factors within and outside our control.

Key relationships

A key component to operating effectively is managing our relationships. We maintain a range of relationships in undertaking the activities outlined in our purpose. Our key relationships are with:

  • the Australian community, including taxpayers, tax practitioners and their representative bodies;
  • the Government, including the Treasurer and the Assistant Treasurer;
  • Parliamentarians and Parliamentary Committees;
  • the ATO and the TPB;
  • other government agencies, such as the Treasury, the Commonwealth Ombudsman, the Australian National Audit Office and the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprises Ombudsman; and
  • international organisations, including overseas revenue agencies and counterparts.

Figure 3: IGT key relationships

Factors influencing our operating environment

Our operating environment is characterised by various factors that may influence our performance. These factors are outlined in the table below.

Our ability to manage resources between our complaints handling service and broader reviews into areas of tax administration for improvementTo maintain a high level of service to the community, we need to be flexible in allocating and managing our resources. We anticipate an increase in complaints received over the next four years while we continue to identify improvement opportunities in tax administration and conduct broader reviews.
Our working relationship with the ATO and the TPBOur relationship with the ATO and the TPB is central to improving tax administration. We act independently but work with the ATO and the TPB to resolve concerns raised by members of the community and to identify improvements that would benefit the wider community.
Our ability to anticipate and respond to changes in the administration of the tax systemOur effectiveness in improving tax administration depends on our ability to anticipate and respond to changes in tax laws and its administration – particularly given the complexity of tax laws. The more responsive we are to changes in tax administration, the more useful and relevant our assistance will be to the community.We keep abreast of changes in the administration of the tax laws, including through our interactions with Government agencies, the tax profession and the wider community. Our complaints handling service provides us with real time insights into emerging issues. We need to allocate resources accordingly and work with the ATO and the TPB to address these issues promptly.
Internal factors
Community expectationsAs our complaints handling service matures, the community’s expectations of our service delivery will also increase. We need to continue to maintain high standards of service while meeting the changing demands and expectations of the community.
Community awarenessOver the next four years, we are seeking to raise the community’s awareness of our office and the assistance we provide to improve access to our service. Our service needs to be accessible to all Australians and meet their needs.
Ministerial directionWe need to be responsive to Ministerial directions and to reallocate resources accordingly to meet those directions.
External factors

Four year horizon

Over the next four years, our focus will be on improving strategies to manage and adapt to our operating environment as it continues to evolve. This year we have commenced a project to optimise our complaints handling service. This involves undertaking a review of our current service to identify areas of improvement as well as developing solutions. This project is not limited to the complaints process but includes policies and communications as well as skilling and support we provide to our staff. Over the next four years, we will regularly seek feedback on our complaints handling service to ensure it remains effective and meets community expectations.

We have also commenced a project to expand our social media presence to increase awareness of our role and the services we deliver. With an increase in the awareness of our role, improved access to the Australian community and satisfaction with our service becomes more widely known, we anticipate an increase in the number of complaints by approximately five to ten percent each year in the next four years. In the main, our resources are allocated between our complaints handling service and broader review functions. In the next four years, a challenge for us will be to manage our resources efficiently so that we can maintain a reasonable level of review work whilst also maintaining high standards in the handling of complaints.

We plan to be flexible with our resources so that we continue to meet the community’s expectations. We will continue to monitor satisfaction with our service and regularly review our complaints handling service to ensure it is effective and remains readily accessible to the community. Historically our program of reviews was guided by extensive broad-based consultation with the community. Over the next four years, our reviews will be increasingly guided by insights from our complaints handling service. The interaction between our complaints handling service and broader reviews is described in Figure 4 below.

Figure 4: IGT complaints handling service and broader reviews

Our capability

Communication and awareness

We are, as the Taxation Ombudsman, the only agency empowered to investigate taxpayer complaints. Our current communication strategy focuses on two core themes:

  • raising community awareness of our role and the independent, specialised service we provide; and
  • capturing emerging themes and issues impacting tax administration.

Priorities over the next four years include enhancing the public profile of our office. We intend to achieve this by reaching and engaging with a wider audience through a variety of channels, including increasing our community speaking engagements and expanding our social media presence. We will also be more proactive in raising awareness about our work through updates to our website and quarterly eNewsletter, IGoT News!, which features case studies and the latest news about our activities.

Workforce

Our people are central to our ability to deliver genuine and tailored service to the community. We are committed to providing a workplace environment in which our staff are supported, engaged and inspired to provide the best service and outcomes. Our strategy is centred on employing and retaining experienced tax specialists with the ability to provide a professional, effective and independent service to the community. A key initiative is the development of a rewards and recognition framework to celebrate staff achievements and innovations. We strongly support the development of our workforce and will continue to enhance our capability through targeted training and development opportunities that are responsive to individual and organisational needs as well as the evolving needs of the broader community. This includes training in the areas of complaints resolution, engaging and persuasive communication and leadership. We are also committed to workplace diversity. Our office is made up of culturally and linguistically diverse people with varied qualifications, skills and experience. The diversity of our people assists us to better understand the needs of our community and ensure that we provide tailored and appropriate services. We will continue to promote flexible working options and arrangements for both men and women across our agency, as set out in our Gender Equality Action Plan 2017-19. The management of future complaints we receive from the community will likely impact on our current staffing and resource levels. We will regularly review our resources and be flexible and agile in managing these resources.

Information and communications technology (ICT) systems

Our ICT systems play a critical role in supporting our agency’s operations and the services we provide to the community. Priorities for the current year include improving our ability to effectively and efficiently manage the complaints we receive from community members. This involves implementing a number of upgrades to improve the functionality and usability of our electronic case management system, which will assist to further enhance our ability to capture and report on complaints data and trends, and allow our staff to work more flexibly with remote access. Over the next four years, we will continue to enhance our business capability and use technology to innovate and improve the way we manage and deliver our services to the community. Our strategies include information management and technological solutions to manage our complaints handling service and identifying the resources required to support our existing and future organisational needs.

Our risks

We operate in an inherently complex and challenging environment and face a range of diverse risks. Risk management is therefore an integral part of our business planning and governance processes. The key risks to our operational requirements and objectives include not having the capacity or capability to:

  • efficiently deliver our complaints handling service to the Australian community;
  • provide timely, accurate and high quality public reports to Government, the ATO and the TPB with effective recommendations for improvement to tax administration;
  • maintain professional relationships with our stakeholders;
  • attract and retain specialist staff with requisite skills and capabilities; and
  • manage our budgets and allocate resources appropriately to ensure efficient delivery of our services.

Effective management of our risks requires a holistic approach and therefore responsibility for managing risks rests with all our staff. We have established and maintained appropriate systems of risk oversight, management and internal controls in accordance with section 16 of the PGPA Act and the Commonwealth Risk Management Policy. We have integrated our Risk Management Policy and Framework with our performance framework. Over the next four years, we will continue to monitor and update our Risk Management Policy and Framework and Risk Register.

Our performance information

We are committed to meeting our objective of improving tax administration for the benefit of the Australian community. We continue to monitor our performance in undertaking the activities that realise our purpose. Our performance framework is intended to inform Parliament on our activities and to ensure we are accountable to the Australian community. We also use the performance framework to inform our staff on the value and benefit of their work. Our performance measures for our activities are set out in the table below.

Specialised tax complaints handling service

  • Actively investigate complaints in a fair, independent and timely manner.
  • Provide understandable reasons for our decisions.
  • Maintain cooperative relationships with the ATO and TPB.
  • Identify and share improvement opportunities, internally and also with the ATO and TPB, to support prompt and effective delivery.
  • Provide targeted training and development to staff in order to maintain a tax specialist complaints team.
Measures2018‑192019‑202020‑212021‑22
Monitor community awareness of our office through the number of interactions with the IGT’s website and social media as well as subscriptions to IGoT News!.
Feedback provided by stakeholders about our complaints handling service through such means as surveys, consultative forums and case studies.
Agreed business improvements identified as a result of our complaint investigations.
Feedback from the ATO and the TPB about our complaints handling service (via regular inter-agency meetings).
Feedback from staff about our complaints handling service (via internal complaints meetings).
Measuring efficiency through the percentage of complaints received and completed.
Measuring the effectiveness of our decisions through the percentage of complaints not requiring an internal review of the original decision.

Identify and prioritise areas of tax administration for improvement

  • Analyse data and feedback obtained from complaints together with consultation with stakeholders to identify broader tax administration issues.
  • Allocate resources appropriately to priority areas.
Measures2018‑192019‑202020‑212021‑22
Emerging themes identified from our complaints handling service.
Issues identified from stakeholder forums, such as consultation undertaken to develop our work program.
Matters requiring investigation pursuant to directions from the Minister or requested by Parliament, Parliamentary Committees, the Commissioner of Taxation or the TPB.
Prioritise identified issues.

Conduct reviews into priority areas and make independent recommendations for improvement to Government, the ATO and the TPB

  • Be responsive to the community, including the Government, the ATO and the TPB in making effective recommendations for improving tax administration.
  • Allocate resources to conduct reviews appropriately.
Measures2018‑192019‑202020‑212021‑22
Conduct reviews and investigate identified issues.
Report the findings and recommendations of the reviews.

The annual performance statement in our annual report will discuss our performance in meeting our objective across the above measures.