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- About this guidance
- Build and sustain internal cloud capability
- Capability framework
- Related links
- More cloud policy guidance
About this guidance
This guidance helps agencies meet requirement 5 of the Whole-of-government cloud computing policy: Entities must nurture cloud skills across the APS. It explains how to plan, build and sustain the internal capability needed to govern and use cloud services effectively.
Use the capability framework below to identify gaps, assign ownership, plan workforce actions and manage supplier knowledge transfer.
Who this guidance is for
This guidance is for agency teams involved in planning, funding, approving, delivering, operating or reviewing cloud services and cloud-enabled transformation.
It is particularly relevant to senior responsible officers, technology leaders, cyber security teams, data and AI teams, finance and procurement teams, workforce planning teams, product owners and delivery teams.
Different audiences should use this guidance in different ways, depending on their role in governing, delivering or operating cloud services.
- Accountable executives should use this guidance to set expectations for cloud capability, approve investment in skills and workforce planning, assign clear ownership, and monitor whether internal capability is improving over time.
- Delivery and program teams should use this guidance to plan the skills, roles and supplier arrangements needed to deliver cloud initiatives, including knowledge-transfer activities and evidence that capability uplift is being built into delivery.
- Operational and specialist teams should use this guidance to identify the practical skills, standards, guardrails and learning pathways needed to operate, secure, manage and continually improve cloud services.
When to use this guidance
Use this guidance when developing or reviewing a cloud strategy, workforce plan, sourcing approach, operating model or cloud governance arrangements. It can also be used when planning major cloud investments, onboarding vendors, scaling cloud services or reviewing capability maturity.
Build and sustain internal cloud capability
Agencies should maintain an intentional capability approach linked to their cloud strategy and operating model. It should retain sufficient internal ownership to make informed decisions, oversee suppliers and operate services safely.
Capability framework
Agencies can use the following areas to plan, build and review internal cloud capability. Each area describes what the agency needs to establish and the type of evidence it should maintain to demonstrate implementation.
Plan internal capability
Maintain a cloud capability plan that identifies priority skill gaps, planned recruitment or upskilling actions, vendor knowledge-transfer commitments and review points. Agencies should consider which cloud capabilities need to be developed and retained within the APS. Evidence may include an approved capability plan, skills gap assessment, accountable owner and review cycle.
Build multidisciplinary expertise
Treat cloud capability as an organisational capability across business, technology, security, data, AI, finance, procurement, workforce planning and delivery teams. Evidence may include role descriptions, a capability matrix, training records, recruitment priorities and cross-functional governance arrangements.
Manage supplier reliance
Balance external support with deliberate knowledge transfer and internal ownership. Evidence may include contractual knowledge-transfer commitments, handover artefacts, training sessions and an internal ownership plan.
Support continuous learning and consistency
Invest in learning, communities of practice, certification pathways, platform standards, guardrails and governance controls to keep pace with evolving cloud services, risks and practices. Evidence may include learning plans, participation records, reference architectures, platform standards and exception records.
Build converged cloud, data and AI capability
Develop cloud, data and AI capabilities together where services and operating models increasingly converge. Evidence may include an integrated workforce plan, shared capability priorities and joint delivery or governance arrangements.
Review and improve maturity
Measure capability maturity and use the results to improve over time. Evidence may include a maturity assessment, improvement roadmap, progress reporting and updated review actions.
Related links
- Data, Digital and Cyber Workforce Plan
- APS Digital Employee Value Proposition
- Australian Public Service Commission's Workforce Planning Guide
More cloud policy guidance
- Guide to meeting the requirements of the Whole-of-government cloud computing policy
- Guide to planning a cloud strategy
- Guide to cloud migration and legacy retirement
- Guide to procuring cloud services
- Guide to managing cloud provider lock-in, portability and exit planning
- Guide to managing security, privacy and operational risk
- Guide to reviewing and continuously improving cloud adoption
- Guide to managing cloud and usage costs, including AI costs