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Researched employer guide · Federal & state government · National / federal
Executive Assistant careers at Services Australia
Services Australia is the Australian Government service-delivery agency behind Centrelink, Medicare, Child Support and myGov. An EA here is supporting leaders inside a very large, scrutinised operation—not a conventional policy department or a small corporate head office.
Employer reality
Scale, footprint and leadership context
Its 2024–25 annual report records 27.5 million Medicare customers, 8.9 million Centrelink customers, 736 million claims processed and $263 billion in benefits and payments.
National service centres, contact operations, digital channels and Canberra-based corporate and executive functions. Location and attendance expectations depend heavily on the business area.
Executive work sits at the intersection of service reliability, policy implementation, digital delivery, privacy, fraud controls and public accountability. Briefs can move quickly when payments, outages, emergencies or vulnerable customers are involved.
Current strategic context
What senior leaders are likely organising around
Delivering the agency’s 2030 Strategy: simple, safe and responsive services
Improving myGov and helping customers use digital services confidently
Reducing complexity while preserving access for people who need assisted service
Managing service integrity, privacy, identity and fraud risk
These themes come from official reporting. They help you ask better questions; they do not prove the scope of a particular vacancy.
Inside the executive office
What the work may really feel like
Expect a high-volume public-sector office with formal records, protected information, multiple senior stakeholders and sudden reprioritisation. Judgement about what is urgent, sensitive or properly delegated is more valuable than diary speed alone.
Likely work patterns
- Executive briefs, correspondence and action tracking
- Governance forums and decision records
- Cross-agency meetings and ministerial-office coordination
- Travel, visits and operational stakeholder logistics
- Sensitive diary, inbox and information triage
Offices worth monitoring
- Chief Executive and deputy chief executive offices
- Customer service and service-delivery leadership
- Technology, transformation and myGov
- People, risk, legal and corporate functions
The upside
Why the environment may appeal
- Large agency with varied executive-office pathways
- Clear APS classification and employment frameworks
- Work connected directly to nationally significant public services
The pressure points
What to test before accepting
- High scrutiny and strict information handling
- Priorities can shift with government decisions or service incidents
- Large-agency processes can require patience and disciplined follow-through
Application strategy
The evidence this employer context rewards
Use examples that show calm prioritisation, defensible record keeping and service awareness. Translate private-sector language into APS outcomes: the risk managed, stakeholders aligned, decision enabled and public value protected.
Official source library
Research method: official annual reports, corporate plans, leadership structures and career pages were reviewed first. Vacancy-level claims must still be checked against the live advertisement. See our research methodology and corrections process.