Portable sees government as a force for good, with the mandate and reach to drive change other sectors can't. In 2016 we published Hacking the Bureaucracy, a guide for people working inside government to drive that change, and we've been helping agencies across Australia and the Asia Pacific put it into practice since. That includes uplifting design capability at Creative Victoria, making government land information usable for the people who need it, and taking the friction out of applying for a grant.

Co-design capability uplift for Creative Victoria.

This engagement coached 18 staff across Creative Victoria in co-design, skills they applied immediately to three real programs for the state's arts, screen and design industries, rather than sitting through training disconnected from actual work. For Creative Victoria, that meant building a capability that outlasted the engagement, not just a set of recommendations handed over at the end.

Making government land information accessible and usable.

GovMap gives government users, more than 1,000 of them, using the tool for 10 to 15 sessions a week, a way to find information about the 40% of Victoria's land the government owns without needing specialist expertise. That cuts the time it takes to complete a land search and lowers the barrier for communities pursuing something they care about, like a new school, public art, or green space, on government-owned land. The tool won Data Insight of the Year at the 2019 Victorian iAwards.

Taking the pain out of grant applications.

This research gave the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science a detailed picture, built from 20 interviews with businesses, universities, councils and community organisations across metro and regional Australia, of exactly where people get stuck applying for a grant. The resulting journey map and list of quick wins gives future applicants clearer guidance in a process that previously offered little transparency or feedback along the way.