Services Australia is set to undertake one of the most significant network overhauls in the country. 

Driven by the rising tide of flexible work rights, this revamp targets the legacy phone and data communications network, a necessity in an era where public servants are increasingly working from home and other remote locations.

Procurement documents recently released expose the underlying need for a contemporary, agile network system. 

The planned transformation hinges on a new “Software Defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN)”, enabling employees to connect seamlessly from any internet-enabled location. 

This strategic shift aims to overcome the limitations of traditional virtual private networks and slow corporate servers, a crucial upgrade for an organisation that supports the Departments of Social Services, Veterans’ Affairs, and the National Disability Insurance Scheme.

The urgency of this initiative is rooted in the recent shift towards cloud-based solutions and hybrid working models, a trend exponentially accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Services Australia, confronting the obsolescence of its decade-old WAN architecture, says it recognises the stark contrast between past and present work environments. 

This appears to be a change from the agency's previous struggle to accommodate increased online demand at the onset of the 2020 lockdown, a situation initially misattributed to a denial-of-service attack by then-minister Stuart Robert.

David Hazlehurst, Services Australia's new CEO, brings a wealth of experience in digital transformation, offering a promising direction away from past missteps like the controversial robodebt scheme. 

Under his leadership, the tender documents reveal a future network state anchored on three technological pillars: SD-WAN, Secure Access Service Edge (SASE), and Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA).

A critical aspect of this overhaul is the network's evolution into a multi-tenancy platform, efficiently servicing multiple government agencies. 

This design aims to provide enhanced network performance, seamless connectivity, and robust security for varied users.

The future network is expected to be fibre optic dominant, with a preference for services provisioned on fibre optic cable infrastructure, a testament to the agency's commitment to robust and reliable connectivity. 

For remote locations, satellite options like Starlink are considered, but only as a last resort, prioritising low-latency connections.

The impending changes at Services Australia are not only a response to internal needs but also reflect a broader shift within the Australian Public Service. With the new APS enterprise agreement coming into effect later this year, the push for flexible working arrangements gains momentum, necessitating substantial digital infrastructure upgrades across various agencies.