Victor Dominello and Robert Holt launch digital government podcast
Former New South Wales digital minister Victor Dominello has teamed up with Accenture managing director Robert Holt to launch a new podcast focused on government in the digital age.
The NSW government is widely recognised as a trailblazer in delivering online services, an evolution driven by Dominello, who now runs his own consultancy ServiceGen while working as a strategic advisor with Accenture.
Holt meanwhile joined Accenture as a managing director and government-focused client account lead in 2022, after six and a half years as a partner at management consultancy Kearney and an earlier career in finance and outsourcing.
Together, the pair are co-hosts of the new podcast ‘Reimagining Government for the Digital Age’, which is produced on behalf of the UNSW-UTS Trustworthy Digital Society Hub and explores the background of the NSW government and other digital pioneers around the world and the fundamental components for success in digitally transforming public services.
Perhaps what most sets Dominello apart was his reluctance to enter politics in the first place, as such bringing somewhat of an outsider’s perspective to his time in parliament marked by an incredulity about how government functions and unwillingness to accept the status quo. One classic refrain; wait, where’s the button on the Excel spreadsheet which tells us this?
As an example, in the first episode Dominello relates the origin of the popular NSW FuelCheck app, which provides consumers with real-time information on fuel prices. Seeking details on the size of various operators, he was told the data would take three weeks to compile from disparate sets, and that they weren’t even sure as to the exact number of petrol stations in the state.
Some fresh legislation and two and half million downloads later, the story serves as catalyst for what was to come. Dominello: “Long story, but it’s an important one. It demonstrated to me that if you use data digitally with a good CX, you can do some pretty powerful things.”
The hosts
Since exiting politics, Dominello has been tapped to chair a federal digital ID advisory panel, while also keeping busy setting up public sector consultancy ServiceGen, which he co-founded together with fellow government and tech heavy-hitters Ian Oppermann and Damon Rees alongside former PwC Sydney managing partner Joseph Carrozzi.
Meanwhile, Holt currently serves as Accenture’s lead for the New South Wales public service, boasting more than two and a half decades worth of experience in business and management consulting in Australia and the UK. He is also informed by his own unique perspective on government, being the grandson of former prime minister Harold Holt.
