Upsides Training
do good, do well
Public servants, you help Australia thrive. We help you thrive too.
or Call: 1300 877 433
Nestled in the Great Otway National Park, Triplet Falls embodies centuries of natural history, flowing untouched over a lush, fern-laden rainforest setting. Triplet Falls is part of a Parks Victoria protected area that conserves a variety of ecosystems and species.
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30 minute Clarity Call.
OR CALL: 1300 UPSIDES
give your people what they need
Make a Dent in the Universe
Imagine if your people had everything they needed to make the impact that called them to public service in the first place.
Well… we can’t double your budget, but we can help your people double their resourcefulness.
That multiplication in resourcefulness will come from training that understands the realities your people work within, where their heads (and hearts) are at and what they need to achieve.
You may not believe that training can motivate and illuminate, but that’s exactly what our training does. And motivated staff grab our tools with both hands and start making a dent in the universe.
So why not book an exploratory call now and let’s start mapping the path. You’ll get a rapt audience (we love nothing more than hearing about each new pocket of the public sector!) and a frank and fearless consideration of how to meet your team’s needs. No upsell, no spin. If, after talking, we don’t think Upsides has what you need, we’ll tell you (and possibly refer you to one of our loose network of fellow public sector supporting good-eggs).
The Great Barrier Reef managed by the GBR Marine Park Authority is the world’s largest coral reef system and was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1981.
give your people what they need
Make a Dent in the Universe
The Great Barrier Reef managed by the GBR Marine Park Authority is the world’s largest coral reef system and was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1981.
Imagine if your people had everything they needed to make the impact that called them to public service in the first place. Well… we can’t double your budget, but we can help your people double their resourcefulness.
That multiplication in resourcefulness will come from training that understands the realities your people work within, where their heads (and hearts) are at and what they need to achieve. You may not believe that training can motivate and illuminate, but that’s exactly what our training does. And motivated staff grab our tools with both hands and start making a dent in the universe.
So why not book an exploratory call now and let’s start mapping the path. You’ll get a rapt audience (we love nothing more than hearing about each new pocket of the public sector!) and a frank and fearless consideration of how to meet your team’s needs. No upsell, no spin. If, after talking, we don’t think Upsides has what you need, we’ll tell you (and possibly refer you to one of our loose network of fellow public sector supporting good-eggs).
Book an exploratory call now and let’s start mapping your path.
"Georgie Smith is a rare gem in the world of public administration.
She has a depth of knowledge that has been developed over many years and tested in some of the most robust public entities in Australia.”
– Scott Patterson,
Chief of Staff, Queensland Government Minister’s Office.
We train public servants for the mission of public service
Do well while doing good
If you’re here, you already know that public service is vital. You know the public sector does things the private sector could never do. And you know public servants have to do those things differently.
That’s why public servants deserve more than find-and-replace versions of training designed to hold Big 4 consultants to profitability targets.
Upsides Training provides training for public servants by former public servants who are as committed to your mission as you are.
2024
TEDx Showreel
Lightbulb Moments
what every citizen needs to know but is never told. The solution to big problems is all around us!
Quotable Clarity
All the reasons government matters, that you couldn’t put your finger on. Aha!
Own your Pride
You know your work matters. Next time your rude uncle slags your job, send him this.
We Inspire
Connecting staff to the value and impact of their work.
We’re Practical
delivering “get the job done” skills that complement your people’s expertise.
We’re for Life
What we teach stays with staff for the rest of their careers.
We Equip Public Servants with the Drive and the Tools to Succeed
Your people don’t need more technical knowledge.
They need to know how to make sense of the tsunami of demands coming at them each day, then work out how to get from A to B.
We teach what gets missed – the strategic delivery skills that transform individuals and teams into goal-hitting juggernauts!
60 years combined experience as public servants
We’ve stood in front of the same obstacles as you. We’ve felt the same frustrations and, yes, we’ve also ground our teeth to nubs, the way you are right now.
Our Guarantee
We want you to be 100% confident that you’re on the right path when you work with us. That’s why we offer you a Money Back Guarantee.
Our Promise
As a manager entrusting yourself and your staff to us, we promise you will feel seen, supported, and structured for success at all times.
Little Beach, located in the Two Peoples Bay Nature Reserve in the Albany region, is the oldest settlement in Western Australia. Two Peoples Bay Nature Reserve is protected by Explore Parks WA known for its efforts to maintain the natural environment and protect native flora and fauna.
How we can help you and your team thrive
Training
Public servants who are clear on why their work matters are more resilient, creative, collaborative, coachable and ultimately, more impactful!
Why the public service really exists
We’ll reveal all the good stuff public servants wish they got told on Day 1, making it so much easier to do good, well.
Why the work matters to you
Most of us joined the public service because it felt right. But why, exactly? The firmer each public servant is about their answer to this question, the better their chances of delivering the kind of work that will sustain them over the long term.
Do the job long enough and you’ll learn – getting good stuff done in government requires a lot more than just having the right answers. You might know what should be done, but getting everyone else to go along with it is a whole different story. Luckily, there are some key skills that’ll help you make the good stuff happen, no matter what you do.
How to harness other people
Good luck getting anything done in government if you can’t play nicely with others. Whether you’re an administrator, a technical specialist, or a manager, every public sector job involves peopling. So let’s give you a foolproof, easy to use, super scalable set of skills to make the people part of your job easier.
How to pick proper problems
Problems proliferate! But which part to poke? The fastest way to burn out is to attempt to solve the wrong problems. The most common mistakes: too big, or too small. We’ll teach you how to find your Goldilocks – the solvable problems worth solving.
How to deliver change we can believe in
So, you’ve learned how to bring people together and find the right problems to solve. Awesome! Just one more thing to learn, and that’s a tried-and-true process for delivering changes that citizens and stakeholders will respect.
If you’ve read the above and you’re thinking “that’ll never work here”, then I suspect I know what’s wrong. If you or your team is wracked by cynicism, passive resistance, snarkiness or any of the other unpleasantness that teams are prone to, then you know perfectly well how impossible it can be to do good work with bad energy. But there’s help.
Deconstructing deadwood
You can’t run a marathon with a broken leg, no matter how talented you are. In the same way, public sector teams can’t perform the miracles they’re routinely asked to do if they’ve got a culture that could strip paint. If this sounds like you, we can help. Our world-first training in the phenomenon that we call Decay© will transform how you view yourself, your team and the challenges you face. Truly liberating training!
Georgie can stoke the fire in even the most jaded public servant’s heart.
See all keynote topics
Sick of dry speakers who put the room to sleep?
Keynote Speaking
Georgie is a charismatic public speaker, quickly gaining a reputation for delivering inspiring and educational keynotes, conference and event presentations. See Keynotes page for popular topics or book a clarity call to discuss how Georgie could enhance your upcoming event.
Coaching
Individual standalone coaching
Georgie has very limited places for individuals who wish to either deal with their own Decay© or explore a fork in their career path.
Individual performance coaching
As an extension to the training above, participants can engage in one on one performance coaching to set goals and work through how to apply the training towards those goals in real time.
Team performance coaching
As an extension to the training above, teams can work together to set goals and work through how to apply the training towards those goals in real time.
FREE WHITE PAPER
In part one of my latest white paper, we’re going to blow the wind of fresh thinking right through the haze of Decay, to let you see through the bad energy, to what’s really going on. I’ll show you the three components that enable Decay to take hold. By showing you these three components, you’ll see how to prevent Decay in yourself, and even gain some insights into how to head it off in your team.
Why our public service training works
We’ve Been There. We Succeeded.
Now, It’s Your Turn
We're on the same page as you. We love the public sector, even when it drives us nuts. And we're here to assure you that the parts that chafe can be improved.We know because we've done it.
Why not book a call to talk to a public sector specialist who’ll understand the situation you’re describing? You’re not limited to our menu of popular courses. You tell us where it hurts, and we’ll work together to find a way to make your mission more manageable.
Our most popular courses for public servants addresses the perils we saw in our public service careers:
- Talented, driven people leaving the service because what they thought were the success skills, weren’t.
- People in decay, bitter because they were defeated years ago but they never left.
- Good people caught up in daily demands and losing sight of their mission.
Book an exploratory call now and let’s start mapping your path.
meet our founders
You will feel seen, supported, and structured for success
Georgie Smith has government in her veins. As well as serving in local and state government in Victoria, NSW and Queensland, she also grew up in a family of public servants. She’s been surrounded by service since before she knew what it meant.
Georgie’s official public sector career started in a truly depressing outer suburban Housing Department office, then upgraded to the insanity of a Minister’s office, followed by the relative calm of the Queensland Ambulance Service, Marrickville Council, and then eventually her personal nirvana, the Victorian Environment Protection Authority.
Over a 20-year career in public service, Georgie saw great teams waste time and money on lousy training. More often than not, the training was lousy because it failed to understand, let alone have respect for, what makes the public sector unique. (And why it’s a GREAT thing that the public sector doesn’t work the same way as the private sector.)
So Georgie co-founded (with Travis) her own business, Upsides Training, to provide the government-specific training that public servants deserve. All delivered in Georgie’s no-bullshit style.
Georgie knows the struggle to keep your head up under the daily drip of criticism from people who don’t understand your realities. It’s why she’s committed herself to transforming how public servants see themselves and their role in society.
Her long term goals include thumping the table on The Project (at least Waleed should understand why gov matters, right?) and inspiring a generation to consider a career in government to be A Very Good Thing.
In her spare time Georgie enjoys starting gardening projects (that Trav finishes) and learning how not to suck at watercolour painting.
- 20 years in public service
- The one out front
- Expect inspiration
Travis Bates started in public service in the mines and ports of WA, before he came home to inspect the abattoirs and landfills of Victoria as an Environment Protection Officer. After questioning the finer details (and odours) of his life choices, Travis moved from the field into operational policy. The shift enabled Travis to do what he really loves – working out how to do stuff smarter, safer, fairer, better.
That’s also where Travis’ love for training took hold — guiding new staff to transform abstract concepts into real-world wins.
After a sojourn as a member director on some of Australia’s largest superannuation funds, Travis decided that arguing with suits over basics wasn’t for him, and he joined Georgie in helping the public sector thrive through Upsides.
In his spare time, Travis is lead parent, head chef and a better-than-average DIY guy. He dreams one day of building a canoe.
- 15 years experience
- The one behind the scenes
- Expect insight
Travis and I met in 2013, working at the Victorian Environment Protection Authority (one of those special places you never forget). We actually met while both Travis and I were advocating for our colleagues as union delegates.
I was actually the president of the union chapter, but needed to step down, because I’d taken on the responsibility of leading a big organisational restructure.
Travis took over the presidency, then gave me hell every inch of that restructure! But that process helped us really see each other’s character. The photos on this page probably give you a hint as to how that worked out – we got married in 2015, and our “Squisho” was born 3 years later.
When the world stopped in early 2020, we started asking ourselves what we wanted our legacy to be. Over hikes through our local forest, we gradually realised we had something important to say.
Our years of unique insights made their way to the surface. The result was our book, The Formula for Impact, and now, Upsides Training, where together Travis and I head a small team of passionate people with a huge goal – to reach all 2 million Aussie public sector workers and help them be their most awesome!
Upsides Training is our contribution to making our wonderful country the best it can be, by helping the people who help us all.
If you’re a dedicated public servant intent on being your best, we’d love to work with you!
-Georgie
The Twelve Apostles, protected by the Great Ocean Road Coast and Parks Authority, are a striking series of limestone stacks along Australia’s Great Ocean Road. This natural wonder, sculpted over millennia from marine skeletons, is a testament to the beauty of nature’s craftsmanship.
The Twelve Apostles, protected by the Great Ocean Road Coast and Parks Authority, are a striking series of limestone stacks along Australia’s Great Ocean Road. This natural wonder, sculpted over millennia from marine skeletons, is a testament to the beauty of nature’s craftsmanship.
Workshops Completed
Happy clients
Public Servants Empowered
Years experience
Managers, are you investing wisely in your staff?
Double your team’s impact;
halve your management effort
Staff deliver strategy
But what support are they getting?
The average Aussie public sector workforce is over 72% non-management staff.
Yet staff training accounts for less than 38% of total training spend!
Every staff training dollar must deliver twice the impact of leadership training.
It’s time to ask; is your staff training delivering double?
%
- 72%
of the average Aussie public sector workforce are non-management staff.
%
- 38%
of total training spend allocated to non-management staff.
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