- Date:
- 23 July 2026
The Victorian Skills Authority (VSA) plans for skills for the future and success – for Victorians and Victorian industry and communities.
We work with industry, regions and communities to identify skills for the future and define the changes needed to approaches to skilling, especially within vocational education and training.
Our strategic plan outlines our strategic context, strengths and priorities for 2026–29.
Our purpose
The Victorian Skills Authority (VSA) contributes to building a stronger, more inclusive and sustainable economy that benefits all Victorians. We do this by providing advice on current and future skills needs and fostering skills development and career pathways, to support improved productivity and decent jobs.
Our work is supported and informed by both an Advisory Board of industry and education experts, our Industry Advisory Groups and ongoing engagement with employers, unions, TAFEs and other education and training providers. We operate as an administrative authority within the Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions (DJSIR).
Our vision
Inclusive growth and shared prosperity through skills.
Our mission
To provide rigorous, evidence-based advice to strengthen and sustain a high-performing Victorian skills system and drive collaborative solutions for Victoria’s current and future workforce skills needs.
Our strategic objectives
1. To empower Victorians to build good careers
Support Victorians to access high-quality vocational education and training (VET), careers guidance and employment pathways - enabling them to develop in-demand skills, secure good jobs and thrive in a dynamic labour market. Ways we do this includes the following:
- providing high-quality careers advice and information through Skills and Jobs Centres, the Victorian Skills Gateway website and coursefinder, and the TAFE and Training Line
- promoting and highlighting career opportunities in Victoria’s priority and growth industries and across our regions
- supporting inclusive and lifelong learning through fit-for-purpose foundation and digital skills
- delivering a range of insights and data products to ensure skills delivery aligns with jobs and future skills demand, including through the annual Victorian Skills Plan.
2. To identify current and future skills needs
Identify current, emerging and future skills needs to inform policy, education and investment decisions so Victoria’s economy has the skills needed to drive productivity and economic growth, harness the opportunity of artificial intelligence (AI), and ensure an adaptive, competitive workforce that is ready for future technological and economic shifts. Ways we do this includes the following:
- pursuing a sophisticated program of modelling, analytics and insights on current and future skills needs, and making these insights available, including through the VSA’s annual Employment Projections Dashboard
- undertaking analytics and modelling to produce future-focused insights and commentary
- engaging stakeholders to gather on-the-ground feedback and perspectives, and validate data
- using data and stakeholder insights to guide advice on skilling priorities and strengthen the skills system
- collaborating across the Victorian Government and with the Commonwealth Government to fully utilise the breadth of available intelligence, research and data.
3. To build collaboration and foster strategic partnerships
Strengthen collaboration across government, industry, educators and community to leverage expertise and resources to drive system-wide impact. Ways we do this include the following:
- harnessing the advice of our expert Advisory Board, Industry Advisory Groups, employers and unions
- utilising our analysis and insights to identify new opportunities for collaboration
- engaging across Victoria’s regions and metropolitan Melbourne to bring industry, TAFE and other education and training providers together to solve skilling problems
- strategically engaging national stakeholders to drive reform and promote and support Victoria’s skills system
- collaborating with Commonwealth Government Jobs and Skills Councils to deliver good skills outcomes for Victorian businesses and learners.
4. To drive reform and develop innovative skills solutions
Promote and drive transformative change across the skills system by fostering innovative approaches to skills design, delivery and recognition, to ensure responsiveness to evolving workforce and learner needs and to better respond to new skilling priorities. Ways we do this includes the following:
- improving the recognition of learning for industry-led skilling
- demonstrating reform in practice through skills labs, projects, initiatives and partnerships
- identifying and developing new skills solutions for rapidly evolving and new workforce needs in priority industries such as the clean economy
- driving new approaches to build AI and digital capabilities across Victoria’s workforce including by supporting the Victorian Digital Skills Compact
- influencing the national skills system and advocating for reform.
5. To strengthen Victoria’s skills system
Enhance the quality, accessibility and responsiveness of skills provision across Victoria by supporting system capability and promoting excellence. Ways we do this includes the following:
- celebrating excellence through our awards and fellowship programs, including delivering the Victorian Training Awards and the Learn Local Awards programs
- understanding and driving continuous improvement in training quality and outcomes including through annual Student and Employer Satisfaction Survey programs
- promoting First Peoples self-determination principles in educational design and delivery
- ensuring our policy, program development, analysis and service delivery is undertaken with a focus on gender and intersectional impacts
- supporting Victorian TAFEs to be leaders in education
- driving skills reform to support system sustainability.
Our enabling objectives
1. To ensure organisational resilience
Ensure organisational strength, adaptiveness and resilience to enable continued delivery of public value in a changing economic and policy environment. Ways we do this include the following:
- responsibly managing the budget, resources and risk
- being accountable to our mission, objectives and activities through strategic and business planning, regular review and rigorous program management
- communicating and sharing information through the VSA Corporate Website, and other digital and print channels.
2. To strengthen our organisational capability and foster a high-performance culture
Enhance the VSA’s ability to deliver on strategic priorities by creating and sustaining a healthy, thriving and inclusive workplace culture aligned with Victorian Public Sector (VPS) values, and supporting our people to develop. Ways we do this includes the following:
- building and retaining a workplace culture of respect, inclusion and flexibility
- valuing the diversity of our workforce and ensuring cultural and psychological safety
- providing opportunities for people to contribute, learn and grow in their roles.
Our context
Delivering a strong economy and a thriving society depends on a skilled and adaptive workforce, able to respond to change and seize new opportunities. High‑quality, effective post school education and training that evolves with technological and economic transformation is critical to equipping people with the capabilities the workforce needs, ensuring Victoria remains competitive, resilient and prosperous into the future.
Victoria’s economy continues to grow with strong business investment and labour demand. Victoria’s Economic Growth Statement(opens in a new window), released in December 2024, noted the importance of having the right workers with the right skills and creating a pipeline of skilled workers, so industry has the talent it needs now and into the future.
The Victorian Industry Policy(opens in a new window) (VIP), released in June 2025, sets out the importance of a skilled workforce aligned to current and future industry needs, including through greater workforce agility, diversity, resilience and inclusion. Focusing on Victoria’s key industry sectors, the VIP calls for stronger collaboration between industry, TAFEs, government, universities and unions to accelerate course innovation, seize new opportunities and drive growth and productivity.
The Victorian Government’s AI Mission Statement(opens in a new window), released in January 2026, sets a clear direction for Victoria to responsibly use AI, attract investment, support innovation and build the workforce skills needed for the jobs of the future.
The VSA, together with DJSIR’s Skills and TAFE Group, supports this work by using data and industry insights to guide training responses, identify emerging skills needs (including for AI and digital skills), foster collaboration and partnerships, and ensure the skills system contributes to Victoria’s economic growth and productivity.
Alignment with DJSIR’s Strategic Plan
Our work aligns with DJSIR’s purpose in fostering skills development to support jobs across the whole economy. We work in close partnership with DJSIR’s Skills and TAFE Group including the Office of TAFE Coordination and Delivery , Apprenticeships Victoria and the Adult, Community and Further Education Board. We contribute to DJSIR’s Strategic Plan(opens in a new window) through our analysis, engagement and strategic policy work, and particularly the following DSJIR priorities and key action areas:
- creating higher value, secure jobs for Victorians
- ensuring the workforce has the skills needed for Victoria’s priority industries
- fostering better integration and participation of workforces to meet the future needs of regional Victoria
- improving labour supply in priority areas through increased course completion rates in government-funded training
- contributing to the transition to a net zero economy
- boosting economic participation by supporting disadvantaged and under-represented cohorts in the tertiary system through targeted supports
- driving innovation through a joined up tertiary system
- addressing skills shortages through a responsive VET system and strong system stewardship.
Collaboration and complementarity with the Commonwealth Government
The VSA’s modelling, data and insights provide Victorian-specific analysis. This complements national data and insights from Jobs and Skills Australia and helps government make decisions about vocational education options, workforce and skilling priorities, and investment in VET delivery.
The VSA also works closely with national Jobs and Skills Councils, the Vocational Qualification and Skills Reform Advisory Service(opens in a new window) and the VSA’s Industry Advisory Groups(opens in a new window), to make sure Victorian views are reflected in national qualifications and delivery products, especially through reforms to skills and qualifications, including a focus on harmonised approaches with higher education.
Summary
This strategic plan sets out the VSA’s directions and priorities for strengthening Victoria’s skills system and workforce. The VSA focuses on:
- empowering Victorians to build good careers through access to high‑quality education, training and employment pathways
- identifying current and future skills needs to guide skills and workforce policy and investment
- fostering collaboration and strategic partnerships across government, industry and community
- driving reform through innovative skills solutions that respond to evolving workforce demands.
To successfully deliver our priorities, the VSA strives to be a resilient, well-managed and capable organisation with an inclusive, high-performing culture that enables its people to do their best work.