OzSage advice is first and foremost evidence-based. The process to develop advice aims to be inclusive, drawing on expertise from a range of disciplines and diverse perspectives, and timely. The process aims for consensus, but it is recognised that not every member of OzSage will endorse every sentence of every document.
Areas for advice are decided by the executive and the wider OzSAGE group, and are responsive to topical, urgent or unresolved matters of concern. Requests for an advice document can come from within OzSAGE, from government, from industry, or from the community. If within OzSAGE, ideas for working groups or advice documents may be proposed by members, and a call is made for membership of working groups. Working groups may also include experts who are not part of OzSAGE. Members volunteer to be on working groups. Each working group has a volunteer chair from the membership. The working group drafts the advice document, and the draft is provided to the wider OzSAGE membership for comment. Drafts are open for comment for a minimum of 3 days to several weeks depending on the urgency of the advice. It is the responsibility of OzSAGE members to review the document during that period. Working group members take on board comments from the larger group, revise and refine the advice until a consensus document is finalised. The OzSAGE executive reviews advice documents. OzSAGE is a large group, and not all members contribute to every piece of advice, and any given advice is not necessarily an endorsement by any individual member. Members of working groups may be named, or not, depending on their preference.