Policy Officer Strategic Projects

Policy Officer Strategic Projects
APS6

Townsville, Canberra
Ongoing/Non-ongoing; Full-time
Applications close Sunday 29 June 2025

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (the Reef Authority) is a Commonwealth non-corporate entity, and a statutory agency established by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act 1975 (Marine Park Act), reporting to the Minister for the Environment and Water. Our objective is the long-term protection, ecologically sustainable use, understanding and enjoyment of the Great Barrier Reef for all Australians and the international community through the care and development of the Marine Park.

Managing a reef roughly the size of Italy demands many skills and talents, so you don't have to be a marine biologist to contribute to our mission. From finance to marketing roles, we have a team almost as diverse as the ecosystem we protect. Our commitment and dedication to the Great Barrier Reef and the Australian public have a long-lasting impact, and we are looking for individuals who can bring their unique skills, experience, and knowledge to our high-performing and inclusive organisation.

The Position

We are seeking an experienced strategic and skilled project and policy professional to join our small team in supporting the Authority’s response to key external threats to the Reef and other contemporary strategic initiatives. The position will also support the development and alignment of the Authority’s strategic direction and work in partnership with key stakeholders to maintain the resilience of the Reef.

You will be part of a small team that delivers high quality outcomes and achieves section and organisational goals. The Project Manager assists the Assistant Director and plays a key role in supporting the strategic policy direction, project managing associated work packages and will draft, develop, implement and review policies. This includes providing high level support and advice through the Assistant Directors, Section Director to the Reef Authority’s senior leadership and Board and participating in external forums.

This position will also participate in and contribute to the delivery of key policy projects and strategies of the Strategic Policy section more broadly, which includes the joint Australian and Queensland government's overarching management strategy for the Great Barrier Reef - the Reef 2050 Long-term Sustainability Plan (Reef 2050 Plan), Sustainable Fisheries, Protected Species, Traditional Owner Partnerships, International activities and World Heritage.

About You

• You are a strategic thinker able to work across diverse subject matter areas with a high degree of complexity and apply innovative approaches to solving problems.
• You are experienced in project and policy in a strategic, regulatory environment with well-developed analytical skills, ideally in a marine context, and can provide quality risk-based advice to senior management.
• You have a high interest in and / or broad knowledge of the Reef and its key threats and are able to negotiate a consensus in a complex landscape of competing views.
• You are resourceful and can work with limited direction to achieve high quality outcomes, applying judgement, logic and discretion appropriately.
• You have exceptional written skills, an eye for detail and routinely complete tasks on time and to a high standard.
• You are a team player, who successfully maintains relationships with internal staff and external clients.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and implement policies and strategies that support the protection of the Marine Park through a risk-based management approach that provides for sustainable use.
• Provide project management capability to support successful outcomes and delivery in a strategic but dynamic environment, with the application of knowledge and compliance with legislative, financial and administrative frameworks, government decision-making processes and agency guidelines and regulations.
• Coordinate and prepare high quality written material and reports including the provision of expert, timely, practical, transparent and risk-based advice to the Assistant Director and Director on matters relevant to the strategic policy landscape for the Reef.
• Support the delivery of Authority priorities, with a focus on helping to shape the strategic direction of the Authority.
• Work collaboratively to achieve results by engaging effectively with Traditional Owners, partners and internal and external stakeholders on Marine Park management issues through effective internal and external communications and appropriate liaison.
• Deliver and contribute to relevant Reef Authority corporate objectives and actively contribute to the section’s work and cross-sectional work and emerging issues as part of a broader team.

For more information about this opportunity, please contact Patricia Schluter, Assistant Director Strategic Policy, Ph. 07 4750 0711

Eligibility

The successful candidate will have:

• Tertiary qualifications in public sector administration, policy, project management or a relevant field with a minimum of three years relevant experience.
• Demonstrated experience providing policy advice, developing policies and procedures and supporting projects and programs, ideally with an environmental management organisation.

To be eligible for employment , candidates must be an Australian citizen at the time of application.

The position requires a Baseline security clearance. Successful candidates will be required to obtain and maintain a clearance at this level.

The successful candidate will be willing to provide identity documents and undergo an identity pre-employment check through a Document Verification Service.

Notes

The current position is ongoing however through this process may create a merit pool to fill similar ongoing and non-ongoing positions that become available within the next 18 months.

RecruitAbility applies to this vacancy. Under the RecruitAbility scheme, you will be invited to participate in further assessment activity for the vacancy if you choose to apply under the scheme; declare you have a disability; and meet the minimum requirements for the job. For more information visit: https://www.apsc.gov.au/recruitability

How to apply

Please ensure you read the instructions below and on the Position Description carefully, noting failure to address identified requirements may lead to your application being deemed ineligible.

You will be required to prepare a response document (“pitch”) in MSWord or PDF format using standard margins and size 11 Arial font.

Please prepare a ‘pitch’, as outlined in the Position Description, in relation to the advertised role, outlining:

When crafting your response, we encourage you to review ‘Cracking the Code’ and the relevant Australian Public Service Work Level Standards which can be found on the Australian Public Service Commission website: www.apsc.gov.au.

Please complete your application online and provide:

• your ‘pitch’ (as described above and in the position description).
• proof of Australian citizenship (an Australian Passport or Australian Birth Certificate)
• a current curriculum vitae (resume)

Applicants are advised to read further information provided on the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority Careers website.

PLEASE NOTE: - The panel may not consider additional information such as a cover letter or content exceeding the page limit.