Assistant Director Digital Definition - (multiple positions)

Australian Submarine Agency; Canberra; On-site; AUD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Australian Submarine Agency in Canberra is seeking highly capable professionals for two Assistant Director Digital Definition roles within the Digital Definition directorates. You will support planning, coordination and delivery of digital engineering activities enabling sovereign technical control of Australia’s nuclear-powered submarine program.

These roles require strong leadership, stakeholder collaboration, and the ability to translate complex technical strategies into deliverable work

Qualifications

• Demonstrated experience in program or project delivery of large-scale programs.

Responsibilities

• Plan and coordinate digital engineering activities across VCS and SSN AUKUS work streams.
• Develop and maintain schedules, milestones, delivery plans, and governance artefacts.
• Translate technical requirements and strategy into structured, deliverable work packages.
• Provide technical input to ASA and AUKUS partner planning, documentation and artefacts.
• Monitor progress, manage risks, dependencies, and constraints, and elevate issues across organisations.
• Support governance, assurance, reporting, and continuous improvement activities.
• Establishment and sustainment of the SSN Authoritative Source of Truth.
• Integration of technical data, modelling, configuration management, and digital systems.
• Alignment with AUKUS partner systems, processes, and digital environments.
• Adoption of contemporary digital engineering practices, including MBSE and data driven delivery.
• Delivery of assured, traceable, and well governed digital capability across the enterprise.

Skills

Program management

Stakeholder engagement

Leadership

Communication

Risk management

Technical literacy

MBSE

Job description

Australian Submarine Agency – Canberra ACT

The acquisition of conventionally-armed, nuclear-powered submarines is an historic and transformative endeavour for Australia. The whole-of-nation effort to safely and securely deliver the cutting edge nuclear-powered submarine program will transform Australia’s economic and national security landscape for decades to come.

The Australian Submarine Agency’s Digital Engineering Branch are seeking suitably qualified and experienced personnel to fill two Assistant Director Digital Definition positions within the VCS and SSN-A Digital Definition directorates. Working to the respective directors, Assistant Director Digital Definition supports the planning, coordination, and delivery of digital engineering activities that enable Australian technical control of Australian flagged Nuclear Powered Submarines.

The Assistant Director Digital Definition will work under broad direction from Digital Definition directors, in collaboration with technical specialists and delivery partners, to:

• Plan and coordinate digital engineering activities across VCS and SSN AUKUS work streams.
• Develop and maintain schedules, milestones, delivery plans, and governance artefacts.
• Translate technical requirements and strategy into structured, deliverable work packages.
• Provide technical input to ASA and AUKUS partner planning, documentation and artefacts.
• Monitor progress, manage risks, dependencies, and constraints, and elevate issues Coordinate across ASA, Defence, industry, and AUKUS partner organisations.
• Support governance, assurance, reporting, and continuous improvement activities.

The Assistant Director Digital Definition will lead, plan, and deliver complex digital engineering coordination activities in support of:

• Establishment and sustainment of the SSN Authoritative Source of Truth.
• Integration of technical data, modelling, configuration management, and digital systems.
• Alignment with AUKUS partner systems, processes, and digital environments.
• Adoption of contemporary digital engineering practices, including MBSE and data driven delivery.
• Delivery of assured, traceable, and well governed digital capability across the enterprise.
• Assistant Directors are required to operate with sound judgement and a strong nuclear mindset, ensuring precision, accountability, and compliance with relevant legislation, policies, and ASA governance frameworks

About our Team

The Digital Engineering Branch sits at the core of the ASA’s mission, building the digital backbone that will underpin sovereign technical control of Australia’s acquisition of conventionally armed nuclear-powered submarines.

We foster a collaborative data and software ecosystem facilitating effective knowledge sharing across the AUKUS enterprise, from submarine design through to disposal.

Our team is responsible for designing and sustaining digital engineering environments, specialised software tools and digital definitions that connect science, engineering, construction, operation and sustainment into a single coherent ecosystem.

We work at the genuine frontier of what’s technically possible in Australia, applying emerging technologies such as AI, Machine Learning and evolving digital engineering practices including Model-Based Systems Engineering to novel problems in the Australian Defence context.

Our Ideal Candidate

We are a dynamic organization seeking employees who are agile, innovative and energised by high-paced work. We are seeking highly motivated and collaborative minded people who will have the opportunity to contribute to a once in a lifetime program.

We seek motivated, outcome-focused professionals for our Digital Engineering Branch with strong technical, professional and interpersonal skills. Candidates should be curious, adaptable and committed to continuous learning.

The role requires sound technical leadership to guide work, influence stakeholders and uphold engineering standards.

Ideal candidates will bring the following attributes to the role:

• Demonstrated experience in client-side delivery of large scale major programs and/or projects, including establishment and/or maturing of integrated program and/or project management functions.
• Strong program and project management skills, including governance, controls, assurance and performance.
• Demonstrated experience leading, developing and managing teams
• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, with the ability to prepare clear and concise briefs and submissions.
• Ability to influence and negotiate effectively with diverse stakeholders.
• Sound judgement and problem-solving skills, with the ability to manage competing priorities and deliver outcomes under pressure.
• Demonstrated experience managing complex technical, engineering, digital, or data centric projects.
• Strong engineering literacy, with the ability to understand, interpret, and communicate technical concepts accurately.
• Proven ability to develop schedules, manage risks, track dependencies, and coordinate delivery across multidisciplinary teams.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including preparation of executive level documentation and reporting.
• Ability to exercise initiative, sound judgement, and attention to detail in high assurance or high consequence environments.

Application Closing Date: Sunday 30 August 2026