Associate Director, Space

The University of Queensland; City of Brisbane; On-site; AUD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Generous leave provisions

17% superannuation

Flexible working arrangements

Job summary

The University of Queensland (UQ) is seeking an experienced Associate Director, Space to lead strategic space planning, decant strategies and the utilisation of space across a complex portfolio. You will guide data-driven decision making, coordinate relocations and enable works, and report to senior governance bodies.

You will lead a Space Management team, collaborate with faculties and professional units, and drive improvements in space policies and systems for long-term planning across the

Qualifications

• Extensive experience in property and space planning within a large institutional environment.
• Proven ability to lead strategy development and decant planning.
• Strong stakeholder engagement and negotiation skills.
• Experience implementing space management policies and processes.
• Demonstrated leadership, mentoring and team development experience.

Responsibilities

• Lead strategic space planning and utilisation initiatives.
• Develop and deliver a campus-wide decant strategy across multiple projects.
• Identify suitable decant solutions and coordinate enabling works.
• Provide strategic advice and reporting to senior executives and governance committees.
• Lead, coach and develop a small specialist Space Management team.

Skills

Space planning

Portfolio management

Stakeholder management

Leadership

Strategic planning

Tools

Archibus

Job description

About the Organisation

Capstone Recruitment is partnering with The University of Queensland (UQ) to appoint an experienced Associate Director, Space to join its Campus Planning team. The University of Queensland is one of Australia’s leading research and education institutions, with a significant property portfolio supporting a diverse university community across multiple campuses. UQ is embarking on an ambitious five-year, $500 million capital works program, comprising 57 critical projects across the estate. A key component of this program is the Space Strategy 2026–2031, which will transform how space is planned, allocated and utilised across the University. To support this program, UQ is establishing a coordinated University-wide decant strategy to facilitate major works while maintaining operational continuity.

About the Role

Reporting to the Director, Campus Planning, the Associate Director, Space will provide strategic leadership and expert advice on the University's space requirements, utilisation and allocation. A key focus of the role will be to lead the development and delivery of a comprehensive decant strategy supporting the University's capital works program. This will involve identifying and preparing suitable decant space, sequencing relocations and re-occupations, coordinating enabling works and ensuring operational continuity across a complex portfolio of projects. The role will also lead the University's broader space management function, using data, systems and stakeholder engagement to optimise the utilisation of space and support long-term planning.

Key responsibilities include:

• Lead the University's strategic space planning, management and utilisation initiatives.
• Develop and deliver a University-wide decant strategy across multiple interdependent projects.
• Identify suitable decant solutions and coordinate enabling works and relocations.
• Provide strategic advice and reporting to senior executives and governance committees.
• Lead, coach and support a small specialist Space Management team.
• Build strong relationships across Faculties, Institutes, Schools and professional units.

This is a highly visible role with the opportunity to influence how one of Australia's largest and most complex institutional property portfolios is planned and utilised.

About You

We are seeking an experienced property, space planning, facilities or program management professional who can operate strategically while managing complex, interdependent programs of work. You will bring:

• Extensive experience managing complex programs, ideally within a large institutional environment.
• Demonstrated experience in space management, strategic planning or portfolio optimisation.
• Strong stakeholder management, communication and negotiation skills, with the ability to influence senior stakeholders and navigate competing priorities.
• Experience developing and implementing improvements to space management policies, systems and processes.
• Demonstrated leadership experience, including mentoring and developing teams.
• Experience with Archibus or a similar integrated facilities management / space management platform would be advantageous.

You will be a confident and collaborative leader who can bring structure to complex problems, communicate effectively with a diverse stakeholder group and drive practical outcomes across a large organisation.

Additional information

The University of Queensland (UQ) acknowledges the Traditional Owners and their custodianship of the lands on which UQ is situated. We pay our respects to their Ancestors and their descendants, who continue cultural and spiritual connections to Country.

At the University of Queensland, we are proud to be one of Australia’s leading research and teaching institutions, consistently ranking among the top 50 universities worldwide. As a member of the prestigious Group of Eight (Go8) universities, UQ is widely recognised for its intensive focus on research and teaching excellence – evidenced by our numerous accolades including more teaching awards than any other Australian University and reflected in UQ being the number one recipient of ARC Fellowships and Awards nationally across all scheme years (totalling 452 awards worth $339 million). Our state-of-the-art facilities, libraries, and cutting-edge research centres offer unparalleled opportunities for academic and professional growth.

With five faculties, a number of globally recognised research institutes, and over 100 research centres, we attract an interdisciplinary community of more than 7000 staff, supporting more than 55,000 current students from over 137 countries. UQ is dedicated to supporting the career aspirations of our students and staff. Our comprehensive career services provide personalized guidance, skills development, and networking opportunities to help you achieve your professional goals.

Whether you are a student seeking internships and job placements or a staff member looking for career advancement, UQ is here to support you every step of the way.

UQ values equity, diversity and inclusion and seeks to reflect the broader community by attracting and retaining high-quality staff from a range of backgrounds. Our commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion aims to ensure that everyone at UQ feels valued and empowered to achieve their full potential. We are particularly interested to hear from people who bring diversity to UQ – whether that be gender identity, LGBTQIA+, cultural and/or linguistic, Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples, or people with a disability.

Whether you are a recent graduate, an Academic, or an experienced professional, UQ offers a wide range of opportunities to help you grow and succeed.

Explore our current job openings, discover our programs, and become part of a community that is dedicated to creating lasting, meaningful impact for the communities in which we live and work.

For more information about working at UQ and

• our employee benefits (such as generous leave provisions, 17% superannuation, flexible working arrangements, and health and wellness discounts)

please visit Why Work at UQ.