Business Manager

government schools; Geelong; On-site; AUD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Leopold Primary School, located on the Bellarine Peninsula about 12 kilometres from Geelong, is seeking an experienced administrator to lead finance, HR and school administration functions. The role reports to senior leadership and supports a large workforce and school community.

Leopold Primary School has about 875 students in nearly 40 straight grades, with extensive facilities and programs. The incumbent will oversee budgets, grants, procurement and resource management in a complex public

Qualifications

• Demonstrated capacity to provide strategic leadership across school administration, finance and operational functions.
• Demonstrated high-level knowledge and experience in financial and resource management, including annual budgets, financial statements, grants and income.
• Demonstrated knowledge and experience in human resource and workforce management, compliance and governance within a complex organisation.

Responsibilities

• Deliver School Services: Manage the design and production of school publications and documents.
• Finance: Manage annual budgets and regular financial statements and contribute to financial decisions.
• Finance: Prepare funding submissions for leadership team and school council.
• Finance: Direct accounting processes and ensure funds, including school investments, are accounted for per Treasury regulations.
• Finance: Advise staff on spending against budget for faculties and projects.
• Finance: Administer government grants and other school income.
• Finance: Manage fundraising activities.
• General Administration: Provide administrative support for the Principal and teaching staff.
• General Administration: Support external service providers as required.
• Admissions: Manage student admissions, registrations, enrolments and transfers.
• Events: Provide admin support for school events, functions and projects.
• Induction: Implement induction programs for new staff and volunteers.
• Human Resources: Develop development programs for support staff.
• Human Resources: Manage recruitment procedures.
• Human Resources: Provide advice on support structures and work practices.
• Occupational Health: Develop practices ensuring safety standards.
• HR: Manage employee relations procedures.
• HR: Assist in HR planning.
• Resources: Coordinate use and maintenance of buildings and equipment.
• Resources: Liaise with service providers re cost/quality of services.
• Resources: Supervise contracted services.
• Resources: Develop and collect resource material.
• Reports: Draft reports and recommendations on operational issues.
• IT: Evaluate and report on operational efficiency of computer systems; suggest improvements.
• Work practices: Develop techniques affecting work practices beyond the workplace.
• Program: Manage a technical program with broad scope across the school.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Financial management

Resource management

Human resources

Job description

Occupation: Administration

Location: Barwon South West - Greater Geelong

Reference: 1551440

Selection Criteria

SC1 Demonstrated capacity to provide strategic leadership across school administration, finance and operational functions, including leading and developing a team and directing the work of others.

SC2 Demonstrated high-level knowledge and experience in financial and resource management, including annual budgets, financial statements, accounting processes, grants and income, financial controls and providing sound advice to school leadership.

SC3 Demonstrated knowledge and experience in human resource and workforce management, compliance, governance, risk management, procurement, contracts, facilities and operational systems within a complex organisation.

Role

Direction on targets and goals is provided but the position will have some degree of latitude in determining how they are achieved. This latitude will generally be limited by standard procedures and school policy.Deviation from standard procedures and school policy will require guidance and direction from senior management.

Management of staff to achieve the expected outcomes is a key responsibility.Staff management issues will be resolved with minimal reference to senior management, although guidance will be required in more complex cases.Senior management will be provided with timely reports and advice in matters relating to the school finance, human resources or school administration.

Responsibilities

Deliver School Services

• Manage the design and production of school publications and documents

Finance

• Manage and direct the preparation of annual budgets and regular financial statements and contribute to the financial decision making of the school.
• Prepare funding submissions for the leadership team and school council.
• Direct the accounting processes of the school and ensure that all funds, including school investments, are effectively accounted for according to Treasury regulations.
• Provide advice to staff on spending against budget in respect to faculties, programs and other school projects.
• Administer government grants and other school income.
• Manage fund raising activities.

General Administration

• Ensure the provision of a range of administrative support functions for the Principal and teaching staff.
• Provide administrative support to external service providers as required.
• Manage the processing of student admissions, registrations, enrolments and transfers.
• Provide required level of administrative support for school events, functions and projects.
• Implement induction programs for new staff, volunteers and other workers to the school.

Human Resources

• Research, plan and prepare development programs for support staff.
• Manage recruitment procedures.
• Provide authoritative advice to the leadership team on support structures and work practices.
• Assist in the development of work practices that ensure appropriate occupational health and safety standards are maintained.
• Manage procedures relating to employee relations issues.
• Assist in the development of human resource planning.

Manage School Resources

• Coordinate the use and maintenance of school buildings and equipment.
• Liaise and negotiate with service providers in respect to the cost and quality of services.
• Supervise the delivery of contracted services.
• Manage the development and collection of resource material at the school.
• Draft reports and make recommendations on operational issues.
• Evaluate and report on the operational efficiency of computer systems in production, making recommendations for improvement where appropriate.
• Develop techniques and procedures that will affect work practices beyond the work place.
• Manage a technical program with a broad scope across the school.

Who May Apply

Individuals with the aptitude, experience and/or qualifications to fulfill the specific requirements of the position.

Diversity and Inclusion

The department is committed to diversity and inclusion and developing a workforce that is representative of the community we service. We value diversity and inclusion in all forms - culture, gender, religion, ethnicity, LGBTIQA+, disability and neurodiversity. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for roles within the Department.The Department recognises that the provision of safe, respectful and inclusive workplaces is essential to high performance and promotes flexible work and diversity across all schools and Department workplaces.It is our policy to provide reasonable adjustments for staff with disability (see Workplace adjustment guidelines ).

Additional support and advice on the recruitment process is available to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander candidates from the Koorie Outcomes Division (KOD) via [e-mail]

Applicants seeking part-time employment are encouraged to apply for any teaching service position and, if they are the successful candidate, request a reduced time fraction. Such requests will be negotiated on a case-by-case basis and will be subject to the operational requirements of the school.

Child Safe Standards

Victorian government schools are child safe environments. Our schools actively promote the safety and wellbeing of all students, and all school staff are committed to protecting students from abuse or harm in the school environment, in accordance with their legal obligations including child safe standards. All schools have a Child Safety Code of Conduct consistent with the department's exemplar available at:

The department's employees commit to upholding the department's Values: Responsiveness, Integrity, Impartiality, Accountability, Respect, Leadership and Human Rights. The department's Values complement each school's own values and underpin the behaviours the community expects of Victorian public sector employees,including those who work in Victorian Government Schools. Information on the department values is available at:

• All staff employed by the Department and schools have access to a broad range of employment conditions and working arrangements.
• Appointment of successful applicants will be made subject to a satisfactory pre-employment conditions check.
• A probationary period may apply during the first year of employment and induction and support programs provided.

Leopold Primary School is located on the Bellarine Peninsula, 12 kilometres from Geelong. Leopold Primary School's Motto: Learning For Life espouses our vision: learning to know, learning to do, learning to be and learning to live together, equips our students with knowledge, skills and the disposition to actively embrace learning, leading all to become confident contributing member of both our school and the wider community. The values of our school community embraces are: Respect, Responsibility, Kindness and Honesty. These values ground our school community in all aspects of its day-to-day operations.

Leopold Primary School has an enrolment of approximately 875 students in almost 40 straight grades. Our school has a main administration block, incorporating meeting rooms known as Karroong Ngiti (Meeting Together), Cultural Studies, Music and Art rooms, accompanied by a further seven additional teaching blocks. The beautiful and well-maintained school grounds include the school oval, synthetic turf areas, four playgrounds, a bike track, Indigenous garden and a South East Asian garden. The Leopold Indoor Neighbourhood Centre (LINC) is housed within the school grounds and has a basketball court within the main sports hall; this space is also used for school assemblies. The LINC also holds a multifunction room that is used by the community for various sporting and community events.

The current staffing profile of Leopold PS includes a Principal and 3 Assistant Principals, over 50 teachers and 40 Education Support staff, a Mental Health in Primary Schools Leader, a Chaplain, and a Social Worker. Leopold Primary School has a Cultural Inclusion coordinator that provides opportunities for First Nations students to get together regularly to conduct cultural activities, known as our Mok Burryn Group. The school provides an approved curriculum framework differentiated to meet student needs. Students follow the Victoria Curriculum 2.0 including Physical Education, Visual Arts, Performing Arts, STEM and cultural Studies as part of their specialist program. The school runs its own accredited Out of School Hours Care Program, including a Holiday program and additional service provision is hosted at the school to support students with targeted needs.

Applications close Thursday 12 November 2026 at 11.59pm