Engineering Lead (Automation)

Virgin Australia Airlines; Brisbane; On-site; AUD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Discount flights

Flexible hybrid work

South Bank head office location

Wellbeing support

Dress for your day

Job summary

Virgin Australia is seeking an Engineering Lead – Automation to provide hands-on technical leadership across our automation capability, focusing on cloud-hosted UiPath Robotic Process Automation.

You will design, develop and operate secure, scalable automation solutions, guide engineers, set engineering standards, review designs, and mentor staff while remaining hands-on with delivery and problem-solving.

Qualifications

• Bachelor-level technical degree required or equivalent.
• Proven leadership of engineers in enterprise settings.
• Experience with UiPath products and cloud services.

Responsibilities

• Lead the design and delivery of enterprise automation solutions in a cloud-hosted environment.
• Provide technical guidance, oversee code reviews and designs.
• Establish engineering standards, reusable patterns and security practices.
• Remain hands-on with solution development and complex problem-solving.
• Collaborate with Architecture, Cloud, Security and business stakeholders.

Skills

UiPath ecosystem

Cloud engineering

Automation leadership

Generative AI

Stakeholder engagement

Security by design

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS/IT/Engineering

Tools

UiPath Studio/Robot/Orchestrator

AWS

CI/CD tooling

Job description

Hello. We’re Virgin Australia. We’re the airline that’s always done things a little different. Our way. The Virgin way. We’re on a mission to make flying better than ‘nice’. And to do that, it takes a team of talented people who are passionate about customer experience, doing the right thing always, with a focus on safety – in the air, on the ground and in our workplaces. A team who values real diversity and inclusion, in a big brand with big ambitions.

What you’ll be doing

As an Engineering Lead – Automation, you’ll provide hands‑on technical leadership across Virgin Australia’s automation capability, with primary responsibility for our cloud‑hosted UiPath Robotic Process Automation environment.

You’ll lead the design, development, and operational support of secure, reliable and scalable automation solutions. You’ll guide engineers, establish technical standards, review code and designs, and step into complex delivery or production issues when required.

This is more than a traditional RPA leadership role. You’ll be a passionate technologist who stays ahead of developments in automation, cloud engineering, generative AI and agentic technologies, identifying practical opportunities for Virgin Australia to evolve how automation solutions are designed, delivered and operated.

Further responsibilities include:

• Lead the design and delivery of enterprise automation solutions using UiPath products in a cloud-hosted environment.
• Translate business requirements and solution architecture into detailed technical designs, implementation approaches, proofs of concept and actionable specifications.
• Provide technical guidance, oversight and leadership to engineers, support teams, project squads and external delivery partners.
• Establish and maintain engineering standards, reusable patterns and development guidelines that support secure, scalable and maintainable automation.
• Remain hands‑on through solution development, exemplar builds, code reviews, design assurance and complex technical problem‑solving.
• Own the technical quality of automation solutions across their lifecycle, including code, design artefacts, documentation, deployment pipelines and operational readiness.
• Work closely with Architecture, Cloud, Integration, Cyber Security, Service Management and business stakeholders to deliver safe and effective outcomes.
• Take accountability for code bases, ensuring source code is effectively managed, tested, merged and released.
• Champion continuous improvement across development practices, code quality, DevOps automation, release management and production support.
• Lead engineers through delivery by clarifying priorities, removing blockers and providing hands‑on support where necessary to meet time, quality and budget commitments.
• Mentor and develop engineers, build broader capability across emerging technologies and support succession planning for future technical leaders.
• Identify opportunities to reduce delivery and operating costs without compromising security, resilience, maintainability or business value.
• Prepare reliable delivery estimates covering design, development, testing, deployment and warranty support.
• Remain at the forefront of automation, generative AI, agentic technologies and cloud engineering trends, and identify opportunities for Virgin Australia to apply them responsibly.

You’ll be great in this role if you have…

• Tertiary qualifications in Computer Science, Information Technology, Software Engineering or a related discipline.
• Strong knowledge of the UiPath product ecosystem, including products such as Studio, Robot, Orchestrator, Automation Cloud, Integration Service, Document Understanding, Action Center and Apps.
• Experience leading engineers and implementing technology solutions in complex enterprise environments.
• Experience designing and developing solutions using AWS native services.
• Experience designing and developing generative AI solutions, including the controlled use of large language models within enterprise applications or automated workflows.
• Strong knowledge of system integration, APIs, enterprise applications and modern digital platforms.
• Experience investigating and resolving complex technical and production issues.
• Understanding of secure‑by‑design engineering, identity and access management, credential management, data protection and vulnerability remediation.
• Strong stakeholder engagement skills and the ability to influence people who may not report directly to you.
• A genuine passion for technology and a demonstrated commitment to staying ahead of developments in automation, cloud and AI.

Highly regarded:

• Agile software development training and industry experience.
• UiPath, AWS or generative AI certifications.
• Experience leading product-based or journey-based engineering squads.
• Experience mentoring and developing both emerging and established engineering talent.
• Experience with intelligent document processing, process orchestration, agentic automation or AI‑assisted software delivery.

We’re committed to looking after you, with some of the best benefits and conditions in the industry – including (but not limited to):

• Discounted flights for you and your loved ones (including $1000 worth of travel credits per year)
• A flexible, hybrid work style. Work from home or the office, adapt your location to suit your style and needs
• One of Brisbane’s most admired head office locations, with South Bank train station, a supermarket, pharmacy, and lunch options downstairs plus a 5-minute walk to the Busway, a rooftop restaurant and onsite gym (with a low membership fee) and South Bank Parklands just across the road
• Discounts on travel insurance, lounge membership, car hire, accommodation, and experiences worldwide
• Cheaper hospitality, retail, technology, beauty and wellness services
• Free counselling and access to a wellbeing app to support your physical, mental, social and financial health
• ‘Dress for Your Day’ – enjoy the freedom to wear whatever makes you feel great for the type of work you do and the day you have ahead of you.

When everyone is included, everyone wins

We’re all individuals. And we love that. That’s why we encourage applications from Indigenous Australians, people with disability, those from diverse cultural backgrounds, our friends in the LGBTQI+ community, and anyone else who wants to join our family.