Head of Engineering Enablement & Automation

Talent; Sydney; Hybrid; AUD 220,000 - 245,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work arrangement

Bonus 20% target

Total package ~AU$245k–AU$280k

Job summary

Talent is seeking a Head of Engineering Enablement & Automation in Sydney to lead engineering enablement across QA, DevOps, release management, environments, observability and tooling. You will guide a team of six direct reports within a broader group of ~11, delivering strategic leadership and practical AI/automation opportunities while collaborating across the business.

The role emphasises building standards, improving testing and deployment practices, and partnering with stakeholders and

Qualifications

• 10+ years in technology delivery, QA, automation or release management in complex environments.
• Proven leadership with ability to motivate teams and drive organizational change.
• Experience establishing engineering practices across testing, QA, DevOps and delivery.
• Strong knowledge of test automation, CI/CD, release processes, environments and observability.
• Experience managing vendors/outsourced partners.

Responsibilities

• Coach and develop a specialist team, building a positive, collaborative and solutions-focused culture.
• Establish engineering standards, reusable frameworks and consistent ways of working.
• Strengthen testing, quality assurance and test automation to improve delivery confidence.
• Oversee release, deployment and environment management to support safe, reliable change.
• Improve engineering tooling, observability and DevOps practices, identifying opportunities to reduce manual effort.
• Build strong relationships with business stakeholders, technology leaders and external vendors.

Skills

People leadership

CI/CD

Test automation

Observability

Vendor management

Tools

Jira/Atlassian tooling

Microsoft Copilot

Job description

Head of Engineering Enablement & Automation

$220k - $245k p.a. + (flexible) + 20% bonus

Our client

Our client is a major Australian ASX listed group undergoing significant technology transformation. They are seeking a collaborative technology leader to strengthen engineering capability, champion automation and build effective partnerships across the business.

The role

Based in Sydney, you will lead engineering enablement across quality engineering, DevOps, release and deployment management, environments, observability and tooling.

With six direct reports and a broader team of approximately 11, you will combine strategic leadership with technical guidance to improve delivery, support your team through change and identify practical opportunities for AI and automation.

Key responsibilities

• Coach and develop a specialist team, building a positive, collaborative and solutions focused culture.
• Establish engineering standards, reusable frameworks and consistent ways of working.
• Strengthen testing, quality assurance and test automation to improve delivery confidence.
• Oversee release, deployment and environment management to support safe, reliable change.
• Improve engineering tooling, observability and DevOps practices, identifying opportunities to reduce manual effort.
• Build strong relationships with business stakeholders, technology leaders and external vendors.

Skills and experience

• Around 10 years' experience across technology delivery, quality engineering, automation or release management within complex enterprise environments.
• Proven people leadership, with the ability to motivate teams, influence stakeholders and guide organisational change.
• Experience establishing and improving engineering practices across testing, quality assurance, DevOps and delivery.
• Strong technical understanding of test automation, CI/CD, release processes, environments and observability.
• Experience managing vendors and outsourced technology partners.
• Exposure to AI enabled software development, Microsoft Copilot, AI agents and Jira/Atlassian tooling would be advantageous. Experience in regulated environments is desirable, with candidates from other complex industries also encouraged to apply.

Benefits and additional information

• Package of approximately $245,000 including super, with flexibility up to approximately $280,000 for the right candidate.
• Discretionary bonus with a 20% target, subject to business and individual performance.
• Hybrid working: three days in the Sydney office and two days working from home.
• Opportunity to shape an evolving function and influence the organisation's engineering and automation direction.
• Experienced leaders ready to step into a broader Head of function role will be considered.