Participant Support Officer

Talent; Adelaide; On-site; AUD 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

Talent in Adelaide seeks a Participant Support Officer on an initial contract through December 2026. The role focuses on setting priorities, managing workflow, and delivering clerical, administrative, and research tasks under leadership oversight.

You will handle inquiries, support participants and stakeholders, and help balance safeguarding with sustainability objectives while contributing to reform implementation.

Qualifications

• Excellent communication and listening skills.
• Ability to interpret guidance material and apply procedures.
• Ability to manage multiple requests and priorities.

Responsibilities

• Address straightforward complex enquiries with limited guidance.
• Manage workflow from allocated work using team processes.
• Refer matters to other areas when required to meet objectives.
• Analyse and manage workflow; propose workload allocations.
• Make outbound calls to participants, providers and stakeholders.
• Undertake suitability assessments for planning streams.
• Resolve participant matters and escalate complex tasks as needed.
• Assist with project planning, research, and reporting.
• Collaborate within a team and support peers.

Skills

Strong communication

Active listening

Stakeholder liaison

Policy framework knowledge

Prioritisation

De-escalation

Team support

Analytical thinking

Job description

• Initial contract up until December 2026 with possibility of extension
• Adelaide Based Position

The Participant Support Officer is responsible for setting priorities, managing workflow and producing work with the oversight and monitoring by leaders within their team. The position will undertake procedural, clerical, administrative and operational tasks including some basic research and analysis activities. Team members will support participants and the organisation by balancing safeguarding and sustainability objectives, implementing recent reform.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Addressing straight forward complex enquiries where there may not be clear advice, guidance, or scripts.
• Managing workflow from an allocation of work and using specific team processes.
• Undertake working within a specific scope, sometimes needing to refer the matter to other areas of the organisation.
• Analysing and managing workflow, including making recommendations to peers and supervisors about work allocation ensuring Agency and Ministerial objectives are met.
• Making outbound calls to participants, providers, and other stakeholders.
• Undertaking suitability assessments for entry and exits into specialist planning streams.
• Managing and resolving participant matters, including actioning moderately complex planning pathway delegate tasks, work instructions, operational guidelines and Ministerial direction.
• Escalating more complex planning tasks for response by senior team members or other Service Delivery teams.
• Assisting project management activities, such as the development of project plans, providing advice, assisting with research and analysis and supporting regular project reporting.
• Working collaboratively in a team environment, providing feedback, contributing to process improvement, team activities and on-the-job support for peers.

Skills:

• Strong communication, with the ability to actively listen and take on the perspective of participants to best support them and their needs with sensitivity.
• Acquiring and applying new skills and knowledge through on-the-job experiences.
• Utilising relevant statutory, regulatory and policy frameworks to draw conclusions, interpret and apply guidance material and resolve recurring problems. Recognises how precedents, procedures and guidelines could impact work outputs.
• Responsible for managing competing requests, demands and priorities, choosing the most appropriate method to complete tasks.
• Ability to de-escalate, recognise levels of risk, conduct self calmly and patiently.
• Provides feedback, support, advice, and guidance to PSOs in lower levels.
• Works under general supervision and direction and works within established procedures and guidance. Perform procedural, clerical, technical, administrative support or operational tasks including some research and analysis activities.
• Liaise with stakeholders and assist to resolve moderately complex issues.
• Communicate, negotiate, and provide advice and recommendations to a wide variety of customers and external stakeholders.