Program Manager

UNSW; Sydney; Hybrid; AUD 150,000 - 185,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible Working Options

3 extra leave days in December

Career development opportunities

Discounts on UNSW courses

Competitive superannuation

Job summary

UNSW seeks a Program Manager to lead the Enterprise Portfolio Management Office, guiding multi-stream programs, budgets, and risks. The role collaborates with faculties and divisions, providing expert advice and ensuring value realization across initiatives.

You will report to the Program Director, manage direct reports across workstreams, and drive governance, change, and stakeholder engagement to achieve UNSW objectives.

Qualifications

• Tertiary qualifications or equivalent experience.
• Experience leading large-scale programs in complex environments.
• Proven ability to develop and governance multi-stream program master plans.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership across program workstreams to meet goals.
• Develop and maintain the program master plan with milestones and budgets.
• Support governance through business cases, viability papers, stage gates, and funding requests.
• Oversee financial management, resource allocation, and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Establish risk management practices and escalate issues as needed.
• Manage and develop staff under EPMO frameworks.
• Lead stakeholder collaboration and change engagement to secure buy-in.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Executive reporting

Stakeholder management

Change management

Program governance

Budget oversight

Team coaching

Communication

Risk management

Education

Bachelor’s degree or higher

Tools

MS Office

Program management tools

Job description

• Employment Type: Full-time, Continuing opportunity.
• Remuneration: Competitive total package
• Location: Kensington, NSW (Hybrid working model)

About UNSW

At UNSW, we pride ourselves on being a workplace where the best people come to do their best work. We aspire to be Australia’s global university, improving and transforming lives through excellence in research, outstanding education and a commitment to advancing a just society.

Why your role matters

The Program Manager is a key leadership role within the Enterprise Portfolio Management Office, leading the planning, integration, and delivery of major program initiatives at UNSW. Responsible for setting direction and ensuring operational excellence, the role oversees implementation, change management, data evaluation, and capability development.

Leveraging expertise in large-scale operational improvement within complex environments, the position builds and leads a team to execute the program master plan—managing multi-stream schedules, milestones, budgets, interdependencies, and risks. The Program Manager collaborates with leaders across faculties and divisions to provide specialist advice, secure university-wide buy-in, and support project owners and staff.

Reporting to the Program Director, the role manages direct reports across several workstreams.

About the Role

You will be required to undertake and have experience in the following areas of expertise:

• Provide strategic leadership, advice, and oversight across all program workstreams to meet operational goals and align with UNSW’s mission and compliance requirements.
• Develop and maintain the program master plan, overseeing multi-stream schedules, key milestones, interdependencies, risks, budgets, and change management.
• Support project owners through all governance stages, including the preparation of business cases, viability papers, stage gates, and funding requests.
• Oversee financial management, resource allocation, and continuous improvement initiatives to ensure value, efficient process workflows, and benefit realization.
• Establish robust risk management practices by proactively identifying, controlling, mitigating, and escalating potential program risks and issues.
• Direct team operations by coaching, mentoring, and managing performance to foster an inclusive, high-performance execution culture under EPMO frameworks.
• Lead stakeholder collaboration, change engagement, and transparent communications to secure university-wide buy-in and maintain a strong customer-centric approach.

Skills and Experience

• Relevant tertiary qualifications, industry experience, or an equivalent combination of education, training, and professional practice.
• Extensive expertise in global transnational education (TNE), with a proven track record of managing end-to-end international programs or work to establish and scale overseas campus operations.
• Substantial expertise as a Business Analyst, spanning operating models, IT, and comprehensive project management competencies and methodologies.
• Proven experience in program governance, workload modelling, resource planning, and financial management, including budget oversight and expenditure control.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with a track record of delivering concise, persuasive executive committee papers, reports, and proposals.
• Strong leadership capability to manage, coach, and motivate teams while rapidly establishing high credibility and fostering collaborative relationships across stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to drive continuous improvement, resolve complex problems, mitigate risks, and adapt flexibly to changing strategic priorities.

For further information on the role & responsibilities, please refer to the Position Description

Please note: Sponsorship is not available for this role, valid Australian working rights are required on application.

UNSW Benefits and Culture

People are at the core of everything we do. We recognise it is the contributions of our staff who make UNSW one of the best universities in Australia and the world.

Our benefits include:

• Flexible Working Options (work from home, flexible hours etc)
• Additional 3 days leave during December festive period.
• Career development opportunities
• Up to 50% discount on UNSW courses
• Flexible 17% Superannuation contributions, additional leave-loading payments and salary sacrifice.
• Discounts and entitlements (retail, education, fitness passport)

Job queries contact: Tai James, Talent Acquisition Consultant

E: [e-mail] (applications to the address cannot be accepted, please apply online)

UNSW is committed to equity diversity and inclusion. Applications from women, people of culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, those living with disabilities, members of the LGBTIQ+ community; and people of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent, are encouraged. UNSW provides workplace adjustments for people with disability, and access to flexible work options for eligible staff.

Pre-Employment Checks

Aligned with UNSW’s focus on cultivating a workplace defined by safety, ethical conduct, and strong integrity preferred candidates will be required to participate in a combination of pre-employment checks relevant to the role they have applied for.

These pre-employment checks may include a combination of some of the following checks:-

• National and International Criminal history checks
• Entitlement to work and ID checks
• Working With Children Checks
• Completion of a Gender-Based Violence Prevention Declaration
• Verification of relevant qualifications
• Verification of relevant professional membership
• Employment history and reference checks
• Financial responsibility assessments/checks.
• Medical Checks and Assessments

Compliance with the necessary combination of these checks is a condition of employment at UNSW.