Program Manager - Reform

Gayaa Dhuwi (Proud Spirit) Australia; Canberra; On-site; AUD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Gayaa Dhuwi (Proud Spirit) Australia invites applications for a Program Manager, Reform to lead national reform implementation across frameworks such as the Gayaa Dhuwi Declaration Framework and Implementation Plan 2025-2035, the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Suicide Prevention Strategy 2025-2035, and the National Strategic Framework for Mental Health and SEWB 2026-2036.

Reporting to the Director, Reform, the role translates priorities into organised workplans, tracks progress,

Qualifications

• Experience delivering programs or projects, including workplans and schedules.
• Ability to coordinate across multiple stakeholders, including government and partners.
• Strong written communication and briefing skills.
• Understanding of Aboriginal social and emotional wellbeing policy contexts.
• Experience working in or with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leadership.

Responsibilities

• Develop, maintain and update workplans and implementation schedules for reform frameworks.
• Monitor progress, identify risks and escalate issues to the Director, Reform.
• Coordinate across internal staff, external partners and government stakeholders.
• Support governance, accountability monitoring and reporting across reforms.
• Contribute to policy work with practical implications and sector considerations.
• Represent the organisation in implementation-related forums and meetings.

Skills

Program management

Stakeholder coordination

Written communication

Policy understanding

Aboriginal leadership

Job description

The Program Manager, Reform supports Gayaa Dhuwi’s national reform implementation work, with primary responsibility for driving day-to-day delivery across the key frameworks and strategies the organisation is custodian of, including the Gayaa Dhuwi Declaration Framework and Implementation Plan 2025-2035, the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Suicide Prevention Strategy 2025-2035, and the National Strategic Framework for Mental Health and Social and Emotional Wellbeing 2026-2036.

The role works under the leadership of the Director, Reform and is responsible for translating agreed reform priorities into organised, well-tracked implementation activity. This includes developing and maintaining workplans and project documentation, monitoring progress, coordinating across internal and external stakeholders, and supporting the Director, Reform to maintain clear visibility over the reform program.

This is a substantive program management role that requires strong organisational skills, clear written communication, and the ability to work across a complex national reform environment. The successful candidate will understand that implementation work requires discipline, follow-through and the capacity to keep multiple workstreams moving simultaneously without losing sight of the bigger picture.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop, maintain and update workplans, project plans and implementation schedules across Gayaa Dhuwi’s key reform frameworks and strategies.
• Monitor progress against agreed milestones, identify delays or risks, and escalation issues to the Director, Reform in a timely way.
• Coordinate implementation activity across internal staff, external partners and government stakeholders, ensuring workstreams remain on track.
• Support the Director, Reform to maintain the reform architecture and accountability monitoring function, including tracking system-level commitments and implementation progress.
• Support the Journey of Change process, including coordinating stakeholder input, tracking progress and preparing related materials.
• Coordinate Gayaa Dhuwi’s engagement with sector partners and government agencies connected to implementation priorities.
• Support the preparation of implementation-related briefs, reports, meeting papers and correspondence.
• Contribute reform implementation knowledge and insight to policy work led by the Director, Policy, including practical implications and sector considerations.
• Build and maintain productive working relationships with government agencies, sector partners and other stakeholders connected to Gayaa Dhuwi’s implementation work.
• Represent Gayaa Dhuwi in implementation-related forums and meetings as directed by the Director, Reform.
• Ensure implementation work is informed by member priorities, community perspectives and relevant evidence.
• Undertake other duties as required.

Selection Criteria

• Demonstrated ability to work respectfully within an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leadership organisation, including understanding of culture, self-determination, community control and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leadership.
• Demonstrated understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social and emotional wellbeing, mental health and suicide prevention, including the national policy, service system and reform context.
• Demonstrated experience in program or project management, including developing and maintaining workplans, tracking progress against milestones, and keeping complex workstreams on track.
• Demonstrated ability to coordinate across multiple stakeholders, manage competing priorities, and deliver work to a high standard within agreed timeframes.
• Demonstrated written communication skills, including the ability to prepare clear, accurate and well-structured briefs, reports, workplans and meeting papers.

This Position is open to Brisbane, Melbourne and Canberra based applicants.

Gayaa Dhuwi is the national peak body for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social and emotional wellbeing, mental health, and suicide prevention. As a members based, community-controlled organisation, we are governed by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander experts and peak bodies.

Our vision is the highest attainable standard of social and emotional wellbeing, mental health, and suicide prevention outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. Our role is to lead and advocate for systemic change that places the voices, strengths, and needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples at the centre of national policies and reforms.

We work in a fast-paced national policy and reform environment where priorities can shift quickly in response to government processes, parliamentary inquiries, sector developments, member priorities, emerging evidence, and national reform opportunities. As a result, our team needs to be made up of individuals who can understand complex policy and service systems, work respectfully within an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leadership and organisations, and produce high-quality work across social and emotional wellbeing, mental health, and suicide prevention.

Gayaa Dhuwi’s work is long-term with progress often requiring sustained advocacy, careful relationships, strong evidence and the ability to keep work moving over time. People who thrive at Gayaa Dhuwi are steady, thoughtful, organised, respectful, clear in their communication and able to maintain perspective while working on issues that matter deeply to our peoples and communities.

APPLICATIONS CLOSE 12th October 2026

• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are encouraged to apply for this opportunity under section 51 of the Equal Opportunity Act 1984.
• Applicants must be an Australian citizen or have permanent residency status pending the granting of Australian citizenship. All successful applicants for the position will be asked to complete pre-engagement checks including national police check and a working with vulnerable people check.