Senior People Partner

City of Melbourne; Melbourne; Hybrid; AUD 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible working

Study assistance

Corporate discounts

Parental leave flexibility

Job summary

City of Melbourne is seeking a Senior People Partner to act as a trusted advisor to senior leaders, partnering with General Managers and Directors to deliver strategic people solutions that align with business priorities. You will provide expert advice on workforce planning, employee relations, and change management while leading a small team.

You will support leaders to navigate people challenges, drive organisational effectiveness, and build high-performing teams in a diverse, dynamic City

Qualifications

• Demonstrated experience in a senior HR or People Partnering role within a complex organisation.

Responsibilities

• Partner with senior leaders to deliver strategic people solutions and support organisational priorities.
• Lead workforce planning and change initiatives to drive operational and strategic outcomes.
• Provide expert guidance on employee and industrial relations and performance management.
• Coach and mentor leaders to build leadership capability and high-performing teams.

Skills

Strategic partnering

Stakeholder management

Coaching & leadership

People analytics

Change management

Education

HR/Business/Psychology degree

Job description

• Partner with senior leaders to deliver strategic people outcomes
• Lead impactful people initiatives across a diverse, and dynamic organisation

About the role

As aSenior People Partner, you will act as a trusted advisor to senior leaders, partnering closely with General Managers, Directors and their leadership teams to deliver strategic people solutions that support organisational priorities and business outcomes.

Working within a complex and diverse organisation, you will provide expert advice across workforce planning, leadership capability, employee and industrial relations, change management and culture initiatives. You will play a key role in supporting leaders to navigate people challenges, drive organisational effectiveness and build high-performing teams.

Reporting to the Head of People Partnering, you will also lead and develop a small team of two while contributing to branch-wide initiatives that enhance the employee experience and strengthen organisational capability.

A little more about the role

• Partner with senior leaders to understand business priorities and develop people strategies that support organisational objectives.
• Provide expert advice and guidance on complex employee and industrial relations matters, performance management, conduct and workplace issues.
• Lead workforce planning and change initiatives that support operational and strategic outcomes.
• Coach and support leaders to build people leadership capability and confidence.
• Analyse workforce data and trends to provide insights and recommendations that inform decision-making.
• Identify, manage and mitigate people-related risks while ensuring compliance with relevant legislation, policies and frameworks.
• Lead, mentor and develop direct reports, fostering a collaborative, customer-focused and high-performing team culture.
• Contribute to organisation-wide people initiatives that enhance culture, engagement, capability and organisational effectiveness.

Located on the traditional lands of the Bunurong Boon Wurrung and Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung peoples of the Kulin Nation, Melbourne is globally recognised as one of the most liveable, diverse, and dynamic cities.

At the heart of it all is the City of Melbourne – a passionate, purpose-driven organisation where your work truly matters. As part of Team Melbourne, you’ll help deliver what’s most important to the people who live, work, study, visit and invest in our great city.

We’re proud champions of diversity, committed to continuous improvement, and driven by a shared vision for a vibrant and sustainable future.

This is more than just a role – it’s your chance to make a real impact, contribute to something bigger, and shape Melbourne’s future alongside a collaborative and forward-thinking team.

About you

You are a strategic and trusted HR professional with strong experience partnering with Senior Leaders in complex environments. You bring a contemporary approach to people management, excellent stakeholder engagement skills and a passion for building high-performing teams and inclusive workplace cultures.

You may also be:

• An experienced People leader who enjoys coaching and developing HR professionals
• A strategic thinker who can translate organisational priorities into practical workforce solutions
• Confident managing complex employee and industrial relations matters in a unionised environment
• Skilled at influencing senior stakeholders and navigating competing priorities with professionalism
• Data-driven and solutions-focused, using workforce insights to inform decision-making and drive outcomes

What your experience might look like (Key Selection Criteria)

• Demonstrated experience in a senior HR or People Partnering role within a complex organisation.
• Strong capability in strategic business partnering and influencing senior stakeholders.
• Proven experience in workforce planning, organisational design and change management.
• Expertise in employee and industrial relations, including the management of complex workplace matters.
• Exceptional communication, coaching and relationship management skills.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving capability, with experience using workforce data to drive informed decision-making.
• Experience leading, mentoring and developing others.
• Relevant tertiary qualifications in Human Resources, Business, Psychology or a related discipline.

Benefits of working with us

• Attractive remuneration & benefits: Excellent pay package with a range of exciting benefits. Flexible working, study assistance & other great corporate discounts.
• Excellent leave entitlements: Enjoy up to 20 weeks of fully paid parental leave for primary carers, in addition to the government-funded parental leave, with no waiting period to access. Part-time equivalents are also available for added flexibility.
• Career progression: Career development support and opportunities to learn new skills within a creative and exciting environment.
• Work-life balance and hybrid working: We support flexible hours, alternative work arrangements (like ADOs), and hybrid work-from-home options.

Need more info?

Refer to the position description below or contact *******@melbourne.vic.gov.au

Inclusion matters

We strongly encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, people from all cultural and linguistic backgrounds, people with disabilities, LGBTIQA+ individuals, and people of all ages and faith backgrounds.

We provide reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process to support all applicants. If you require any adjustments, please let us know via the application prompts or inform our Careers team if you’re contacted for an interview.