Senior Privacy Specialist

PQE Partners Pty; Sydney; On-site; AUD 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

PQE Partners Pty is recruiting a Senior Privacy Specialist to own and advance the organisation's privacy function within the legal team. The role offers autonomy to shape privacy management and drive embedding across the business, with engagement across Legal, Risk, Technology and Data/AI Governance.

You will lead strategic privacy initiatives, translate regulatory requirements into practical guidance, and contribute to training and governance.

Qualifications

• Significant privacy experience in a regulated environment.
• Experience developing or uplifting privacy frameworks and processes.
• Practical experience with PIAs, privacy risk and breach/incident management.
• Strong ability to translate complex legislative/regulatory requirements into practical guidance.

Responsibilities

• Take ownership of and develop the organisation’s privacy management framework.
• Advise on compliance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and Australian Privacy Principles.
• Advise on Privacy Impact Assessments for new projects and systems.
• Identify privacy risks and develop mitigation strategies.
• Manage privacy incidents and data breaches, including Notifiable Data Breaches obligations.
• Maintain privacy policies, notices and governance.
• Monitor regulatory developments and advise on impact.
• Develop and deliver privacy training and awareness initiatives.
• Collaborate with Legal, Risk, Technology, Cyber Security and Data/AI Governance.
• Provide ad hoc support on Freedom of Information matters.

Skills

Privacy management

Stakeholder engagement

Regulatory knowledge

PIAs

Data breach management

Education

Legal degree (LLB or JD)

Job description

PQE Partners are working with a highly regarded, complex organisation to appoint a Senior Privacy Specialist into its established legal team.

This is a newly created position and the organisation’s first dedicated privacy hire, offering the successful person genuine ownership of the privacy function and the opportunity to shape how privacy is managed across the business.

There is an existing privacy framework in place; however, with an increasing organisational focus on privacy and significant regulatory change underway in Australia, the business is looking to appoint an experienced privacy professional to take ownership of the area, identify gaps and continue to uplift and embed its approach.

Reporting to a senior member of the legal leadership team, you will become the key privacy SME across the organisation. You will work closely with stakeholders across Legal, Risk, Compliance, Technology, Cyber Security and Data/AI Governance, providing practical advice and ensuring privacy considerations are effectively understood and managed.

Stakeholder engagement will be a significant part of the position. You will work with employees and senior leadership to increase privacy awareness across the organisation, develop and deliver training and translate complex legislative and regulatory requirements into clear, practical advice. There will also be the opportunity to engage at executive level and contribute to Board-level reporting.

Key responsibilities will include:

• Taking ownership of and continuing to develop the organisation’s privacy management framework
• Advising on compliance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), Australian Privacy Principles and other relevant requirements
• Advising on Privacy Impact Assessments for new projects, systems and initiatives
• Identifying privacy risks and developing practical mitigation strategies
• Managing and advising on privacy incidents and data breaches, including obligations under the Notifiable Data Breaches regime
• Maintaining and enhancing privacy policies, processes, notices and governance
• Monitoring developments in the Australian privacy regulatory landscape and advising the business on their impact
• Developing and delivering privacy training and awareness initiatives
• Working collaboratively across Legal, Risk, Technology, Cyber Security and Data/AI Governance
• Providing ad hoc support on Freedom of Information matters where required

About you

You will have a legal degree (LLB or JD) together with strong, dedicated privacy experience and the technical capability to operate as the organisation’s key privacy specialist.

You will ideally bring:

• Significant experience working in privacy, ideally within financial services, professional services or another complex and highly regulated environment
• Strong knowledge of the Privacy Act and Australian Privacy Principles
• Experience developing, implementing or uplifting privacy frameworks and processes
• Practical experience with PIAs, privacy risk and data breach/incident management
• Strong stakeholder engagement and influencing skills
• The ability to communicate technical privacy requirements clearly to non-specialists
• Confidence presenting and engaging with senior stakeholders and leadership teams
• A practical, commercial and solutions-focused approach

This is a particularly interesting opportunity for an experienced privacy professional looking to step into a visible, standalone role with the mandate to shape and develop an organisation’s privacy capability.

The organisation operates in a sophisticated and highly regulated environment, with exposure across finance, major projects and complex transactions. You will also be joining a high-calibre and established legal team with a strong culture and excellent retention.