Senior Project Officer Governance & Strategic Projects

Victorian Government; Melbourne; On-site; AUD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

The Senior Project Officer, Governance and Projects at Victorian Government in Melbourne provides oversight, expert governance advice, and administration for the Academy Board and Audit and Risk Committee, ensuring compliance with public sector obligations. The role also supports the Strategic Advisor, coordinating briefings and CEO activities while leading priority projects.

This fixed-term position runs until 31 December 2029 and requires strong stakeholder engagement with senior officials, a

Qualifications

• Specialist governance and public sector compliance knowledge.
• Experience supporting boards and audit committees.
• Ability to translate priorities into actionable plans.
• Strong stakeholder engagement and communication skills.
• Proven project leadership across complex programs.

Responsibilities

• Provide expert governance advice to the CEO, COO, Board and Executive.
• Coordinate Board and Committee operations, including papers and minutes.
• Lead organisational projects such as the Annual Report.
• Build relationships with Board members, executives and stakeholders.
• Contribute to stakeholder strategy and communications.
• Support the Strategic Advisor and CEO coordination.
• Contribute to divisional and organisational strategy and planning.

Skills

Governance

Public sector

Board operations

Stakeholder management

Strategic thinking

Written communication

Relationship building

Job description

Location: Melbourne - CBD and Inner Metro suburbs

Reference: VG/DE/VATL/1951458

The Senior Project Officer, Governance and Projects provides oversight, expert advice and administration of the functions of governance and organisation support for the Academy Board and Audit and Risk Committee, ensuring the Academy meets its legislative and public sector obligations. The role also supports the Strategic Advisor, including for briefings and Office of the CEO coordination and leads projects to support organisational priorities. This role recognises the fast-moving nature of a CEO’s office and is adaptable to shifting priorities to ensure consistent, aligned and effective engagement with variety of stakeholders.

This position is fixed term to 31 December 2029.

Are you passionate about governance and strategic impact? Are you confident leading projects and working with senior stakeholders?

The Academy's mission is to enhance and improve student outcomes across rural, regional and metropolitan schools through specialised professional learning and pathways, and to raise public awareness of the profession. Information on our legislated objectives is available on our website: Our strategy and story | Academy

At the Academy, we are passionate about meaningful and exciting work that has an impact on education and student outcomes. Our shared purpose is to create and offer evidence-informed professional learning programs, events and initiatives designed to take Victoria's highly skilled teachers and school leaders from great to exceptional and advance the quality and status of teaching and school leadership. We also provide pathways for school and system improvement and raise public awareness of and confidence in the profession across government, Catholic and independent systems.

We care about the quality of our work, demonstrate collective responsibility for continuous improvement and support each other to do the very best we can every day to achieve our goals.

The Academy is a learning organisation that provides opportunities for employees to grow. We have a positive culture that we are building together, where people feel supported, valued and heard.

About the Office of the CEO

The Office of the Chief Executive Officer (OCEO) provides strategic advice and Board secretariat services, as well as coordinating the Academy's Executive Leadership Team (ELT), supporting teams across all divisions.

The OCEO is responsible for the oversight and coordination of the Academy's external and internal stakeholder relationships. This includes managing structured engagement with the Minister's and Secretary's offices, the Academy Board, key education sector organisations and associations and Department of Education stakeholders, ensuring effective coordination of related activities.

The OCEO works in close collaboration with the Academy's Strategic Engagement team on shared priorities, including, but not limited to, initiatives to raise public awareness of the status of the profession and the continued focus on the Academy's engagement with the Catholic and independent sectors.

The OCEO also provides strategic coordination and oversight of the Academy's professional learning strategy and portfolio, supporting system needs and leading the design and delivery of high-quality professional learning products tailored for diverse audiences across all school sectors.

About the Role

The Senior Project Officer, Governance and Projects provides oversight, expert advice and administration of the functions of governance and organisation support for the Academy Board and Audit and Risk Committee, ensuring the Academy meets its legislative and public sector obligations. The role also supports the Strategic Advisor, including for briefings and Office of the CEO coordination and leads projects to support organisational priorities. This role recognises the fast-moving nature of a CEO's office and is adaptable to shifting priorities to ensure consistent, aligned and effective engagement with variety of stakeholders.

The responsibilities of the Senior Project Officer, Governance and Projects include:

• providing expert governance advice to the CEO, COO, Board and Executive, ensuring compliance with legislative and public sector requirements

• leading the coordination of Board and Committee operations, including papers, minutes, reporting and recruitment processes

• leading a variety of projects as required, including designing, developing and delivering whole of organisational projects, including the Annual Report

• building and maintaining strong relationships with Board members, executives and key stakeholders

• contributing to stakeholder strategy and communications in partnership with the Stakeholder Engagement function

• providing support to the Strategic Advisor, including for briefings and Office of the CEO coordination

• contributing to divisional and organisational strategy and business planning.

Capabilities

• Specialist expertise in governance, public sector compliance and Board operations

• Strategic thinking and ability to translate priorities into deliverable recommendations and outcomes

• Ability to lead and manage organisational wide projects, while managing interdependencies, building effective relationships with stakeholders, managing competing timelines and priorities and delivering outcomes on time

• Strong organisational skills, problem solving, flexibility and adaptability in delivery of projects

• Ability to build trusted relationships with senior stakeholders

• Excellent written communication skills with attention to detail for audience and purpose

• Sound judgement, discretion and problem-solving skills and ability to work with sensitive information

Desirable Qualifications and Experience

• Experience or qualifications in project or program management, audit, risk or procurement function is highly desirable.

• Experience in a secretariat function is desirable.

Further Information

For more details regarding this position please see attached position description.

Information about the Department of Education's operations and employment conditions can be located at www.education.vic.gov.au.

For further information pertaining to the role, please contact Peter Saffin, Chief Operating Office through [e-mail] or 03 9084 8766.

Please let us know via phone or email if you require any adjustments to ensure your full participation in the recruitment process or if you need the ad or any attachments in an accessible format (e.g large print) due to any viewing difficulties or other accessibility requirements.

Applications close 11:59pm on 27th October 2026

Applications close Tuesday 27 October 2026 at 11.59pm