Agency Purpose
The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) is an independent statutory authority established by the Australian Government to maintain an impartial and independent electoral system for eligible voters through active electoral roll management, efficient delivery of polling services, and targeted education and public awareness programs.
The AEC’s values and commitments
The AEC values and commitments are an essential component of our operating environment and frame how AEC staff work. The AEC's focus is on electoral integrity through the values of quality, agility and professionalism.
A career-defining transformation opportunity
We are seeking an exceptional senior executive to join the AEC’s Executive Leadership Team as First Assistant Commissioner, Funding and Disclosure Reform Program. This is one of the AEC’s most significant transformation roles, leading a complex, high-profile reform agenda that will shape the future of Australia’s political finance framework, strengthen regulatory capability and public confidence, and leave a lasting enterprise legacy for the agency.
Why join the AEC?
Lead reform of national significance
Your work will help shape one of the most important reforms to the AEC’s regulatory environment, with direct impact on electoral integrity, transparency and public trust in Australia’s democracy.
Operate at the centre of enterprise transformation
You will work across policy, regulation, operations, data and technology to deliver reform in a highly scrutinised national environment, influencing enterprise decisions and helping shape the AEC’s long-term capability.
Lead with scale, complexity and visibility
This role offers the opportunity to lead a major Tier 1 reform program, oversee significant delivery partnerships and governance, and contribute at the highest levels of a national institution delivering outcomes of enduring public value.
Inclusive and diverse culture
We are committed to building a workforce that reflects the Australian community and value the diversity of backgrounds, perspectives and experiences our people bring.
Conditions
As an AEC employee you will have access to purchased leave, a paid Christmas/new year shutdown period, competitive pay and conditions including a generous 15.4% superannuation contribution. Terms and conditions for AEC SES staff are provided under section 24 of the Public Service Act 1999.
The Opportunity
This is a pivotal executive leadership role at the centre of one of the AEC’s most important transformation agendas. As First Assistant Commissioner, Funding and Disclosure Reform Program, you will help lead a major enterprise reform program to modernise Australia’s political finance funding and disclosure arrangements, translating legislative intent into a deliverable reform pathway that is strategically sound, operationally workable and publicly credible.
As a senior member of the Executive Leadership Team and as Deputy Senior Responsible Officer, you will shape program vision, strategy and execution, provide authoritative advice on risks and delivery, and establish the governance and assurance needed to support confident, transparent and defensible decisions. You will lead complex, interdependent streams of work spanning policy, systems, data, operations and organisational change in an environment where delivery quality, integrity and timeliness matter deeply.
You will oversee major commercial arrangements, program risk, compliance and assurance settings, and ensure strong probity and vendor performance across the reform effort. You will also engage at senior levels with government, parliamentary bodies, external partners and regulated stakeholders, helping to navigate complexity, build confidence and maintain momentum across a high-profile national reform program.
Success in this role will require you to build and lead a high-performing multidisciplinary team, drive sustained organisational change and embed new capability across the agency. In doing so, you will help position the AEC to deliver reform with integrity, transparency and confidence, while creating a lasting transformation legacy for one of Australia’s most important public institutions.
What you will bring
You will bring the executive judgement, transformation leadership and delivery capability to succeed in a role of significant scope, visibility and national importance. You will demonstrate leadership behaviours consistent with the APS Secretaries Charter of Leadership Behaviours and work with the SES cohort across the agency to deliver shared priorities, with a strong focus on stewardship, collaboration, integrity and accountability.
To excel you will have:
- Proven experience leading large-scale, complex Tier 1 transformation programs, including translating legislative or policy intent into executable delivery strategies, roadmaps and outcomes.
- Demonstrated ability to provide strategic leadership in a high-pressure, fast-paced operational environment, carefully responding to shifting priorities, delivery pressures, interdependencies and critical delivery timeframes.
- Demonstrated experience establishing and leading robust governance, assurance and decision-making frameworks to support transparent, defensible and high-quality program outcomes.
- Demonstrated ability to lead and mobilise multidisciplinary teams, including building organisational capability and fostering a high-performing, accountable and collaborative culture.
- Proven stakeholder engagement and influencing skills, including the ability to work effectively with senior executives, ministers, parliamentary bodies, external partners and regulated entities.
- Demonstrated experience in senior-level program and financial management, including oversight of budgets, resource allocation, procurement and vendor performance.
- Demonstrated capacity to manage risk, uncertainty and change, including implementing effective risk, issue and change control processes in complex environments.
- Experience driving organisational change, including designing and delivering communication, training and capability uplift strategies to support sustained adoption of reforms.
- Strong understanding of data, digital and system-enabled transformation, including data governance, information management and assurance of data quality and integrity.
Desirable:
- Knowledge of, or ability to quickly gain knowledge of, Australian electoral law, political finance, and public sector governance requirements.
Eligibility
To be eligible for this position, you must be an Australian citizen. Exemptions may apply in certain circumstances, such as if you are expecting to gain citizenship.
In addition, there may be an exclusion period if you have received a redundancy benefit from a previous APS employer.
This position is a position of trust. The occupants must have the ability to obtain and maintain a security clearance to the level of Negative Vetting Level 1 or hold a current security clearance of appropriate level. You will be required to undertake a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History check (police check) prior to engagement.
How to apply
Your application must be submitted online prior to the closing date.
Your application should contain the following documents:
- Based on the duties and responsibilities of the role, and the qualities of an ideal candidate, a one-page pitch outlining why you are the best person for this role, and
- Your resume, including the names and contact details of at least two referees, of no more than three pages.
Please note – exceeding the page limits outlined above may result in not all evidence provided being reviewed by the recruitment panel.
