Estate Environmental Director

The Role

Environment and Engineering Branch and Poly-Fluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) Investigation & Management Branch are each looking for an EL 2 who operates with a high degree of independence and provides strategic leadership. The roles are responsible for shaping and influencing strategies, policies, priorities and operational practices that support Defence objectives through sound judgement and high level decision making. The Directors should deliver strategic advice to senior leaders and stakeholders, and hold accountability for complex work programs with strategic, political and operational impact.

Each position is accountable for leading teams and managing resources, including budgetary and financial responsibilities. The Director sets strategic direction by developing business plans, priorities and performance measures, while monitoring workflow and outcomes. They should lead a collaborative and high performance culture through continuous improvement initiatives aligned to organisational objectives.

The roles would strongly benefit from extensive expertise in estate policy, environmental practices, governance and financial management, strong stakeholder engagement skills, and building collaborative, outcome focused relationships.

About our Team

We are critical enablers for Defence capability, delivering a broad range of policy, programs, projects and specialist advice that directly supports Defence outcomes. The Branches work closely together to ensure the delivery of a safe, resilient and compliant Defence estate.

Strategic guidance developed by the Branches, address key Defence activities. This includes capability acquisitions, estate divestments and acquisitions, training area management, joint operations, and remediation. It also provides authoritative building and estate infrastructure policy and advice.

The Director Regional Environment and Sustainability in Environment and Engineering Branch leads a large national team to provide local advice to Defence bases on environmental and sustainability issues. This work directly supports delivery of Defence infrastructure projects across the defence Estate and supports ADF exercises in Defence training areas. The Directorate works closely with subject matter experts across the branch to facilitate delivery of the National Defence Strategy.

The Director Governance, Advisory and Communications in PFASIM Branch is responsible for the PFAS National Coordinating Body Secretariat, Communications and Engagement, specialist Remediation Advisory functions, and Business Services. Business Services covers corporate services, finance and budgeting, and procurement. The Director works closely with teams across the branch on the delivery of Defence PFAS remediation activities.

These roles present an exciting opportunity to influence organisational direction, and champion innovation across environmental and sustainability functions in support of Defence priorities.

Our Ideal Candidate

To be successful in these roles, you will need to demonstrate strong leadership and people management capability. This includes leading and supporting a large, geographically dispersed workforce, and building a culture of effective collaboration across the Branch, Group and broader organisation to achieve shared outcomes.

You will apply sound critical thinking skills to assess and evaluate administrative, business and policy initiatives, identifying issues and implementing effective procedures and work practices to support Branch objectives. You will take responsibility for decision making, demonstrate initiative, manage risk appropriately and deliver high quality outcomes that focus on Defence needs and project goals.

The role requires the ability to think strategically, formulate concepts, set priorities and consider the broader organisational context. You will lead with resilience, managing pressure and setbacks professionally while supporting team wellbeing and maintaining a positive, constructive approach. You will also apply strong subject matter expertise or experience in environmental policy and Defence estate management to support effective decision making and prioritisation.

Application Closing Date: 11:30pm Monday 29 June 2026

For further information please review the job information pack, reference SEG/02652/26 on https://defencecareers.nga.net.au/?jati=CBC35E7E-8ADF-7B81-62C5-ED060346AF52