Projects and Research Officer

About The Company

Public Skills Australia (PSA) is appointed by the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) as one of 10 Jobs and Skills Councils. Public Skills Australia works with employer and employee representatives (career and volunteer) from the Public Safety and Government industry-sectors – Police, Fire and Emergency Services, Correctional Services, Defence, Federal, State/Territory, and Local Government – and provides the following services in support of industry:

• Development and consultation of workforce planning and training products that meets industry and policy needs.
• Implementation, promotion and monitoring of strategies that drive improvement of training delivery and monitor resulting impacts.
• Stewardship of intelligence relating to workforce challenges and skill needs.
  
  

About The Position

Projects and Research Officer is accountable to the Manager responsible for the Projects Portfolio Team. The position delivers on all work assigned to the team including:

• projects required by the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR)
• research and analysis projects initiated to deliver on identified workforce strategies
• internal projects to support continuous improvement and business operations
• surge capacity to other areas of the business as and when required.
  
  

They will support the progression of projects from the conception through to the final deliverable and closure (end to end). The Project and Research Officer will be expected to deliver on several items of work simultaneously, including various tasks in collaboration with subcontractors, such as analysis and interpretation of quantitative and qualitative research, stakeholder consultation, report drafting and facilitation of technical committee meetings. They will work with and regularly present high quality, accurate, verbal and written information to Executive level internal and external stakeholders, including the Management and Executive Teams, and project technical committees.

The Project and Research Officer will be required to promote and support the vision of the Board, the outcomes of the VET Reform program and ensure robust compliance, good governance, fiscal responsibility and adherence to federal requirements. The position is required to build and maintain strong relationships with all staff within the company.

PSA behaviours and expectations

As a team member within PSA, you will be expected to:

Actively contribute You will proactively provide strategic advice and focus on key deliverables.

Promote good governance You will actively promote good governance and adhere to policies and procedures.

Collaborate with stakeholders You will promote stakeholder engagement and pursue opportunities to connect PSA across industry sectors under its remit.

Drive engagement You will communicate, consult and collaborate widely, effectively representing and promoting PSA at all times.

Key responsibilities

In Partnership With Internal Stakeholders, External Stakeholders And External Service Providers, With The Intent Of Ensuring Compliance With All Relevant Legislative, Grant And Company Compliance Obligations, The Project Officer (VET Workforce Research Project) Will

• Deliver on work assigned to the Projects Portfolio team, as outlined in approved project plans and any subsequent variations.
• Undertake secondary and applied research, literature reviews and benchmarking activities to prepare research summaries/reports.
• Deliver quality work on time, in line with governance and consultation processes and to the required standard.
• Facilitate workshops with key stakeholders (both online and in-person). Be able to build consensus through negotiation with different stakeholders, in the development of policy content.
• Demonstrate appropriate professional behaviour in line with company values and encourage colleagues to do the same by leading by example.
• Contribute to other team member responsibilities and company functions enabling cross collaboration, demonstrating corporate maturity
• Support the decisions, direction and vision of the Executive and Management teams by acting cohesively and presenting a unified front.
• Undertake responsibilities and key work activities, diligently, in a planned and purposeful way.
• Utilise verbal communication and presentation skills to brief and present products to a variety of audiences.
• Use strong written ability to draft workforce plans, policy products and research report as required.
• Be required to demonstrate originality of thought, encouraged to be curious and demonstrate innovative approaches.
• Other reasonable duties as may be required.
  
  

Key selection criteria

Essential

• Tertiary qualification(s) and/or equivalent experience relevant to the responsibilities of the position.
• Working knowledge of Vocational Education and Training and/or compliance requirements, as outlined in the Training Package Organising Framework.
• Demonstrated experience delivering qualitative and quantitative research projects within a company in partnership with internal and external stakeholders, with relevance to vocational education and training, workforce planning and/or labour market research.
• Demonstrated experience in analysing and interpreting qualitative and quantitative data within VET or a related field.
• Demonstrated experience consistently delivering high quality verbal and written content (such as Project Reports) on time and to required standards.
• Demonstrated experience delivering successful outcomes through collaboration and consultation with internal and external stakeholders.
• Demonstrated experience acting cohesively within a workplace and outcomes whilst exhibiting professional behaviour in line with organisational values.
• Demonstrated ability to support and advocate company position(s) with internal and external stakeholders.
• Demonstrated experience planning, delivering and forecasting key responsibilities and associated work activities within an area of responsibility to successfully achieve organisational requirements.
• Willing to be hands-on working in a dynamic team environment.
  
  

Desirable

• Demonstrated experience working within service-focused companies including public safety, not-for-profit companies and/or government.
• Demonstrated understanding of corporate governance and compliance requirements.
• Demonstrated experience working within the vocational education and training sector.
• Vocational qualification(s) in training and assessment (eg. TAE40122 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment, TAE50122 Diploma of Vocational Education and Training)
  
  

Other

• For the duration of employment, the incumbent is required to:
• pass and maintain a National Police Record Check
• pass and maintain an ‘employee’ type Victorian Working with Children Check (WWCC)
• be vaccinated against COVID-19
• be legally allowed to work within Australia.
• It is strongly preferred that the applicant hold a current Australian State or Territory drivers’ licence (car).
• There will be times when it is required to work outside normal business hours i.e. evenings and weekends to meet stakeholder requirements.
• Travel may be required for this position, including overnight stays and journeys by road, public transport and commercial airlines.
  
  

Type of employment

This is a full-time, fixed-term position, with the duration aligning to project milestones through till 30 June 2026.

Experienced staff within the public service will be considered for secondment arrangements.

Applicants should note that a six (6) month probationary period applies to all new PSA employees (external candidates).

Location

Although this position is based at the company’s office within the Melbourne Central Business District (CBD), the candidate’s work location may be undertaken from other locations within Australia by negotiation with line management. The candidate will be required to attend the Melbourne office as necessitated by business and deliverable requirements.

PSA supports flexible working arrangements, with a focus on balancing staff needs with work requirements.

Periodical Review

All PSA positions are subject to regular review and amendment as appropriate following consultation with the Chief Executive Officer.

This Position Description serves to illustrate the scope and responsibilities of the post and is not intended to be an exhaustive list of duties. You will be expected to perform other job-related tasks requested by management and as necessitated by the development of the organisation.

Please include a Cover Letter as part of your application, addressing the Key Selection Criteria.

Applications are open for 21 days however Public Skills Australia reserves the right to close advertisements early upon receiving sufficient applications.