Ongoing and Non-Ongoing $95,187 - $108,734 (pro-rata for part-time vacancies up to 15.4% Superannuation) Adelaide - SA, Canberra - ACT, Melbourne CBD - VIC, Newcastle - NSW The Role As a Human Resources (HR) professional, you will play a key leadership role in shaping the future of Defence’s workforce through the design, delivery, and continuous enhancement of our Graduate and Entry Level Programs. This is a unique opportunity to influence the early career experience of new entrants to the Australian Public Service (APS), ensuring participants are supported, developed, and empowered to build meaningful and impactful careers within Defence. Multiple APS 6 positions are available across the Defence Graduate and Entry Level Programs (DGELP) Directorate, which oversees the full lifecycle of participant engagement from attraction and recruitment, through on-boarding and program delivery, to professional development and career transition. In this dynamic environment, APS 6 DGELP Team Leaders are instrumental in driving program success. You will lead key initiatives, collaborate with business areas, and provide expert advice to stakeholders, ensuring alignment with organisational capability needs and strategic workforce priorities. Working closely with Assistant Directors, you will contribute to the achievement of business outcomes, foster a culture of continuous improvement, and champion participant care and program excellence across the Directorate. About our Team The Defence Graduate and Entry Level Programs Directorate, part of the APS Capability Branch, plays a vital role in building Defence’s workforce capability by delivering programs that create a strong pipeline of diverse, skilled, and motivated talent. The Directorate manages the Defence Graduate Program and various Entry Level Programs including the Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) Cadetship Program, Indigenous Apprenticeship Program, Australian Government Career Starter Program and have a number of new programs and initiatives underway. The Directorate ensures all participants are well-supported to thrive, while business areas benefit from engaged and capable employees who contribute to Defence’s current and future needs. DGELP work in close collaboration with Defence business areas, central agencies, universities and industry partners to ensure programs remain contemporary, competitive and responsive to evolving workforce needs. We are recognised as a positive, collaborative and supportive workplace where we are encouraged to innovate, share expertise and build professional capability. Attraction and Recruitment Attraction and Recruitment deliver the first stage of the graduate and entry level participant journey. These roles are responsible for attracting, engaging and supporting the selection of high-quality candidates for Defence’s graduate and entry level pipelines, providing a seamless candidate journey from their first experience hearing of Defence, through to program placement. They develop and deliver campaigns to promote Defence as an employer of choice, including digital content, promotional materials, outreach events and engagement with universities, vocational education institutions and industry partners. They design and manage recruitment processes that are fair, transparent and aligned with APS merit principles, guiding candidates through a comprehensive selection process to determine suitability with Defence. An integrated approach ensures that candidates have a positive experience throughout their hiring journey, and supports Defence in attracting and selecting candidates who will thrive in our Graduate and Entry Level Programs. Candidates with a background in marketing/attraction and/or APS recruitment are strongly encouraged to apply. Participant and Program Management Participant and Program Management is a key element in shaping Defence’s future workforce through the strategic design, delivery, and oversight of Graduate and Entry Level Programs. With a strong emphasis on participant experience and program excellence, these roles ensure a seamless transition into Defence, providing tailored guidance, mentoring, and wellbeing support to foster early career success. Through close collaboration with business areas, supervisors, and Defence leaders, these roles drive meaningful stakeholder engagement to align rotations and placements with organisational priorities and capability requirements. This partnership approach ensures that every program element contributes to building a skilled, agile, and future-ready workforce. Committed to continuous improvement, this work involves monitoring program outcomes, gathering insights, and leveraging feedback to refine delivery and inform workforce planning. This continuous improvement approach not only supports individual development but also strengthens Defence’s long-term capability and talent pipeline. Learning and Development Learning and development aims to enrich the participant experience through a diverse range of learning and development initiatives across the Defence learning and development model, subsequently providing capability uplift to business areas and the Defence workforce more broadly. These roles are responsible for determining which initiatives are included in the DGELP Learning Experience, as well as design and delivery of initiatives. This includes (but is limited to) the Graduate Core Training Program, Graduate Enterprise Projects (to be piloted in 2026), military base tours, Defence Stories (Speaker Series), DGELP Masterclasses, field trips (e.g. Question Time at Australian Parliament House, the Australian War Memorial) and the DGELP Learning Passport. These roles are also responsible for design and delivery of networking events (to be piloted in 2026) for the whole-of-government Indigenous Graduate Pathway (IGP). Our Ideal Candidate We are seeking energetic and motivated individuals who are committed to delivering quality outcomes. Our successful candidate/s will: Lead a team/supervise junior staff members, allocate tasks and resources, set work area priorities, develop strategies and evaluate business outcomes. Deliver high quality work within deadlines, while mentoring and sharing expertise with less experienced colleagues. Manage the end-to-end development and delivery of DGELP projects, events, and initiatives to meet strategic objectives. Provide well-researched verbal and written advice on complex issues, ensuring compliance with relevant legislation, regulations, and policies. Build and maintain strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders, adapting to evolving needs to support business outcomes. Collaborate effectively in a team environment, actively contributing to meetings and influencing team direction and performance. Evaluate existing programs and provide strategic recommendations to enhance program design and delivery. Information Pack Opens in new window
