Assistant Secretary

SES Band 1
- Canberra, ACT
- Identified Position

**About the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations**

We are committed to empowering futures, ensuring rights and enriching lives. We support people to have safe, secure and well-paid work with the skills for a sustainable future as we ourselves strive to be a model employer.

We provide the framework for fair and productive relationships between employers and employees. We also oversee skills development and training initiatives to support those entering the workforce or re-training to take advantage of emerging employment opportunities.

With us your work directly contributes to shaping the employment landscape. Whether you're engaging in policy development, program implementation, or direct support services, your efforts will have a tangible impact on job seekers, employees and the economy by giving them a framework to build a future anchored and realised through employment.

**Please note, this opportunity is for Ongoing**Department of Employment and Workplace Relations/APS em**ployees only.**

**Please discuss the possibility of release with your manager before applying.**

**The Role**

As Assistant Secretary, Stewardship and Engagement Branch, you will lead a branch responsible for implementing national stewardship for the VET system. This role includes leading the development of the National Skills Plan, outcomes framework and targets, monitoring performance against the outcomes, and the Commonwealth’s Jurisdictional Action Plan. The Branch also provides strategic management of the Commonwealth’s relationship with state and territory governments regarding skills and training. This includes provision of secretariat support for the Skills Senior Officials’ Network (SSON), and the Skills and Workforce Ministerial Council (SWMC). The branch works collaboratively with state and territory governments to deliver shared stewardship and across Skills and Training Group to deliver a Commonwealth-state relations strategy.

You will be responsible for progressing key national products under the National Skills Agreement including the National Skills Plan and implementing analysis and evaluation under the NSA Outcomes Framework. You will also be responsible for the meetings of SWMC and SSON.

You will be a member of the department’s Senior Executive Service and work closely with all Divisions and branches across the Skills and Training Group to deliver these outcomes. You will join a high performing, collaborative and supportive team of SES in the National Skills Reform Division.

Please note that during this period some elements of this role may change - function may move in and out of the branch in response to changing Group priorities.

**Skills and Capabilities**

To be a strong contender for this challenging and rewarding position you will be an effective and motivated leader and manager, able to quickly build trusted relationships with senior officials in both the Commonwealth and States and Territories, able to think strategically, deliver high quality outputs, develop robust processes and procedures, and have strong communication skills. You will also enjoy the challenge of leading a diverse team to deliver high quality ministerial meetings for Commonwealth and State and Territory Skills Ministers. You will have strong attention to detail, the ability to respond flexibly to changing needs and the temperament to remain calm under pressure. Through this role you will have regular and frequent contact with Skills ministers, their offices and their officials, the Deputy Secretary, Skills and Training, and the Commonwealth Skills Minister’s advisers.
- An understanding of the issues affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples (Identified position criteria).
- An ability to communicate sensitively and effectively with Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people (Identified position criteria).

**The Opportunity**

This position is available to Ongoing Department of Employment and Workplace Relations and/or APS employees as a temporary transfer at level and/or a temporary performance (Acting) opportunity for a period of 12 months.

**Eligibility**

**How to Apply**

Applicants are required to provide up to a one-page summary (no more than 500 words) that outlines skills, knowledge, and experience and why you should be considered for this vacancy. You should take into consideration the position overview (including any detailed position specific requirements) when drafting your response. Where possible include specific relevant examples of your work.

The APS work level standards accommodate the diversity of roles across the APS and are structured to clearly differentiate between the work expected (i.e. responsibilities and duties) at each classification level.

In eRecruit (the department’s online recruitment system) you will also need to:

- upload a Curriculum Vitae
- provide contact details for 2 Referees.