Business Development Manager

Acknowledgement of Country

CSIRO acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land, sea and waters, of the area that we live and work on across Australia. We acknowledge their continuing connection to their culture and pay our respects to their Elders past and present. View our vision towards reconciliation.

Role highlights

• Lead strategic partnering to scale impact across CSIRO's Energy and Minerals research portfolio
• Flexible work arrangements available + 15.4% super
• Influence innovation through early engagement and cross-boundary collaboration

About CSIRO

As Australia's national science agency, CSIRO is solving the greatest challenges through innovative science and technology. Many of our iconic innovations were once considered impossible until someone, just like you, joined us and took on the challenge.

Visit for more information.

The opportunity

We are seeking a Business Development Manager to join CSIRO's Partnerships & Business Development (P&BD) team, supporting the Energy and Minerals research portfolio.

In this role, you'll work closely with researchers to guide the planning, evaluation, and validation of research opportunities. You'll help identify pathways to market, shape optimal business models, and engage key partners for success.

You will focus on building strong partnerships by aligning stakeholder interests, identifying growth opportunities, and managing strategic relationships. You'll play a key role in driving high-impact, revenue-generating initiatives and contribute to cross-organisational opportunities across CSIRO's research portfolio.

If you're passionate about building strategic partnerships, scaling research impact, and fostering collaboration, we'd love to hear from you.

Your high-level duties will include:

• Actively contributing to influence and implement a Partnerships and Business Development (P&BD) strategy that drives impactful innovation and science.
• Through confident guidance, articulating the value of early engagement with partners to optimise the scope, scale, business model, and impact of research partnerships up to the level of ecosystem coalitions, in a way that crosses CSIRO boundaries and empowers the P&BD team and wider organisation.
• Partnering with researchers to grow the scale of CSIRO's business development activities.
• Representing CSIRO in engagements with relevant stakeholders and engaging strategically with priority industry and government relationships.
• Working collaboratively with Research and Enterprise Unit colleagues, ensuring optimised business and commercial outcomes are negotiated and managed for all relationships.
• Undertaking activities that successfully support project ideation, development and execution.
• Implementing programs and initiatives to improve how CSIRO engages with relevant stakeholders, industry, universities, and the broader innovation community.

Role particulars

Location: Melbourne (Clayton), Brisbane (Pullenvale), Newcastle (QCAT) or Perth (Kensington). Hybrid/flexible work arrangements available

Salary: AU$131k – AU$153k per annum plus 15.4% superannuation

Tenure: Indefinite, Full-time

Reference: 101605

As the successful candidate, you will bring:

• Relevant bachelor's degree or equivalent relevant work experience in a relevant science area relevant to the Domain, and/ or with business and commercial qualifications.
• Demonstrated business acumen, including in the functioning of publicly funded research organisations, scaling, business modelling, and negotiating successful multi-stakeholder partnerships with industry, government, and other research institutions, how industry and/or governments (large and small) adopt technology, and technology commercialisation pathways including licensing and venture creation.
• A demonstrated history of professional and respectful behaviours and attitudes aligned to CSIRO values in a complex working environment with both internal and external clients/partners and colleagues that encourages new ideas, builds trust and supports the development of beneficial outcomes
• Strong relationship management skills and the demonstrated ability to use complex influencing strategies, to advise and support colleagues, internal & external stakeholders to achieve CSIRO's strategic objectives.
• Excellent communication, interpersonal and negotiation skills, including experience working with a broad range of stakeholders, and science, commercial or engineering staff and a proven ability to work with and influence outcomes across all levels in an organisation.
• A growth mindset, proven ability to anticipate, manage and develop appropriate solutions to complex problems, effectively manage ambiguity and readily adapt to changing circumstances.
• Proven ability to develop, advance and maintain and client/partner leads to achieve specified outcomes to achieve significant opportunities in partnership with Research Units.
• Demonstrated experience in successful project management, including planning, engagement, monitoring and reporting to meet or exceed specified outcomes and timeframes.

For full details about this role, and other criteria, please review thePosition Description.

Not sure if you meet all the criteria?

While it is CSIRO policy that the successful candidate must meet all the essential criteria, there are many ways to demonstrate this. Don't let the list discourage you. If you are unsure about applying, please reach out to the contact person in the Position Description.

Setting you up for success

We are committed to providing a recruitment process that is fair, equitable and accessible to everyone. We recognise that it may be helpful for us to adjust our process to make it equitable for your individual situation. Please contact Sheridan Gerrard at to let us know how we can support you.

Life at CSIRO and flexible work arrangements

We work flexibly at CSIRO, offering a range of options for how, when and where you work. We can discuss flexible work arrangements with you during the recruitment process. CSIRO also offers a range of leave entitlements, benefits and career development opportunities. To find out more, visit Careers at CSIRO.

Inclusion and belonging

Solving Australia's greatest challenges takes a diversity of minds and lived experiences. We know diverse teams are more effective and deliver more innovative outcomes. As an equal employment opportunity organisation, we are committed to creating diverse and inclusive teams where people feel they belong. We recognise true diversity encompasses all ages, abilities, cultures, faiths, levels of education, genders, sexualities, diversity of thought and much more. We focus on hiring people who share our values of People First, Further Together, Making it Real and Trusted.

CSIRO holds Gold Status for the Australian Workplace Equality Index for LGBTQIA+ inclusion, and a Science in Australia Gender Equity Bronze Award.

Eligibility

Applications for this position are open to Australian Citizens, New Zealand Citizens and Australian Permanent Residents. Appointment to this role is subject to provision of a national police check and may be subject to other security/medical/character requirements.

Child safety

CSIRO is committed to the safety and wellbeing of all children and young people involved in our activities and programs. View our Child Safe Policy.

How to apply

Please apply online and submit CV and cover letter (maximum 2 pages) that demonstrate your motivation and suitability for this role.

Applications close

11th November 2025, 11:00pm AEDT.