Health & Safety Risk and Assurance Manager

Health & Safety Risk and Assurance Manager

• Employment Type: Full Time (35 hours per week)
• Duration: Continuing
• Remuneration: Level 9 $148,012 - $157,056 (depending on experience) + 17% super + leave loading
• Location: UNSW Kensington Campus, NSW

About UNSW:

UNSW isn’t like other places you’ve worked. Yes, we’re a large organisation with a diverse and talented community; a community doing extraordinary things. Together, we are driven to be thoughtful, practical, and purposeful in all we do. Taking this combined approach is what makes our work matter. It’s the reason we’re one of the top 20 universities in the world and a member of Australia’s prestigious Group of Eight. If you want a career where you can thrive, be challenged and do meaningful work, you’re in the right place.

Why Your Role Matters

This is an opportunity to shape how health and safety risk is managed across a complex, high-performing organisation. As Risk & Assurance Manager, you will lead the design and delivery of strategic risk and assurance programs that protect people, strengthen operational performance, and drive a proactive safety culture.

Working across diverse operational environments, you’ll influence senior leaders, partner with specialist teams, and ensure industry-leading frameworks are embedded into everyday practice. From critical risk management to occupational hygiene oversight, your expertise will help create safer, smarter, and more resilient operations across the University.

You’ll also play a key leadership role, mentoring a high-performing team while driving innovation, continuous improvement, and data-informed decision making.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the development and continuous improvement of Health & Safety risk and assurance frameworks aligned with ISO 45001 and organisational strategy
• Design and implement a comprehensive Critical Risk Management program, including contractor-related risk controls
• Provide strategic leadership across Health & Safety systems, assurance programs, and technology solutions
• Lead audits, inspections, compliance reviews, and assurance activities to evaluate control effectiveness and risk maturity
• Oversee governance processes for risk registers, escalation pathways, and systemic issue resolution
• Deliver high-quality reporting, insights, and recommendations to senior leaders on emerging risks and performance opportunities
• Partner with operational, wellbeing, systems, and contractor management teams to integrate effective risk controls into business operations
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives through innovation, benchmarking, and industry best practice
• Lead, mentor, and develop a collaborative and high-performing Risk & Assurance team
• Build trusted relationships with leaders, committees, and external regulators to support strong governance and compliance outcomes

Who You Are

You are a strategic and influential Health & Safety professional with deep expertise in risk management and assurance within complex, high-risk environments. You combine technical capability with strong leadership skills and are passionate about driving meaningful organisational improvement.

You bring:

• Extensive experience designing and leading Health & Safety risk and assurance programs
• Strong knowledge of ISO 45001 aligned frameworks and critical risk control methodologies
• Expertise in occupational hygiene risk management, including chemical, biological, or radiological exposures
• Excellent stakeholder engagement and influencing skills across complex organisations
• Strong analytical capability with experience using data and insights to inform strategic decisions
• Proven leadership experience, including mentoring teams through change and continuous improvement
• Strong project management capability with a focus on delivering measurable outcomes
• Advanced written and verbal communication skills with exceptional attention to detail
• Relevant tertiary qualifications and/or equivalent professional experience in Health & Safety or related disciplines