Senior Program Manager

Why Austal

Austal is Australia’s global shipbuilder, Defence prime contractor and maritime technology partner of choice, designing, constructing, and supporting defence and commercial vessels for the world’s leading operators. The company operates in Australia, the USA, Philippines, and Vietnam.

Austal Australia is delivering multiple naval shipbuilding and sustainment programs for the Royal Australian Navy, Australian Border Force, and the Department of Defence, employing approximately 1,000 people in facilities in located Western Australia, Queensland, and the Northern Territory.

About the Opportunity

Austal and the Commonwealth of Australia are currently negotiating a landmark Strategic Shipbuilding Agreement (SSA) that will support the Continuous Naval Shipbuilding and Sustainment Enterprise and the delivery of multiple new defence force shipbuilding projects, such as Landing Craft-Medium and Landing Craft-Heavy for the Australian Army.

Once signed, the SSA will drive significant growth across our industry and workforce, as we deliver both existing and new programs under a long-term partnership. It will also enable the design and construction of vessels at our Henderson shipyard and marks a major step forward in establishing enduring shipbuilding capability within the Henderson Defence Precinct and across Western Australia.

To achieve this, we are looking for an experienced Defence Shipbuilding Senior Program Manager who will be responsible for overall planning, managing and execution of a program of work which may comprise of a multi-vessel shipbuilding program or several shipbuilding programs.

Your Responsibility:

• Lead the development of program objectives, guiding multidisciplinary teams and overseeing strategic planning activities.
• Manage program execution to ensure alignment with delivery goals and stakeholder expectations.
• Ensure timely and professional achievement of contractual and commercial deliverables.
• Apply earned value management principles, integrating schedule, cost, and scope metrics to support informed decision-making and maintain delivery progress.
• Drive cost efficiency by delivering programs within or below budget, meeting established cost performance targets.
• Conduct financial analysis, forecasting, and reporting to maintain transparency and control over program budgets.
• Deliver programs in accordance with baseline schedules and key milestones, meeting or exceeding schedule performance targets.
• Implement and maintain formal project management processes and plans, tailored to the scale and complexity of each program.
• Foster a collaborative team environment built on trust, camaraderie, and shared accountability.

You’ll Need

• Project Management qualification/certification
• 7+ years’ experience in project/program manager role and/or equivalent with 5+ years in a Senior leadership role.
• Experience in leading complex Defence Vessel build programs.
• Experience in leading the consolidation of a disperse shipbuilding model.
• Experience in complex sub-contractor management.
• Proven experience in managing complex shipbuilding programs.
• Excellent communication and proven stakeholder management ability.
• Proven understanding of project cost management, risk management and earned value principles.

Why Austal

• Competitive compensation and benefits package.
• Professional development and training opportunities.
• A supportive and dynamic work environment.
• Opportunities for career advancement within our growing organisation.

Our global team is guided by a universal set of values that describe the focus of our efforts. Our goal is for all our decisions and actions to reflect these core values. We believe that putting our values into practice creates the greatest benefits for our shareholders, customers, employees, suppliers, and communities in which we serve.

Excellence - Customer Focus - Integrity - Team Work

At Austal we are committed to providing a safe and inclusive work environment for all. We believe that achieving greater diversity will enhance our operations and as such we actively encourage Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islanders, people of all backgrounds, ages, sexual orientation, and those with Disability to apply.