Hello. We’re Virgin Australia. We’re the airline that’s always done things a little different. Our way. The Virgin way. We’re on a mission to make flying better than ‘nice’. And to do that, it takes a team of talented people who are passionate about customer experience, doing the right thing always, with a focus on safety – in the air, on the ground and in our workplaces. A team who values real diversity and inclusion, in a big brand with big ambitions.

About the role:

This role sits as part of the Group’s Corporate Affairs and Sustainability team. This team comprises professionals spanning the government and industry relations, reputation, corporate communications and sustainability domains. As such the team includes the guardians of Virgin Australia Group’s corporate reputation, particularly via news media and through the quality of our engagement with governments, Federal, State and Territory.

Based out of our Brisbane Head Office, the Senior Manager Government Relations & Public Policy will collaborate with the General Manager of Government Relations & Industry Affairs and work closely with Virgin Australia’s leadership to support the development and execution of government engagement strategies that maximise impact in areas impact in areas of economic and reputational significance to the organisation.

In this role you will play a pivotal role in developing and maintaining working relationships with key government, public service and other stakeholders across Australia to ensure Virgin Australia has consistent, effective government engagement on issues of strategic significance to its business. This is a strategic and hands on-role suited to someone with not just a deep understanding of government processes and experience working across politics and policy, but can bring a commercial value creation mindset to that knowledge in order to achieve impactful near-term outcomes as well as long-term trusted relationships.

Your responsibilities will include, therefore, but are not limited to, the following:

• Careful monitoring and assessment of policy and legislative developments relevant to Virgin Australia’s business.
• Developing and implementing advocacy strategies aligned with Virgin Australia’s key priorities, as identified in its Value at Play Register, of which you will be an important contributor.
• Nurturing and maintaining strong relationships across relevant stakeholder sets, both at a political and bureaucratic level.
• Providing advice to Virgin Australia’s senior leadership and build their capacity to effectively engage with government to achieve the organisations strategic objectives. 
• Representing Virgin Australia in relevant meetings and forums, leveraging a proven ability to influence and shape outcomes.
• In collaboration with relevant internal domain experts, preparing meeting briefs and advice to the Executive Leadership Team, and relevant background material ahead of engagement with relevant Ministers, members of parliament, and key government departments, as well as submissions and other correspondence necessary to position Virgin Australia for advocacy success.
• Working closely with the wider Corporate Affairs team to ensure that Virgin Australia’s government relations strategies are aligned with and supported by our media engagement and other public communications, reflecting a campaign approach to advocacy success.

You’ll be great in this role if you have: 

• 10+ years experience in a federal government, politics or policy related role.  Past proven experience in an ASX-listed corporate environment will be highly regarded. 
• Tertiary qualifications in political science, public policy, law or communications.
• A proven ability to work both independently and collaboratively, with experience in building consensus on complex issues. 
• Excellent people skills and a proven ability to build and maintain trusted relationships with colleagues, MPs, advisers, and departmental representatives.
• The ability to work with minimal supervision and effectively prioritise to meet deadlines.
• Demonstrated ability to analyse and interpret policy directions and political motivations. 
• Strong commercial acumen and the ability to influence stakeholders and effect change.

What you’ll get from us

We’re committed to looking after you, with some of the best benefits and conditions in the industry – including (but not limited to):

• Discounted flights for you and your loved ones (including $1000 worth of travel credits per year)
• A flexible, hybrid work style with the option to work from home a couple of days per week.
• One of Brisbane’s most admired head office locations, with South Bank train station, a supermarket, pharmacy, and lunch options downstairs plus a 5-minute walk to the Busway, a rooftop restaurant and onsite gym (with a low membership fee) and South Bank Parklands just across the road
• Discounts on travel insurance, lounge membership, car hire, accommodation, and experiences worldwide
• Cheaper hospitality, retail, technology, beauty and wellness services
• Free counselling and access to a wellbeing app to support your physical, mental, social and financial health
• ‘Dress for Your Day’ – enjoy the freedom to wear whatever makes you feel great for the type of work you do and the day you have ahead of you.

When everyone is included, everyone wins

We’re all individuals. And we love that. That’s why we encourage applications from Indigenous Australians, people with disability, those from diverse cultural backgrounds, our friends in the LGBTQI+ community, and anyone else who wants to join our family