Manager, Regional Development – Loddon Campaspe

• Salary: $138,631 - $185,518 (Plus Superannuation)
• Fixed Term position to 30 June 2026
• Usual hours of work: Full time (flexibility may be available)
• Usual work location: 195-229 Lyttleton Terrace, Bendigo VIC 3550 (flexibility may be available)

The Role

As a Manager, Regional Development – Loddon Campaspe, you will be responsible for leading strategic regional development investment and coordination of the Regional Partnership, as well as other key government priorities, to leverage the unique strengths of the region and build place-based prosperity and drive economic growth for Victoria.  The role also plays a lead in the implementation of economic recovery initiatives in the region.

Leading a team of regional and economic development professionals, the role will deliver a dynamic and varied work program including responsibility for delivering a range of regional development initiatives for businesses and communities throughout the region to facilitate region and business intelligence, investment and export opportunities. The position is responsible for providing strategic advice, executive and governance support to the Loddon Campaspe Regional Partnership in order to progress regional plans, strategic directions and priority projects. The role also leads Regional Development Victoria's (RDV) response to economic recovery in the Loddon Campaspe region.

Reporting to the Regional Director, the Manager, Regional Development – Loddon Campaspe is a member of the Leadership team and will utilise their management and leadership expertise to foster a high performance, inclusive, and collaborative culture and bring a strong focus to safety and wellbeing with the Loddon Campaspe team and across RDV.

Key accountabilities include:

• Lead the Loddon Campaspe Regional Development team in the delivery of major and whole-of-government regional development initiatives, strategies and government priorities that support regional liveability and prosperity, utilising and leveraging knowledge of the local region, its communities, industry, and government, as well as understanding of local trends, opportunities, and risks.
• Supporting the Regional Director in their role as Accountable Executive, in the management and coordination of the Regional Partnership, providing strategic advice and executive and governance support to the Loddon Campaspe Regional Partnership in order to progress Regional Economic Development Strategy, as well as environmental and social priorities, regional plans, strategic directions, preparation of business cases and priority projects including on matters such as economic recovery, and negotiation of project and commercial matters. 
• Manage and oversee the planning, implementation and delivery of a range of economic development, business and industry activities through regional DJSIR programs including RDV grants and place-based programs ensuring best-practice and consistent delivery approaches. Identify, manage and deliver new investment initiatives, such as investment support packages utilising commercial acumen and a sound understanding of regional economies, workforce, geography, stakeholders and transport in collaboration with internal and external stakeholders and in alignment with investment KPIs.
• Lead the team in driving integrated investment in place by understanding, influencing, and negotiating with key internal and external stakeholders and partners by developing and maintaining strategic relationships and networks with Federal, State and local government, community organisations, business, and industry.
• Provide authoritative, high quality advice to senior management on complex and sensitive issues within the region, and prepare clear and concise reports, business cases, Ministerial briefings, discussion papers to deadline and that demonstrate an understanding of the policy, political and legal context and the intended audience and purpose.
• Manage and lead where required the departmental economic recovery efforts to specific local and regional incidents, such as natural emergency incidents, adverse economic and social impacts/conditions, as part of agreed multi-agency regional emergency management recovery arrangements.

The Team

The position of Manager, Regional Development – Loddon Campaspe will work across Loddon Mallee branch, which sits within Regional Development Victoria (RDV) group.

RDV group works with businesses, communities and across government to deliver economic growth, create jobs, build resilience, and support economic recovery in our regions. We have a strong role in activating networks; building partnerships; realising outcomes that boost local economic and community resilience; and bringing the lived experience of communities into government decision making. In delivering our portfolio priorities, we work closely with parts of government given the many synergies and linkages with other priorities across government.

About You

To be successful in this role you will have the following skills and experience:

• Specialist Expertise: Proven experience in providing high level authoritative advice on complex and sensitive issues to senior management and key stakeholders. Demonstrated ability to apply the drivers of regional development from a statewide and place based perspective to achieve outcomes and established networks with senior regional stakeholders to realise significant enhanced outcomes for the region, including a working knowledge of recovery initiatives.
• People Management: Aligns team with the organisational values and goals through effective people management and modelling; maximises effectiveness by selecting, developing, managing and motivating a high performing team, clearly defines role expectations, monitors performance, provides timely and constructive feedback and facilitates employee development; ensures staff are effectively deployed through effective workforce planning practices.
• Project Management: Consults, liaises with and influences key stakeholders; produces detailed project plans where objectives are clearly defined and action steps for achieving them are clearly specified; monitors performance against objectives and manages project risks and issues; ensures project objectives are met. Demonstrated leadership and project management experience with experience delivering large scale complex public sector projects, including planning, solution identification and contributing to the implementation of large-scale, whole-of-government projects.
• Stakeholder Management and Influence and Negotiation: Demonstrated ability to build collaboration and consensus across a wide range of stakeholders across government and the private sector, and regional and community organisations to achieve government priorities; Gains agreement to proposals and ideas; builds behind- the- scenes support for ideas to ensure buy-in and ownership; uses chains of indirect influence to achieve outcomes, for example, ‘gets A to show B so B will tell C'; involves experts or other third parties to strengthen a case.
• Verbal and Written Communication Skills: High level communication skills (written and verbal), ability to present, influence outcomes, gain commitment and undertake complex, contentious and sensitive negotiations; experience in the preparation of reports, briefs and recommendations on highly complex issues in tight timelines.

Further Information

For a confidential discussion, please contact Leanne Rosewall, Regional Director, Loddon Mallee on on 0429 702 928.

The department is committed to creating and maintaining a child safe organisation. We have zero tolerance of child abuse and are committed to taking the necessary steps to protect children from harm by adopting a preventative, proactive and participatory approach to child safety in accordance with the Child Safe Standards.

Successful candidates will be required to undergo a National Police Records Check prior to commencing employment with the Department. For further information on the position, please refer to the attached position description.

Please note: We are accredited as a Disability Confident Recruitment (DCR) organisation and committed to inclusive recruitment. If you require an adjustment to participate in any stage of the recruitment process or have a particular requirement to be communicated with by either telephone or email only, please notify the DJSIR Recruitment Team on 0472875685, or via email at recruitment@ecodev.vic.gov.au with the position number in the subject line. For additional contact details for our team please review the attached Position Description, located under Job Attachments in the right hand menu.

How to Apply

Please click the ‘Apply Now' button. As part of the application process, you will need to provide a copy of your cover letter and resume.

Applications close at 23:59pm on Sunday, 13 July 2025.