Director, HR Services

Lead a large high performing HR Services function for The University of Melbourne.

About The University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne takes great pride in their people, who contribute to the University’s mission of benefiting society through the transformative impact of education and research. Ranked as one of the top 20 leading universities in the world, The University of Melbourne offers a vibrant, inclusive and intellectually rich environment where students and staff alike are inspired to thrive.

The opportunity now exists for a new leader to guide one of its most critical enabling functions — HR Services.

Sitting within the Business Services portfolio, HR Services delivers essential operational support across the University, encompassing Talent Acquisition, Payroll, HR Assist, Academic Performance and Promotions, and Staff Travel. With a team of 100, this high-performing and respected function provides repeatable, people-focused services that underpin employee experience, ensure compliance, and enable workforce effectiveness across a large, complex and diverse environment.
 
About the Role
Reporting to the Executive Director, Business Services (Office of the COO), and working closely with the Chief People Officer and broader People team, the Director will lead a respected and high-performing function. This role is responsible for driving service excellence, strengthening system capability and adoption, and ensuring the delivery of accurate, compliant and people-centred services aligned to the University’s strategic direction.

With recent system transformation including the introduction of Workday, Dayforce and UKG Kronos, this position will continue to lead through change, with process and continuous improvement at the heart of all the team delivers. Moving forward, evolving solutions that cater for enhanced compliance and optimal people experience will be central to role’s success.

About You
You are a proven people services leader with experience operating in large, complex environments. You bring the ability to build trust and engagement with key stakeholder and uphold a strong service ethic. While experience in higher education is desirable, we welcome applications from leaders in similarly complex or highly regulated sectors.
Additionally, you bring:

• Demonstrated ability to lead a high-performing team, set direction, and embed a continuous improvement mindset aligned to strategic priorities.
• Confidence in leading through system transformation and increasing digitisation needs, leveraging platforms to drive optimisation, automation, and smarter ways of working.
• An understanding of the University context and organisational needs, applying solutions thoughtfully and collaboratively, rather than importing pre-built frameworks or models.
• A working understanding of payroll operations and HR service delivery frameworks (technical payroll expertise is not essential).
• A proactive, collaborative approach and low-ego leadership style that uplifts team capability and builds strong internal engagement.
• Strong relationship-building skills, with the ability to engage across all levels of the University, navigate complexity, and problem-solve in service of the broader people agenda.