Director Environment – Pesticide Risk Assessment

Director Environment – Pesticide Risk Assessment

• Be Part of Decision Making that Impacts Australia’s Standing in the World
• Exciting opportunity to join a dynamic government agency
• Relocation and sponsorship available for the right candidate

 

THE CLIENT

Our client, the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA), is the Australian Government regulator of agricultural and veterinary (agvet) chemical products, established in 1993 to centralise the registration of all agvet chemical products into the Australian marketplace. The APVMA regulate agricultural and veterinary chemicals to manage the risks of pests and diseases for the Australian community and to protect Australia’s trade and the health and safety of people, animals and the environment.

 

THE POSITION

Based in Canberra, ACT or Armidale in regional NSW, the Director Environment reports to the Executive Director Risk Assessment Capability (RAC). This is a new position, working in parallel with the existing Director of Environment, expanding the capacity of the team at a senior level.

The RAC Program of the APVMA is responsible for the assessment of the safety and trade risk aspects of applications for the approval of chemical substances, registration of chemical products, approval of permits to use a chemical for a specific purpose, or the review of an existing chemical product and its uses.

As part of the RAC program, the Environment Team focuses on:

• Managing all aspects of environment assessments for Agvet chemicals including the evaluation of hazard data and undertaking exposure assessments.

• Providing expert advice to other areas of the APVMA and external stakeholders on environment matters of Agvet chemicals.

• Establishing technical policies associated with the environment assessment of Agvet chemicals.

Working in close partnership with another Director, the Director Environment will be responsible for providing advice to the Registration Management and Risk Assessment Capability programs in relation to aspects of environment assessments. 

The two Directors will lead the work of the Environment team to provide expert assistance to team managers of the registration sections and oversee the planning, conduct, peer review and quality checks of assessments, as well as providing pre-application assistance to prospective registrants and expert technical assistance to staff, as required. They will provide leadership to the team, including coaching and developing the team to meet corporate objectives. A particular focus of the work will be on finalising outstanding chemical reviews with decisions consistent with other contemporary assessments.

 

Main responsibilities associated with this role include:

• Lead and manage the environment team, in close coordination with the co-Director of the Environment section, to deliver outcomes in line with corporate objectives, and represent the team in corporate and external discussions.

• Provide support to staff and expert advice on the interpretation and evaluation of scientific data in relation to environment assessments for agricultural and veterinary chemical products.

• Identify the appropriate scope and regulatory strategy for risk assessments to be undertaken in accordance with the legislation, APVMA principles of regulatory science quality and relevant international best practices.

• Build and maintain relationships and facilitate cooperation and partnerships with internal and external clients and stakeholders, as well as with relevant international counterparts.

• Oversee the development of the technical capacity within the evaluation team to build a greater understanding of environment risk assessments.

• Prepare and review high level written material incorporating scientific/technical considerations into briefs to decision makers, ministerial correspondence and other corporate documents as required.

• Initiate and oversee the delivery of special projects related to environment under the direction of the Executive Director and Executive Leadership Team.

 

REQUIREMENTS

To be successful in your application, you must meet the following criteria:

• Appropriate tertiary qualifications in toxicology, pharmacology, physiology, or a related biological science. Postgraduate qualifications in environmental toxicology, agricultural or animal science, or a related biological science highly regarded but not essential.

• You will be a resilient, outcome-driven person with extensive experience relevant to the assessment of environmental fate and behaviour of pesticides, veterinary medicines, or other chemicals and/or their effects and associated risks to non-target species.

• Highly developed leadership skills, with the ability to lead and develop a highly professional team of experts and balance complex workflows with recognition of priorities and outcomes, showing initiative in identifying learning opportunities, prioritising workloads and delegating tasks as appropriate to deliver high quality outcomes in a timely manner.

• Highly developed analytical and problem-solving skills, with the proven ability to evaluate, provide pragmatic advice and make decisions on complex information, with demonstrated experience, within a regulatory setting, in both data rich and data poor environments.

• Demonstrated ability to work at a senior level in a team environment, high-level interpersonal skills, including oral and written communication skills, ability to communicate clearly and confidently with clients, staff and service providers, liaison and negotiation skills, and the ability to represent the APVMA in a variety of forums.

• Demonstrated experience in building and sustaining relationships with key internal and external stakeholders, including promoting collaboration and information sharing.

 

APPLICATIONS

To have a confidential discussion about this role, you can call Helen on +61 438 620 434 or send a text to organise a suitable time. If you would like to enquire electronically, please email helen@csexecgroup.com.

To apply, please click the “Apply” button to send your resume and a covering letter to CS Executive Group. Applicants being considered for shortlisting for this role will be asked by CS Executive Group to complete a formal selection criteria document.

 

THANK YOU

Given we appreciate the effort it requires to express an interest in response to a job advert, CS Executive Group thanks you in advance for your time in applying for this role. Unfortunately, due to the large volume of applications we receive daily, we typically only contact individuals who we consider as having suitable qualifications and experience to be assessed further for shortlisting.

Nevertheless, if on this occasion you’re unsuccessful, please note your details will be added to our Talent Pool database—we might therefore contact you for suitable roles arising in the future.

Please follow our LinkedIn page to be notified when we have new job opportunities:

www.linkedin.com/company/cs-executive-group/