About the role

DroneShield is seeking a Head of Quality & HSE with relevant experience to join the team in Sydney, NSW. The position will report to the Chief Operating Officer.

The Head of Quality & HSE is accountable for building a function that protects the business while enabling fast, reliable and safe operations. The HoQ&HSE; is responsible for preventing defects, eliminated safety risks, accelerating issue resolution and establishing a robust, auditable compliance backbone without slowing operational speed.

Responsibilities, Duties and Expectations

Operational Enablement

- Embed quality, safety, and compliance into operational and engineering workflows by design.
- Enable execution speed through clear standards, decision rights, and risk‑based controls.

Defect & Risk Prevention

- Drive prevention‑first approaches across design, manufacturing, supply chain, and field operations.
- Eliminate safety hazards and systemic defect drivers through structured risk management.

Incident & Fault Resolution

- Lead fault‑finding, investigation, and root‑cause analysis for production and field incidents.
- Ensure rapid containment, effective corrective action, and prevention of recurrence.
- Balance operational continuity with regulatory and customer obligations.

Compliance & Governance

- Establish and maintain a scalable, auditable quality and HSE compliance framework.
- Lead regulatory engagement, certifications, and internal/external audits.
- Ensure compliance strengthens execution rather than adding friction.

Continuous Improvement

- Own and lead the enterprise continuous improvement system for the business.




- Convert incidents, defects, audit findings, and field feedback into sustained systemic improvement.
- Drive cross‑functional improvement initiatives aligned to risk and operational impact.

Measurement & KPIs

- Define, track, and report meaningful Quality, Safety, and Compliance KPIs.
- Use leading and lagging indicators to drive decision‑making and prioritisation.
- Ensure performance trends are visible, consistent, and trusted by leadership.

Leadership

- Build and lead high‑performing global Quality & HSE teams.
- Act as a trusted partner to Operations, Engineering, Programs, and Supply Chain.
- Provide clear, objective risk and assurance insight to the executive team.

Measures of Success

- Fewer defects, escapes, and repeat incidents.
- Zero serious safety incidents and reduced risk exposure. Proactive risk identification.
- Faster issue resolution with minimal delivery disruption.
- Strong audit outcomes and regulatory confidence.
- Quality & HSE recognised as an enabler of speed, scale, and reliability.

Qualifications, Experience and Skills

- Senior leadership experience in Quality, HSE, or Operational Risk.

- Background in defence, aerospace, or highly regulated high‑tech manufacturing.

- Proven experience operating in global, multi‑site environments.

- Engineering or technical qualifications preferred.

- Quality/Safety credentials desirable.

- Customer-oriented with a robust sense of ownership and accountability.

- Relevant tertiary qualification in Operations, Engineering, Supply Chain or Business (desirable).)

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📌 Head of Quality & HSE (AU) (City of Sydney)
🏢 Droneshield
📍 City of Sydney