Location: Fully remote, ideally based in Wollongong, Sydney or Newcastle, with other locations in Australia considered for the right candidate

Employment: Permanent

FTE: 0.8 - 1.0

Salary: Circa $110,000 per annum FTE, plus superannuation

Reports to: Chief Operating Officer

- Be the operational heart of an ambitious, values-led peak body
- Bring genuine care and rigour to how a small remote team works together
- Thrive alongside a talented, impact and values-led team

Social Enterprise Australia

Social Enterprise Australia is the national peak body for social enterprise. We're for an economy that puts people and the planet first, and for unlocking the power of social enterprise to help get us there. We connect, build and advocate for the sector, and coordinate its national strategy. Our direction is set by the sector, and we provide a way for it to partner with the Australian Government and others to grow impact.

Social Enterprise Australia develops paths and partnerships to:

- connect the ecosystem to plan, act and learn together
- build and share sector data, insights and practical supports
- advocate for the customers, capital, policy and investment the sector needs

We are an impact and values-led national team, working remotely with high autonomy and trust. We are a four-year-old organisation that has grown fast and built strong foundations. The sector has just launched a co-designed national strategy, and Social Enterprise Australia has built relationships and paths to connect, advocate for and build the sector. We’re now taking a conscious step from start-up into more structured ways of working. This is a newly scoped role at the heart of that next chapter.

The opportunity

As Operations Lead, you will keep our operational, financial and systems processes running smoothly, and bring dedicated focus to team culture, wellbeing and the employee lifecycle for our fully remote team. You'll be a consistent, human presence for the team – the first face a new starter meets, and a trusted person to turn to. You'll also play a vital part in supporting strategy, planning, and evaluation and learning.

This role works closely with our Chief Operating Officer who creates the space for this role to go deep on the operational rigour and the people-facing culture and wellbeing work that an ambitious, remote team needs.

What you'll lead

Team culture and belonging: Lead the employee lifecycle from induction through to offboarding, ensuring every stage feels considered and human. Build and sustain a strong, connected culture across a fully remote team, and champion staff wellbeing and engagement, including establishing meaningful ways to track and respond to it over time.

Operations and finance:



Drive adoption of operational tools and systems, manage key projects and contracts, and act as the primary point of contact with our accountants. Oversee payroll and financial record-keeping, and support budget preparation and compliance audits.

Systems and compliance: Implement and maintain effective systems and processes to support organisational operations, and support compliance with legal, regulatory and ethical standards, including HR, work health and safety, and risk management.

Strategy, planning and culture: Help develop Social Enterprise Australia's strategy, document the organisation's operations plan, and contribute to a network culture that values people, collaboration and learning and development over being right.

Evaluation and learning: Participate in the evaluation and learning framework, report against strategy and our annual and quarterly plans, and practise and encourage reflection at individual and organisational levels.

Who we're looking for

What matters most is operational depth, genuine care for people, and a real belief in the power of social enterprise to build a fairer, more sustainable economy.

You’ll bring

- 5+ years' experience coordinating business operations, ideally within a small or not-for-profit organisation, including systems, contracts and compliance processes
- working knowledge of finance, HR, risk and compliance and contract management, and experience working effectively with external providers
- experience leading people-focused functions such as onboarding, employee lifecycle or team culture, particularly within a remote, distributed or hybrid team
- demonstrated ability to improve systems and processes, with strong attention to detail
- strong communication and stakeholder coordination skills, with meticulous record-keeping
- a genuine commitment to a culture that values people, collaboration, and learning and development over being right, and puts purpose at its core
- the ability to work as part of a distributed team and undertake infrequent travel

Nice to have

- direct experience in or alongside the social enterprise, for-purpose or social economy sector
- familiarity with peak body, field-building or member-based structures
- experience or interest in supporting First Nations engagement or culturally safe practice within an organisation





Working at Social Enterprise Australia

We are a fully remote, nationally distributed organisation. We work with a high degree of autonomy and trust, and we invest in the tools, practices and face-to-face connection that make distributed collaboration genuinely effective.

We are a small team with big ambitions, and everyone carries real responsibility and has genuine scope to shape how we work. We value and create space for reflection and learning in our team, and strong capability to engage with and role model these practices will be essential to success in this role.

Diversity

We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds. We are committed to building a team that reflects the diversity of the communities and sector we serve, and we particularly encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, culturally and linguistically diverse people, people with disability, and others marginalised by status quo systems.

If there is anything we can do to make the application process more accessible to you, please let us know.

How to apply To apply, please submit via EthicalJobs:

- your CV
- a covering letter (max 2 pages) that outlines the specific experience/s that make you a strong fit, then responds to the following questions:
- You've just started in this role. Use dot points to sketch out how you'd approach your first 90 days of building culture and wellbeing practices for our small, fully remote team. What would you prioritise and why?
- Imagine we're deciding whether to bring bookkeeping in-house or keep it outsourced. Based on what you know of a small, remote, growing organisation like ours, what's your instinct on which way we should lean, and why?
- In one sentence, what’s your unique value proposition for this role?

Applications close: Wednesday 7 October. We'll assess candidates on a rolling basis, so early applications are encouraged.

We're comfortable with candidates using AI tools to help prepare their application. What matters most is that what you submit genuinely reflects your own experience, judgment and voice, since that's what we'll be assessing throughout the recruitment process.

If you have any questions, please contact [email protected] using the subject line: Operations Lead - Remote / Work from Home enquiry

Social Enterprise Australia acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the Traditional Owners of the lands on which we work and live. We recognise that these lands were never ceded and that connection to land, waters and culture is ongoing. We pay our respects to Elders past and present, and to emerging leaders.

📌 Operations Lead - Sydney / Wollongong / Newcastle / Remote
🏢 Social Enterprise Australia
📍 Sydney