Policy and Planning Manager

Location: Sydney, NSW

Work type: Full-time

Classification: Community Services & Development → International Aid & Development

Salary: $80,000 – $90,000 AUD per annum plus superannuation

About Us

- Shape the policy and strategic direction of a specialist Australian development organisation

- Lead the planning, evaluation and compliance frameworks behind a nationally accredited aid programme

- Use your policy expertise to shift power and resources towards locally led development

At Palmera, we’re working towards a Sri Lanka where communities set their own development agenda and have the resources to deliver on it.

We’re a DFAT-accredited Australian development organisation working exclusively in Sri Lanka. Rather than spreading ourselves across many countries, we go deep in a single context — building long-term, trusted relationships with local communities and partners, and investing in locally led development. Everything we do is driven by a commitment to improve the lives of vulnerable and marginalised communities.

About the Role

As Policy and Planning Manager, you’ll be responsible for developing, implementing and evaluating the policies, strategies and plans that govern Palmera’s entire international development portfolio.

Reporting to the Executive Director, you’ll set our programme policy direction, lead our strategic and annual planning cycles, and determine how organisational resources are allocated across the portfolio. You’ll be the person who ensures Palmera meets its obligations under DFAT accreditation, the ACFID Code of Conduct and our donor contracts.

You’ll also lead our monitoring, evaluation and learning function, commissioning the research and evaluations that tell us what’s working, and feeding that evidence back into the policies and plans you’ve built.

This is a senior management role with genuine autonomy over policy formulation, planning and organisational compliance. It’s also a role with a point of view: we believe decision-making authority belongs with Sri Lankan partners and communities, and you’ll be the one turning that belief into policy.

What will your day look like?

As Policy and Planning Manager, you will have the opportunity to:

- Develop, review and evaluate the organisational policies governing programme design, partnership, procurement,



safeguarding and social inclusion

- Analyse DFAT policy directives, donor guidelines and accreditation standards, and advise the Executive Director and Board on what they mean for us

- Lead strategic, annual and country programme planning cycles, translating strategy into measurable plans, budgets and deliverables

- Determine and coordinate the allocation of financial, human and material resources across the portfolio

- Maintain a consolidated deliverable, compliance and milestone framework covering every donor contract

- Lead DFAT accreditation submissions, self-assessments and donor compliance reporting

- Oversee risk management, partner due diligence, and financial and contract management systems

- Design and oversee MEL frameworks; commission and direct research and evaluations, and interpret what they tell us

- Liaise with DFAT, other donors, government agencies, peak bodies and partners on policy, contractual, financial and compliance matters

- Represent Palmera in sector policy forums and negotiations

- Lead, mentor and develop staff and partner organisations, building policy, planning and compliance capability

- Embed gender equality, disability and social inclusion (GEDSI) as central, measurable outcomes across all policy and programme design — not as an add-on

- Uphold and enforce our safeguarding and PSEAH policies

What will you bring?

To be successful in this role, you will bring:

- A relevant degree or higher qualification in international development, public policy, social sciences or a related discipline — or at least five years of equivalent relevant experience

- Significant senior-level experience (ideally 7+ years) in international development policy, programme design, planning and management

- Demonstrated experience developing and evaluating organisational policy and leading strategic planning processes

- A strong working knowledge of DFAT compliance, accreditation and reporting requirements, or equivalent major donor experience





- Proven experience managing complex donor-funded programmes, including financial management, contract management and reporting

- Demonstrated experience working in Sri Lanka, with a deep understanding of the local context, communities and development landscape

- Fluency in Tamil and/or Sinhala in addition to English, to enable direct engagement with our partners and the communities we work with

- Demonstrated experience integrating GEDSI and gender equality into policy and programme design

- Excellent people leadership, mentoring, communication and relationship-building skills

Desirable: postgraduate qualifications in development, policy or evaluation, and experience leading a DFAT accreditation or re-accreditation process.

So why join us?

Most development policy roles sit several layers away from the communities they affect. This one doesn’t. Because we work in one country and one context, the policies you write and the plans you set will be visible in the field within a season — and you’ll see the evidence come back through the evaluations you commission.

You’ll have real scope to shape how an accredited Australian organisation does its work, alongside a small team and a network of Sri Lankan partners who will tell you honestly what’s working and what isn’t.

Palmera places gender equality at the centre of our work, and we strongly encourage applications from women. Whoever we appoint, they will need to demonstrate a genuine commitment to and track record in advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment through policy and programming.

We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and are happy to discuss any adjustments you may need to our recruitment process or to the role itself — just let us know in your application.

Palmera is committed to ensuring that all children and adults are treated with respect and are free from sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment. Successful candidates will be subject to safeguarding-focused interviews and a rigorous due diligence and reference-checking process.

How to apply

Please submit a CV and a cover letter addressing the selection criteria and telling us why you’d be a positive fit for this role and for Palmera’s mission in Sri Lanka.

Pay: $90,000.00 – $100,000.00 per year

Work Location: In person

📌 Policy and Planning Manager (Strathfield)
🏢 Palmera
📍 Strathfield