Job Description.

W&Co Search is proud to partner with Hume City Council in the appointment of its Manager City Parks and Open Spaces.

Hume serves one of Australia’s fastest-growing and most culturally diverse communities. Across established suburbs, emerging neighbourhoods and rural areas, Council is responsible for maintaining the public places that contribute to community wellbeing, environmental sustainability and the municipality’s long-term liveability.

Reporting to the Director Assets, Operations and Sustainability and joining Council’s Senior Leadership Team, this role provides strategic and operational leadership to the City Parks and Open Spaces department. The portfolio spans turf management, horticulture, land and biodiversity, urban forest and parks asset management.

You will lead an established team of approximately 70 employees, including five specialist coordinators, and oversee a substantial mix of internal and contracted service delivery. Your responsibilities will include departmental strategy, operational and capital planning, contractor performance, financial management, service improvement and the delivery of parks-related capital projects. The department has a positive foundation and an engaged team. This is an opportunity to preserve what is working while strengthening collaboration, accountability and continuous improvement. A key focus will be helping the team translate recent technology investment into better works management, reporting and service delivery.

Operating within a high-growth and financially constrained environment, you will help establish sustainable service standards that balance community expectations, environmental responsibilities and available resources. Visible leadership across Council’s operational locations will be important, as will constructive relationships with Councillors, community members, contractors and colleagues.

You will bring substantial leadership experience from parks, open space, public realm or a comparable operational service environment. You will have demonstrated capability in leading multidisciplinary and field-based teams, managing complex contracts and projects and delivering improvement through people, systems and sound commercial judgement.

Your leadership style will be visible, collaborative and considered. You will be comfortable moving between strategic priorities and operational realities, building trust with employees and contributing beyond your own portfolio as an active member of the Senior Leadership Team. Relevant tertiary qualifications in open space management, horticulture, arboriculture, environmental management, business management or an equivalent discipline are expected. Equivalent relevant experience will also be considered.

To view the Position Description for this opportunity, please copy and paste the following link into your browser: https://shorturl.at/RY5Nf

For a confidential discussion, please contact Ashley Wilkes, Managing Director at W&Co Search, on 0448 007 653, or Cassandra Amer, Recruitment Consultant at W&Co Search, on 0489 277 600, or email info@wcosearch.com.

Applications should include a one-page cover letter and a detailed resume outlining your relevant experience and alignment to the role. Applications will be reviewed as they are received and suitable candidates may be contacted throughout the search process. Early applications are encouraged.