Reporting to the Assistant Auditor-General, Financial Audit, the Executive Director, Local Government leads one of the Queensland Audit Office’s most significant audit portfolios. This is a unique opportunity to lead an audit portfolio that reaches communities across metropolitan, regional and remote Queensland. The Local Government sector is diverse, complex and continually evolving, requiring strong leadership, professional judgement and an understanding of different operating environments. The role provides enterprise-wide leadership across QAO’s Local Government portfolio and Audit Service Provider operating model, helping shape sector strategy, audit delivery and relationships with councils, government, industry bodies and the audit profession.

Job details

Working closely with the Executive Leadership Team, you will provide strategic advice on sector developments, emerging risks and the future direction of audit delivery. You will build trusted relationships with senior leaders and maintain  responsibility for strategically significant audits that strengthen public confidence, accountability and transparency. You will help shape QAO's enterprise Audit Service Provider strategy, ensuring the capability, capacity and strategic partnerships are in place to support high-quality and sustainable audit outcomes across Queensland. In this role, you will:

• provide enterprise-wide leadership across QAO's Local Government portfolio and Audit Service Provider operating model & lead QAO's strategic relationships with the Local Government sector
• identify and manage strategic risks associated with audit delivery, market sustainability and future organisational capability & act as Engagement Leader for strategically significant audits and ensure the delivery of high-quality audit outcomes
• provide authoritative advice on emerging sector trends, risks and opportunities & shape QAO's Audit Service Provider strategy and cultivate key market relationships
• lead workforce planning, capability development and succession strategies & drive innovation, continuous improvement and organisational change
• contribute to QAO's enterprise strategy, organisational performance and broader priorities & support accountability, transparency and better public services across Queensland.

About you
You are an external audit leader who combines strong professional judgement with demonstrated experience leading people, strategy and organisational outcomes. You can lead through influence, manage competing priorities and build credibility across a broad stakeholder landscape, bringing experience from a professional services firm, an audit office or another complex assurance environment. You will demonstrate commercial awareness, strategic and systems thinking, sound judgement and a practical leadership style. You will bring:

• proven external audit experience in large and complex environments & demonstrated senior leadership experience able to deliver organisational outcomes
• experience developing and implementing sector, workforce, sourcing or service-delivery strategies & the ability to build trusted relationships with senior executives, elected officials, governing bodies, professional associations and external service providers
• highly developed commercial, strategic and systems-thinking capability & the ability to identify emerging opportunities and risks and translate these into practical organisational outcomes.

Membership of CPA or CAANZ is mandatory. Ability to meet ASIC requirements for appointment as a Registered Company Auditor and Experience working with, auditing or advising Local Government entities will also be highly regarded. Travel within QLD will be required. Flexible working arrangements will be considered for the right candidate. Further information about the role, criteria and employment conditions is provided in the role description. 

Please apply through Queensland Audit Office - Executive Director - Local Government and submit:

• your resume
• a two-page cover letter addressing your suitability for the role.

QAO's work helps build confidence in how public resources are managed and how services are delivered to Queensland communities. This role provides the opportunity to contribute to the leadership of a respected integrity organisation and support better public services through accountability, transparency and independent assurance. QAO's values of Engage, Respect, Inspire and Deliver underpin how its people work with clients and each other. Its culture also reflects the independence, objectivity and integrity central to its role as Queensland's independent public sector auditor. Queensland Audit Office is committed to building a culture that respects and promotes human rights, inclusion and diversity. As part of QAO's commitment to an inclusive and supportive recruitment process, applicants requiring reasonable adjustments or additional support are encouraged to discuss their requirements during the recruitment process.

Further information

We are committed to building inclusive cultures in the Queensland public sector that respect and promote human rights and diversity.

Documents

Before applying for this vacancy please ensure you read the documents below.

• Role Description Executive Director Local Government September 2026 Final Version (PDF, 297KB)
  Role Description