About the Program 

The Vanuatu Australia Policing and Justice Program Phase 3 (VAPJP3) is an AUD25m investment. The program will continue Australia’s engagement in Vanuatu, building upon the positive outcomes of previous investments in policing and justice. The previous program, (VAPJP2) was also managed by Palladium and concluded at the end of December 2024. The Government of Australia supports the continuation of this program commencing from January 2025 over four years. The possibility exists for a further four-year extension. In continuing this assistance, Australia responds to the expressed wishes of the Government of Vanuatu (GoV)  who were consulted in the Mid-Term Review of VAPJP2 and the development of the VAPJP3 investment design.

Duration of the Contract: Up to 45 months, until 31 December 2028

Location: Port Vila, Vanuatu, with the ability to travel to other locations in Vanuatu as required

Reporting to: Managing Contractor; DFAT and the Strategic Program Governance Mechanism (SPGM)

The Opportunity:

The Team Leader is responsible for managing and implementing the technical aspects of Vanuatu Australia Policing and Justice Program (VAPJP), in close coordination with Palladium and the Australian High Commission (AHC) in Vanuatu. The Team Leader plays a key role in steering the program’s overall strategy, building a strong and cohesive team that generates recommendations to translate agreed support into results, brokering partnerships with and between stakeholders, in particular DFAT, Australian Federal Police (AFP), Government of Vanuatu (GoV), and its broader Vanuatu portfolio. This role requires a deep commitment to ensuring principles of gender quality, disability and social inclusion are integrated into all aspects of the Program. The Team Leader will support the team, colleagues and partners in promoting a culture of respect and a common purpose, in a manner that aligns strongly with shared values which underpin the relationship between Vanuatu and Australia. 

Key Responsibilities include:

Strategic oversight

• Provide effective and creative leadership and overall direction for VAPJP, demonstrating best practice service delivery standards; and a focus on identifying, recommending and implementing initiatives aimed at continuous improvement of program productivity.
• Provide leadership and strategic direction to deliver program coherence, program goals and End of Program Outcomes (EOPOs), in line with the program design.
• Support dialogue and engagement across VAPJP, particularly in relation to Program and performance outcomes, capacity development, and Australian Development priorities which include cross-cutting issues of gender equality, disability, social inclusion, climate change, child protection and prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse, localisation, and other issues of strategic importance.

Establishment and maintenance of effective relationships

• Establish and maintain effective relationships and dialogue with DFAT and the AFP Senior Responsible Officer (SRO).
• Work closely with DFAT, Government of Vanuatu (GoV), AFP, civil society partners and the private sector on matters of Program implementation and coordination, including alignment and collaboration with relevant DFAT-funded projects and programs. 
• Engage with existing DFAT-funded (and other) Programs working in similar areas to leverage optimal collaboration, innovation and value for money across Australia’s investments in Vanuatu. 
• Support the meaningful participation of women, people with disability, young people and other marginalised groups as the organisations that support them, within Program planning, delivery, review and adaptation processes. 

Program, product and service delivery:

• Where appropriate, manage GoA and AFP contributions – both financial and personnel resources – so that the operations are cost effective and offer both GoV and GoA value for money. 
• Interact regularly with the SPGM, the Australian Federal Police and DFAT, the Senior Leadership Group (SLG); Director-General Ministry of Justice and Community Services and staff, sector agency heads and representatives, Director-General Ministry of Internal Affairs and staff, Commissioner of Police and VPF staff, Secretary Generals from Provincial Government Council Offices, and other Government and relevant non-government representatives, for the clear and appropriate management of a bilateral sector-wide development program.
• Identify all resources, and deliver all services reasonably required to undertake the planning, coordination, management, liaison, consultation, sub-contracting, grants management, and administration that is necessary to achieve the objectives of VAPJP III.
• In collaboration with the SRO, Strategic Justice Adviser and MEL team, facilitate the regular partnership reflection and learning sessions, including annual applied political economy analysis, and in collaboration with Senior Management Group, lead the AWP development and reporting (eg six monthly reporting and annual reporting, as well as other ad hoc reporting as required)
• Drive innovation in the Program through building upon existing partnerships from VAPJP phase 1 and 2 and fostering new partnerships as is relevant to the Program design. 
• Oversee the monitoring and delivery of the Program in terms of quality, time and budget in complete compliance with DFAT and Palladium policies and procedures; participate in and oversee the evaluation of outcomes and the Program’s contribution to outcomes; and monitor risk to ensure proactive mitigation of risk to the Program.
• Oversee disaster risk reduction measures planned and implemented through the Program. 
• Oversee post disaster response and recovery operations delivered through VAPJP, or alternate agreed mechanisms, ensuring continued strategic delivery of the Program while providing post-disaster support to the sector. 
• Ensure systems are in place for program analysis, activity design, information sharing, review and re-design supported by a strong understanding of the political economy and openness to innovation 
• Champion best practice in gender equality, disability and social inclusion awareness and programing.
• Provide strategic guidance for public diplomacy ensuring alignment with DFAT Standards and maintain strategic oversight of the preparation and running of program-related public events and communications products in line with DFAT standards.

Managing and Leading People

• Actively promote a respectful, inclusive and participatory team environment, and respectfully address conflict and collaborate and build relationships that support our mission and strategic objectives, leveraging expertise from across teams, projects, country offices and regions.
• Oversee and/or participate in the recruitment of Program staff, advisers, and support the recruitment of Program funded inline staff for sector agencies as identified. Effectively manage the performance of the Program team to deliver a cohesive, quality program.
• Lead structured coaching and mentoring and other capacity development opportunities for the VAPJP team and, in particular, assist national staff to promote VAPJP’s commitment to locally led leadership, including ensuring ongoing professional development for Locally Engaged Staff (LES). 
• Manage the Senior Justice Adviser, Operations Manager, Monitoring Evaluation Reporting and Learning (MERL) Manager and Communications Adviser, as well as other identified senior positions within the Program team. 
• Support Advisers/staff under your supervision to collaborate as a member of a multi-disciplinary policing and justice team with the collective responsibility of achieving the program’s end of program outcomes by mutually reinforcing strategies developed by the program and participating in processes that facilitate this. 
• Conduct yourself, and ensure that Program personnel conduct themselves, in a manner that enables the ethical, economical, efficient, effective and delivery of services and achievement of VAPJP III objectives. 

• Key Relationships

• Internal: Senior Responsible Officer (SRO) Australian Federal Police (AFP), Senior Adviser (Justice) VAPJP Advisers, Operations Manager, MERL and Communications Team and Palladium Corporate Management Team

• External: Director Generals and other senior staff of the MJCS, MoIA, Commissioner of Police, heads of sector agencies and institutions, Provincial Government Councils. Close working relationship with DFAT, other donors

  About You

  Essential Qualifications and Experience

• A university degree in International Development, Law, social sciences, Arts, Economics, Business or equivalent experience

• Significant, demonstrated experience managing multi-disciplinary teams in Vanuatu (Preferred), or in Melanesia, to deliver development programs in rights-based justice programming or similar.

• Sound understanding of the Vanuatu justice context or a comparable Melanesian context, including policy and development issues and the ability to translate these into VAPJP programming.

• Demonstrated ability to build productive and sustainable working partnerships with a variety of stakeholders (donors, Australian and/or partner government, civil society and the private sector) across cultures.

• Demonstrated skills in effective culturally adapted capacity building.

• Experience in supporting flexible and adaptive approaches to program delivery.

  Essential Skills and Attributes

• Exceptional organisational and multitasking skills.

• Strong interpersonal and communication skills (written and verbal) for engaging with diverse stakeholders.

• Successful change management and problem-solving skills and the capacity to resolve conflict.

• High level of initiative and problem-solving capabilities.

• Experience in supporting flexible and adaptive approaches to program delivery

• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.

• Security and Work Requirements

• Citizen, or eligible to obtain a Special Category Visa (SCV) for Vanuatu

• Have no prior convictions or Police Record

  Desirable Qualifications and Experience

• Strong knowledge of Vanuatu’s cultural and operational context.

• Experience in managing training programs or coordinating international training logistics.

• Knowledge of donor-funded program operations and reporting requirements.

• Knowledge of AFP support in Vanuatu

  Equity, Diversity & Inclusion - Palladium is committed to embedding equity, diversity, and inclusion into everything we do. We welcome applications from all sections of society and actively encourage diversity to drive innovation, creativity, success and good practice. We positively welcome and seek to ensure we achieve diversity in our workforce; and that all job applicants and employees receive equal and fair treatment regardless of their background or personal characteristics. These include: (but are not limited to) socio-economic background, age, race, gender identity and expression, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, nationality, veteran, marital or Indigenous status.

  Should you require any adjustments or accommodations to be made due to a disability or you are a neurodivergent individual or for any other circumstance, please email our team at accessibility@thepalladiumgroup.com and we will be in touch to discuss.

  Safeguarding - We define Safeguarding as “the preventative action taken by Palladium to protect our people, clients and the communities we work with from harm”. We are committed to ensuring that all children and adults who come into contact with Palladium are treated with respect and are free from abuse. All successful candidates will be subject to an enhanced selection process including safeguarding-focused interviews and a rigorous due diligence process.