People & Culture Advisor

People & Culture Advisor

Melbourne, VIC | Full Time

At UGL, we're driven by innovation, collaboration, and delivering critical infrastructure that supports Australia's future. We are seeking an experienced and proactive People & Culture Advisor to support our Services Division within the Fuels & Energy Line of Business, initially supporting the mobilisation of various UGL project sites predominantly located across Australia's East Coast.

Based in Melbourne, this role will play a pivotal part in supporting both the operational and people strategy of the contract. Working closely with the Contract Manager and Operations Manager, you will partner with leaders to deliver practical people solutions across a geographically dispersed workforce while supporting key mobilisation and growth initiatives.

About the Role

As a trusted People & Culture Advisor, you will provide generalist HR support to the staff and workforce while also partnering with operational leaders on workforce planning, project mobilisation, employee relations, industrial relations, and organisational initiatives.

This role is embedded within the Fuels & Energy Line of Business while reporting centrally through to the People & Culture Advisory Hub, ensuring alignment with enterprise-wide people practices, governance, and strategic P&C initiatives. Initially, the role will be dedicated to supporting a contract mobilisation. As the contract evolves and the business grows, the successful candidate will have the opportunity to support additional contracts, projects, and mobilisation activities across the CIMIC Group’s broader Operations business, providing exposure to a diverse range of operational environments and strategic workforce initiatives.

A key focus of the role will be supporting the mobilisation and ongoing operation of sites, working closely with UGL's Industrial Relations team to establish and implement an effective blue-collar workforce IR strategy.

Regular travel to operational sites along the East Coast will be required to build strong relationships with leaders and employees and ensure a visible P&C presence across the contract.

Key Responsibilities

• Partner with the Contract Manager and Operations Manager to deliver people and culture initiatives aligned to business objectives.
• Support site and project mobilisation activities, including workforce planning, onboarding, organisational design, and change implementation.
• Provide end-to-end HR advisory support across the employee lifecycle.
• Work closely with UGL's Industrial Relations team to develop and implement the contract's blue-collar IR strategy.
• Support employee and industrial relations matters, ensuring compliance with relevant legislation, enterprise agreements, and company policies.
• Coach and support leaders in performance management, employee engagement, development, and workforce planning.
• Manage recruitment and onboarding activities for contract-based positions.
• Support organisational change and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Analyse workforce trends and provide practical recommendations to operational leaders.
• Foster a positive, inclusive, and high-performing workplace culture across multiple locations.
• Undertake regular site visits to maintain strong stakeholder relationships and provide hands-on people support.

About You

You are a collaborative and commercially minded HR professional who enjoys working in operational environments and partnering closely with leaders to solve business challenges.

You will bring:

• Experience in a broad generalist Human Resources or People & Culture role.
• Exposure to project mobilisation, construction, infrastructure, industrial, logistics, resources, or operational environments.
• Portfolio management with multiple stakeholders
• Sound knowledge of Australian employment legislation and employee relations practices.
• Experience supporting industrial relations matters, with exposure to unionised or blue-collar workforces highly regarded.
• Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills.
• The ability to work autonomously while building trusted relationships across several locations.
• Excellent communication, organisational, and problem-solving skills.
• A willingness to travel interstate to support operational sites as required.
• Tertiary qualifications in Human Resources, Business, Industrial Relations, or a related discipline.

Why Join Us?

• Opportunity to influence and shape the people strategy of a growing and strategically important contract.
• Work closely with experienced operational leaders and senior stakeholders.
• Diverse role combining mobilisation, operational HR, employee relations, and industrial relations.
• National exposure across multiple sites and business functions.
• Be part of a team committed to safety, performance, and operational excellence.

If you are looking for an opportunity to make a tangible impact within a complex operational environment and enjoy partnering with leaders to build engaged, high-performing teams, we'd love to hear from you.

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