About the Company 

SA Water is a successful, modern water utility wholly owned by the Government of South Australia. We employ more than 1,700 people across a broad range of disciplines who operate more than $14 billion worth of infrastructure to deliver essential water and sewerage services to more than 1.8 million South Australians.

We operate in a geographically and climatically diverse service area, with sites and locations from Ceduna through to Port Augusta, the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands, across to the Riverland, down to Mount Gambier, and most places in between.

Our strength and expertise have been shaped by our history. For more than 165 years, South Australians have depended on us to innovate and deliver efficient and sustainable water services. With nationally and internationally recognised industry expertise, we’re focused on understanding and meeting our customers’ expectations.

As well as safely delivering smart and reliable services for our customers of today, we innovate to shape the water solutions of the future that will support thriving economies and healthy communities.

We are driven by our values; we value our people, we do work that matters, we keep it real, we know that our work has impact, and we are future focussed. Staying true to our values ensures that we consistently deliver positive outcomes for all South Australians.

About the job  

You will frequently partner with key stakeholders and subject matter experts both internally and externally to develop major policy position papers, briefings, and presentations to a high standard, ensuring accurate, comprehensive and insightful materials are developed for the use of the corporation in areas such as public and environmental policy, infrastructure, legislative reform and regulatory affairs. This role will report directly to the Senior Manager and will form part of a small team focused on delivering SA Water’s strategic policy work.

About the Person

As our Senior Policy Advisor, you operate as a true professional who holds yourself to a high standard of integrity and excellence in every interaction.  

You’re not someone who has written briefings from “time-to-time”; you’re a respected seasoned author through and through with exceptional written and verbal communication who has experience working across State or Australian Government. You’re a master in your craft as you’ve written and been involved in major policy reform, legislative reviews and submissions.

You know your stakeholders both internally and externally are broad and range anywhere from administration, through to C-Suite and beyond, therefore you can adapt to your audience seamlessly as you translate and articulate policies to both layman terminology and engineering speak.

As a Senior Policy Advisor, you’re meticulous when it comes to attention to detail, this is one of your strengths, and greatest attributes.

Your qualifications in Public Policy, Economics or Law are the pillar to your success as this enables you to navigate complex regulations, craft impactful policies and influence decision making.  

In addition, your responsibilities will include:

• Author papers of a high standard as required for the business, including reports, Cabinet papers or public documents to tight deadlines.
• Build and proactively support strong and influential relationships with government stakeholders, while maintaining confidentiality and exercising diplomacy in dealings with internal and external stakeholders.
• Assist the business in preparing materials such as papers, agendas and briefings to enable successful participation in external forums.
• Utilise internal and external written sources of evidence and available research to develop accurate and comprehensive policy positions on key areas of strategic policy.
• Provide key and special policy support to teams throughout the business in authoring policy reports and artefacts to enable the business to rapidly and authoritatively respond to business requests.

Your success in this role will come from: 

• Excellent written skills, including a demonstrated ability to rapidly develop policy artifacts including briefings, executive summaries and position papers based on research and subject matter expert input.
• Outstanding oral communication and inter-personal skills, including a demonstrated ability to deliver detailed policy concepts to various audiences and to positively influence stakeholder relationships.
• Obtaining a practical understanding of South Australian systems of government and their application to the work of SA Water.

Further information can be found in the attached PD – Senior Policy Adviser.docx

To apply, click 'Apply'. Please submit and complete the application form, upload a cover letter and current resume. For enquiries, please contact Steph Haines from the Talent Acquisition team steph.haines@sawater.com.au 

Applications close 11:55pm, Thursday 26 June 2025. 

A great customer experience is best achieved by having a diverse and inclusive team that reflects the community we serve. Applications are encouraged from everyone, including people living with disability, job seekers of all ages, members of the LGBTIQA+ community, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and people from culturally diverse backgrounds. 

Our Industry is like no other. Dive into the wonderful world of water and explore the boundless opportunities. Learn more about the water industry at careersinwater.com.au.

Please note: We request that recruitment agencies do not submit candidates for this position, as they will not be accepted.