Job Details
Senior Privacy Specialist
Posted:
01-Oct-2026
Location:
Sydney
Sector:
In-House Legal
Role:
Legal Counsel - Ohther
Salary:
$ -
Work Type:
Permanent Full Time
Reference:
1690775
PQE Partners are working with a highly regarded, complex organisation to appoint a Senior Privacy Specialist into its established legal team.
This is a newly created position and the organisation’s first dedicated privacy hire, offering the successful person genuine ownership of the privacy function and the opportunity to shape how privacy is managed across the business.
There is an existing privacy framework in place; however, with an increasing organisational focus on privacy and significant regulatory change underway in Australia, the business is looking to appoint an experienced privacy professional to take ownership of the area, identify gaps and continue to uplift and embed its approach.
Reporting to a senior member of the legal leadership team, you will become the key privacy SME across the organisation. You will work closely with stakeholders across Legal, Risk, Compliance, Technology, Cyber Security and Data/AI Governance, providing practical advice and ensuring privacy considerations are effectively understood and managed.
Stakeholder engagement will be a significant part of the position. You will work with employees and senior leadership to increase privacy awareness across the organisation, develop and deliver training and translate complex legislative and regulatory requirements into clear, practical advice. There will also be the opportunity to engage at executive level and contribute to Board-level reporting.
Key responsibilities will include:
• Taking ownership of and continuing to develop the organisation’s privacy management framework
• Advising on compliance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), Australian Privacy Principles and other relevant requirements
• Advising on Privacy Impact Assessments for new projects, systems and initiatives
• Identifying privacy risks and developing practical mitigation strategies
• Managing and advising on privacy incidents and data breaches, including obligations under the Notifiable Data Breaches regime
• Maintaining and enhancing privacy policies, processes, notices and governance
• Monitoring developments in the Australian privacy regulatory landscape and advising the business on their impact
• Developing and delivering privacy training and awareness initiatives
• Working collaboratively across Legal, Risk, Technology, Cyber Security and Data/AI Governance
• Providing ad hoc support on Freedom of Information matters where required
About you You will have a legal degree (LLB or JD) together with strong, dedicated privacy experience and the technical capability to operate as the organisation’s key privacy specialist.
You will ideally bring:
• Significant experience working in privacy, ideally within financial services, professional services or another complex and highly regulated environment
• Strong knowledge of the Privacy Act and Australian Privacy Principles
• Experience developing, implementing or uplifting privacy frameworks and processes
• Practical experience with PIAs, privacy risk and data breach/incident management
• Strong stakeholder engagement and influencing skills
• The ability to communicate technical privacy requirements clearly to non-specialists
• Confidence presenting and engaging with senior stakeholders and leadership teams
• A practical, commercial and solutions-focused approach
This is a particularly interesting opportunity for an experienced privacy professional looking to step into a visible, standalone role with the mandate to shape and develop an organisation’s privacy capability.
The organisation operates in a sophisticated and highly regulated environment, with exposure across finance, major projects and complex transactions. You will also be joining a high-calibre and established legal team with a strong culture and excellent retention.
This is a newly created position and the organisation’s first dedicated privacy hire, offering the successful person genuine ownership of the privacy function and the opportunity to shape how privacy is managed across the business.
There is an existing privacy framework in place; however, with an increasing organisational focus on privacy and significant regulatory change underway in Australia, the business is looking to appoint an experienced privacy professional to take ownership of the area, identify gaps and continue to uplift and embed its approach.
Reporting to a senior member of the legal leadership team, you will become the key privacy SME across the organisation. You will work closely with stakeholders across Legal, Risk, Compliance, Technology, Cyber Security and Data/AI Governance, providing practical advice and ensuring privacy considerations are effectively understood and managed.
Stakeholder engagement will be a significant part of the position. You will work with employees and senior leadership to increase privacy awareness across the organisation, develop and deliver training and translate complex legislative and regulatory requirements into clear, practical advice. There will also be the opportunity to engage at executive level and contribute to Board-level reporting.
Key responsibilities will include:
• Taking ownership of and continuing to develop the organisation’s privacy management framework
• Advising on compliance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), Australian Privacy Principles and other relevant requirements
• Advising on Privacy Impact Assessments for new projects, systems and initiatives
• Identifying privacy risks and developing practical mitigation strategies
• Managing and advising on privacy incidents and data breaches, including obligations under the Notifiable Data Breaches regime
• Maintaining and enhancing privacy policies, processes, notices and governance
• Monitoring developments in the Australian privacy regulatory landscape and advising the business on their impact
• Developing and delivering privacy training and awareness initiatives
• Working collaboratively across Legal, Risk, Technology, Cyber Security and Data/AI Governance
• Providing ad hoc support on Freedom of Information matters where required
About you You will have a legal degree (LLB or JD) together with strong, dedicated privacy experience and the technical capability to operate as the organisation’s key privacy specialist.
You will ideally bring:
• Significant experience working in privacy, ideally within financial services, professional services or another complex and highly regulated environment
• Strong knowledge of the Privacy Act and Australian Privacy Principles
• Experience developing, implementing or uplifting privacy frameworks and processes
• Practical experience with PIAs, privacy risk and data breach/incident management
• Strong stakeholder engagement and influencing skills
• The ability to communicate technical privacy requirements clearly to non-specialists
• Confidence presenting and engaging with senior stakeholders and leadership teams
• A practical, commercial and solutions-focused approach
This is a particularly interesting opportunity for an experienced privacy professional looking to step into a visible, standalone role with the mandate to shape and develop an organisation’s privacy capability.
The organisation operates in a sophisticated and highly regulated environment, with exposure across finance, major projects and complex transactions. You will also be joining a high-calibre and established legal team with a strong culture and excellent retention.
