Senior Portfolio Director, Markets, Investment, and Jobs

Position Title	Senior Portfolio Director, Markets, Investment, and Jobs
Engagement Type	Long-Term Personnel
Group / Workstream	D3
Reports To	Deputy Program Director for Policy Delivery
Location	Jakarta — Prospera Office
Duration	12 months with possibility of extension

Program Background

Prospera Phase 2 is Australia’s flagship economic development partnership with Indonesia, supporting the Government of Indonesia (GoI) to advance sustainable, inclusive and climate-resilient economic growth. Building on nearly three decades of cooperation, the program delivers high-quality, demand-driven policy advice, institutional strengthening and Australian Public Service (APS) partnerships aligned with Indonesia’s national priorities and Australia’s economic diplomacy objectives.

The program is structured around two mutually reinforcing End-of-Program Outcomes (EOPOs):

• EOPO1: Strengthened macroeconomic, financial and public financial management systems that support sustainable, climate-resilient and inclusive growth; and
• EOPO2: Expanded markets, jobs, trade and investment through improved economic policy and reform implementation.

Across both outcomes, Prospera Phase 2 emphasises politically informed and evidence-based reform, sustained institutional capability, and locally led solutions rather than short-term technical fixes. Gender equality, disability and social inclusion (GEDSI), sustainability, climate and energy transition considerations, and localisation are embedded across all areas of engagement.

Purpose of the Role

The Senior Portfolio Director (Markets, Investment and Jobs) provides strategic leadership and oversight of Prospera’s Markets, Investment, Trade, Labour and Skills, Digital, and Multilateral Engagement portfolio under EOPO2.

The Senior Portfolio Director is responsible for setting strategic direction and priorities across the portfolio, overseeing delivery and quality, managing portfolio-level risks, sequencing work in line with available resources, and maintaining senior relationships with GoI and Australian Government counterparts.

The Senior Portfolio Director provides overall leadership and strategic direction for the portfolio, working closely with Team Leads who are responsible for the day-to-day management of their respective teams, technical delivery, activity management and workstream-level stakeholder engagement within agreed portfolio and program parameters. The Senior Portfolio Director supports Team Leads on matters requiring portfolio-level judgement, coordination or senior engagement.

The Senior Portfolio Director reports to the Deputy Program Director for Policy Delivery, works closely with and is a member of Prospera’s Senior Leadership Team (SLT).

Key Responsibilities

The Senior Portfolio Director (Markets, Investment and Jobs) will:

• Head the Trade and Investment, Labour and Skills, Digital Economy and Governance, and Multilateral Engagement portfolio, setting strategic priorities and providing strategic direction for program-wide alignment.
• Supervise and support Team Leads/equivalent within the portfolio, providing direction, managing performance and ensuring clear accountability, while delegating day-to-day technical delivery and team management to the respective Team Leads.
• Oversee portfolio delivery, including work planning, progress against agreed priorities, major deliverables, delivery risks and competing demands across workstreams.
• Maintain the quality and policy relevance of the portfolio's work, providing senior review and judgement on significant analytical products and policy advice and drawing on relevant members of the Senior Leadership Team and Senior Experts Group for specialist technical input where and as appropriate.
• Lead senior stakeholder engagement for the portfolio, including relationships with relevant Government of Indonesia counterparts and DFAT, while supporting Team Leads to manage workstream-level relationships.
• Identify and manage issues that cut across workstreams, including emerging economic and policy developments, shared stakeholder priorities, delivery risks and opportunities for joint work within EOPO2 and across Prospera.
• Lead portfolio planning and provide advice to Team Leads on resource allocation, including staffing, technical inputs and the distribution of effort across workstreams.
• Oversee budgetary and technical resource allocation for the portfolio.
• Contribute to Prospera-wide leadership and strategy as a member of the Senior Leadership Team, working with other members of the SLT including - and as may be amended in accordance with the final organisational structure – the Program Director, Deputy Program Director for Policy Delivery, Deputy Program Director for Performance, Partnerships, and Inclusion, Chief Operating Officer, Lead Economist, other Portfolio Director and program functions on priorities that extend beyond the portfolio.

Key Relationships — Internal

As a member of the SLT, the Senior Portfolio Director works closely with the following and as may be amended in accordance with the organisational structure once finalised:

• Program Director - overall program leadership, strategic direction and senior management.
• Deputy Program Director for Policy Delivery - reporting line; strategic direction, performance management and quality assurance, escalation and program-level decisions.
• Lead Economist – relevant economic policy advice and quality assurance, where and as appropriate.
• Team Leads within the EOPO2 portfolio - direct reports responsible for workstream leadership, technical delivery and day-to-day management of their teams.
• Senior Experts Group – strategic guidance and expert advice where and as appropriate.
• Portfolio Director – EOPO1 - collaboration on policy issues and activities spanning EOPO1 and EOPO2, including coordination with EOPO 1 Team Leads.
• Executive and Program Office - program planning and coordination.
• Performance, Partnerships & Inclusion functions - collaboration on other functions including monitoring and evaluation, partnerships, communications, knowledge and learning, and GEDSI.
• Operations and enabling services - collaboration on people, finance, operations, systems, risk and compliance matters.

Key Relationships — External

The Senior Portfolio Director engages with:

• Senior GoI counterparts, particularly within the Coordinating Ministry of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Trade, Ministry of Investment, Ministry of Manpower, DEN, KomDigi, BP-BUMN, KPPU, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and other institutions relevant to the portfolio;
• DFAT and other Australian Government counterparts;
• Australian Public Service partner agencies;
• Development partners and international organisations; and
• Research institutions, technical experts, business councils and associations, and other organisations relevant to portfolio priorities.

Qualifications & Experience

The successful candidate will have:

Essential

• Postgraduate degree in Economics or another relevant discipline.
• At least 15 years of progressively senior professional experience in economic policy, public policy, international trade, investment policy, digital economy, labour economics or a closely related field.
• Strong expertise in international trade and investment policy, with sufficient breadth across the portfolio to lead multidisciplinary economic policy work and engage credibly with senior technical specialists.
• Substantial experience providing economic and policy advice to senior government officials and decision-makers, with a demonstrated ability to translate complex analysis into clear and practical advice.
• Demonstrated experience leading multiple teams or workstreams, including setting direction, managing priorities and resources, overseeing quality and delivery, and supporting senior technical staff.
• Strong judgement and ability to operate effectively in complex and changing policy and institutional environments.
• Extensive experience building and managing senior relationships with government, development partners and other stakeholders.
• Strong understanding of Indonesia's economic policy institutions, policy-making processes and political economy.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills in English and Bahasa Indonesia.

Desirable

• Significant experience working across several areas relevant to the portfolio.
• Extensive experience engaging with Indonesia’s CMEA, Ministry of Trade, DEN and other central economic policy institutions.
• Experience working within an economic policy advisory organisation, international development program, international organisation, research institution or comparable policy environment.
• Experience working within Australia–Indonesia economic cooperation, including engagement with DFAT and Australian Government agencies.
• Experience developing or managing partnerships involving government institutions, development partners, technical experts or research organisations.
• Demonstrated record of producing, commissioning or overseeing high-quality economic research and policy advice for senior policy audiences.

Skills & Competencies

The role requires the following skills and competencies:

• Strategic thinking and judgement, connecting developments across economic policy areas, identifying material issues and implications, and applying sound judgement in complex policy and institutional settings.
• Strong analytical capability, critically assessing economic analysis, evidence and policy advice, including their underlying assumptions, limitations and implications for policy.
• Leadership and people management, providing clear direction, constructive challenge and support while enabling Team Leads to exercise appropriate autonomy in managing their teams.
• Prioritisation and decision-making, assessing competing demands across multiple workstreams and making practical trade-offs based on strategic importance, available resources and delivery considerations.
• Clear and effective communication, translating complex economic and policy issues into concise and practical messages for senior government, DFAT, Prospera and other audiences.
• Stakeholder engagement and relationship management, building trusted relationships and navigating different institutional perspectives, priorities and sensitivities.
• Collaboration and teamwork, working constructively across technical disciplines, teams and organisational boundaries and encouraging effective collaboration across the portfolio.
• Agility and adaptability in work management and prioritisation, maintaining effectiveness under pressure and responding constructively to changing priorities and emerging demands.

Language Proficiency

Excellent written and oral communication skills in Bahasa Indonesia and English, with the ability to engage effectively with senior government and program stakeholders and communicate complex economic and policy issues clearly.

Working Conditions

The Senior Portfolio Director is based in the Prospera Office in Jakarta, Indonesia. The role involves regular engagement with GoI and Australian Government counterparts and may require travel within Indonesia and internationally.

The role requires flexibility to respond to emerging policy priorities, senior stakeholder requirements and program deadlines.

Performance & Accountability

Performance will be assessed against:

• Delivery of agreed portfolio priorities and workplans, including timely completion of key activities and deliverables across the portfolio.
• Quality of policy advice and analytical outputs, including technical quality, relevance to government priorities and usefulness to senior policy audiences.
• Team performance, including clear accountability of Team Leads, timely resolution or escalation of delivery issues, and effective management of workload across the portfolio.
• Stakeholder engagement, including effective management of senior relationships with Government of Indonesia, DFAT and other key partners, and responsiveness to agreed stakeholder priorities.
• Management of portfolio resources and risks, including delivery within agreed resources, early identification of material risks and timely corrective action or escalation.
• Compliance with program requirements, including agreed planning, reporting, financial, risk and operational requirements.

Core Competencies

This position is expected to demonstrate the following core competencies:

• Communicates clearly and effectively.
• Works collaboratively with others.
• Leads and develops others.
• Exercises sound judgement and solves problems.
• Plans and prioritises effectively.
• Delegates appropriately and maintains accountability.
• Builds effective stakeholder relationships.
• Demonstrates adaptability and flexibility.

Ways of Working

Prospera Phase 2 operates in a transparent, accountable, and collaborative manner. All team members are expected to share information early, manage risk proactively, and maintain clarity about decisions, roles and responsibilities. The program values respect, professionalism, integrity, and a shared commitment to high-quality, timely delivery.

Ethics and Compliance

The postholder must uphold the highest standards of ethical conduct and comply with all DFAT policies, contractual obligations and Prospera operational requirements, including:

• DFAT Child Protection and Preventing Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment
  (PSEAH) policies;
• Fraud, bribery and anti-corruption prevention requirements;
• The Program Code of Conduct;
• Conflict-of-interest obligations; and
• Privacy, data-protection and confidentiality requirements.

Intellectual Property

All materials produced under this assignment will be the property of Prospera/DFAT.