- Shape the future growth of one of Australia’s most iconic regions
- Lead a diverse planning, growth and sustainability portfolio
- Executive influence, community impact and an exceptional Cairns lifestyle
Cairns is a region of extraordinary significance and opportunity. Home to more than 170,000 people and positioned between two World Heritage areas, the Great Barrier Reef and the Wet Tropics rainforest, the region combines strong population growth, economic opportunity and an enviable lifestyle with a complex and highly valued natural environment.
Cairns Regional Council plays a central role in balancing these opportunities and responsibilities, planning for growth while protecting the qualities that make the region such a distinctive place to live, work, invest and visit.
The Planning, Growth & Sustainability Directorate is at the heart of this agenda. Spanning strategic and statutory planning, development assessment, sustainability, growth management, regulatory services and compliance, the Directorate helps shape how Cairns grows and how Council responds to the changing needs of its community.
Reporting directly to the CEO and joining a cohesive and highly engaged Executive Leadership Team, the Director Planning, Growth & Sustainability will lead a multidisciplinary Directorate of approximately 100 people. This is a broad and influential executive mandate. The Director will provide strategic leadership across the region’s planning and growth agenda while ensuring high-quality, responsive and customer-focused delivery across the Directorate’s regulatory and operational functions.
Working at the intersection of community expectations, development, environmental stewardship and government policy, you will help navigate some of the most important decisions shaping the future of Cairns.
You will provide trusted advice to the CEO, Mayor and Councillors, build productive relationships with government, industry, developers and community stakeholders, and represent Council in significant planning, development and regulatory matters.
Equally important will be your leadership of people and performance. You will continue to build capability across the Directorate, foster an engaged and accountable culture, encourage innovation and continuous improvement, and ensure strong governance, financial management, risk and safety practices.
To be successful in this role, you will bring extensive leadership and management experience within large organisations, with the judgement, credibility and resilience to operate effectively in a complex and highly visible environment. Your experience may have been developed within local or state government, a regional authority, or another complex organisation with significant planning, development, regulatory, growth or sustainability responsibilities.
You will bring strong knowledge of Queensland’s planning and regulatory environment, together with a demonstrated ability to translate strategy and policy into tangible organisational and community outcomes. Comfortable navigating competing priorities and diverse stakeholder interests, you will understand how to operate effectively within a political environment while providing considered, pragmatic and trusted advice.
A strong people leader, you will have experience leading and developing multidisciplinary professional teams and creating cultures characterised by accountability, collaboration and high performance. Your commercial, financial, governance and risk acumen will complement a contemporary and inclusive leadership style, enabling you to build credibility and trusted relationships across Council, government, industry and the community.
Above all, you will appreciate that successful growth is about more than planning frameworks and development decisions. It requires sound judgement, an ability to bring people with you, and a commitment to achieving enduring outcomes for the community.
Few executive planning roles offer this combination of scale, complexity, influence and leadership. To view the Success Profile for this opportunity, please copy and paste the following link into your browser: https://tinyurl.com/zf4cy2wk
To apply, please click ‘apply now’ and upload your CV and Cover Letter. For any questions not outlined in the PD and for a confidential discussion, please contact Ashleigh Stewart at 0408 856 689 or Emma Wallace at 0432 060 301.
Davidson acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which we work and live. We are also committed to equal opportunity and strive to promote diversity, inclusion, belonging, flexibility, and accessibility in all that we do.
Should you require assistance in your interactions with us or through a recruitment process, please let us know so we can provide adjustments for you.
Applications close Wednesday 2 September 2026.
