Data Support Officer

About this role

Australia’s natural and cultural heritage is unique. Our land and seascapes are distinctive, home to plants and animals found nowhere else in the world, and to some of the oldest living cultures on earth. These environments and cultures are an essential part of our national identity, and visitors travel from across the country and the world to experience them. The Director of National Parks (the Director) is responsible for six national parks, the Australian National Botanic Gardens, 58 Australian Marine Parks and the Heard Island and McDonald Islands Marine Reserve established under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. Parks Australia is the federal park agency that supports the Director, and they are a division of the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (the Department). We work to showcase these natural and cultural wonders to the world, demonstrating to all why these places are so special, and inspiring communities to become more invested in their care and future. The Science and Australian National Botanic Gardens Branch leads science and conservation planning and policy for Parks Australia, and conducts research in conservation and biodiversity management through a range of programs. We engage in and coordinate diverse research partnerships and ensure First Nations knowledge and innovative solutions are core to our work, enabling us to enhance engagement and embed science into decision-making at all levels. Our work includes: • Strategic science planning and prioritisation and shaping research partnerships for Parks Australia. • Leading cross-cutting research to support Parks Australia – in areas such as climate change adaptation, nature positive and knowledge weaving. • Providing scientific support for Protected Areas policy and Park Management Plans. • Managing the Australian National Botanic Gardens, home to our Branch and the nation’s largest living collection of native plants. • Innovation in the cross-cutting application of new technologies and data analytics to meet science and application outcomes. • Facilitating research and science capacity building and education. • Curating national collections of biological data and conserving and protecting plants through systematics research, seed banking and ex situ conservation. • Climate adaption and policy for Parks Australia. • Evaluation and reporting to understand management effectiveness and performance of our parks, gardens and agency. • Data and information systems services for Parks Australia. The Parks Australia Data and Information Centre is a new, organisation-wide service. The Centre leads and is accountable for Parks Australia’s data governance and management functions and the development of modern data systems and platforms, enabling streamlined data storage, access and integration across science, operations and corporate functions. It provides information services, spatial analysis, analytics and artificial intelligence capabilities, and delivers data and outputs for Parks Australia’s management effectiveness system. As a central and trusted service, it will bring together data governance, information management, analytics and emerging technologies—providing clear guidance, shared tools and expert support to help teams find, access and use data in their day-to-day work and make better-informed decisions. As a major producer and user of environmental data, Parks Australia is positioning the Centre within the broader environmental data landscape, connecting to national data networks to ensuring our data is interoperable, accessible and contributes to a wider ecosystem of environmental knowledge. The Centre team works collaboratively across parks, science, policy, corporate and ICT functions to deliver a coordinated approach and alignment to broader Departmental and Australian Government requirements. The APS 5 Data Support Officer contributes to the delivery of a cross-agency data and analytics service, providing practical support to staff and assisting with the day-to-day coordination of data-related activities. The role focuses on supporting data management processes, data quality, data entry and system use, while also providing coordination and administrative support across the team. Working under limited direction, the role supports APS 6 staff and technical specialists, and contributes to consistent, reliable and well-managed data across Parks Australia. The role suits someone who is organised, detail-focused and able to work collaboratively across a range of teams and systems. This position is responsible for delivering activities, including but not limited to: • Support data management activities, including data entry, validation, updates and maintenance across systems and platforms. • Assist with maintaining data quality through checks, data cleansing and following established standards and procedures. • Support the documentation of datasets, including updating records, metadata and registers. • Provide support to database, reporting and system administrators, including data inputs, updates and coordination tasks. • Assist in maintaining data within systems such as SharePoint, Excel, Power BI and other corporate platforms. • Support testing, updates and routine system tasks as required. • Assist staff across Parks Australia to access and use data, systems and tools. • Respond to requests and enquiries, escalating more complex issues where required. • Help maintain consistent use of templates, standards and processes. • Manage shared mailboxes and request channels, including triaging enquiries, tracking requests and coordinating responses. • Maintain trackers, logs and registers to support visibility of work and priorities. • Assist with meeting coordination, including agendas, papers and action tracking. • Build and maintain positive working relationships with stakeholders across parks, science and corporate teams. • Provide clear and practical guidance to support users with varying levels of data experience. • Assist with preparing reports, summaries and basic analysis to support team outputs. • Provide flexible support across the Centre to respond to changing priorities. For detailed information about the job-specific capabilities for this role, please view the Job Description which can be downloaded from our website - the Apply Now link will take you there.