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Senior Sustainability Lead

Heidelberg Materials Australia • Australia • Added on Sep 2, 2026
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As the Senior Sustainability Lead at Heidelberg Materials Australia, you will act as the primary architect and guardian of the company’s sustainability reporting framework. Your core focus involves transforming raw data from quarries, concrete plants, and logistics networks into audit-ready disclosures that meet both domestic and international standards. You will own the end-to-end delivery of climate-related reporting, ensuring that every metric reflects the firm’s operational reality and strategic goals.

This role is critical because it bridges the gap between industrial heavy lifting and high-level corporate transparency. In a sector as carbon-intensive as building materials, your work in mapping Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions directly influences the industry’s path toward net-zero construction. By ensuring data integrity, you provide the foundation for real environmental progress and regulatory trust in Australia’s infrastructure supply chain.

This suits someone who possesses a rigorous analytical mindset and the technical depth to navigate evolving ASRS and GHG Protocol requirements. You should be a collaborative leader who enjoys building systems from the ground up while coaching a growing team of analysts.

Job FAQs

What are the main missions and responsibilities of this role?

The primary mission is to establish and lead the sustainability reporting capability for a major industrial player. This involves the end-to-end delivery of ASRS and AASB S2 climate-related disclosures, alongside managing NGER and GHG Protocol emissions reporting across all three scopes. You will be responsible for developing internal control frameworks and auditable data collection processes that span procurement, energy, and HR systems. A significant part of the role involves partnering with Finance to ensure sustainability metrics are treated with the same rigor as financial data.

Key learning opportunities for this job

This position offers unparalleled exposure to the Australian Sustainability Reporting Standards (ASRS) during their critical implementation phase. You will gain hands-on experience applying global frameworks like TCFD and ISSB within a complex, asset-heavy industrial context. Furthermore, you will sharpen your leadership skills by managing a team of Sustainability Analysts and driving digital transformation initiatives. This includes the potential to implement and optimize sophisticated ESG reporting platforms and automated data workflows.

How does the ideal candidate look like (experience, skills)?

The ideal candidate is a strategic professional with a strong technical grounding in carbon accounting, audit, or regulatory reporting. A Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field like Environmental Engineering, Finance, or Sustainability is essential, paired with significant experience in non-financial disclosure. You should demonstrate an advanced ability to manage large, complex datasets and translate technical climate requirements into actionable business insights. Proficiency in tools like Power BI or SAP is a major plus, as is a background in high-impact sectors such as manufacturing or infrastructure.

Advice to stand out and make a successful application

To stand out, move beyond general sustainability concepts and highlight your specific experience with assurance-ready documentation and data governance. Show that you understand the transition from voluntary to mandatory reporting in the Australian market and how that impacts a heavy-industry operator. Tailor your application by demonstrating how you have previously handled Scope 3 emissions challenges or integrated sustainability into financial reporting structures. Highlighting your ability to influence cross-functional stakeholders—especially in finance and operations—will demonstrate that you possess the executive presence required.

What aspects of the company's sustainability is this role likely to focus on?

The role focuses heavily on the transparency and accountability of the company's environmental footprint. Specifically, you will be refining how the company tracks and reports the carbon intensity of cement and concrete, which are central to the industry's decarbonization efforts. You will also likely focus on supply chain sustainability through Scope 3 reporting, assessing the impacts of transport and raw material procurement. This ensures the company can provide low-carbon solutions to the civil construction sector with verified and credible environmental data.

What are the main challenges someone in this role might face?

The most immediate challenge will be the rapidly shifting regulatory landscape in Australia, requiring constant adaptation to new ASRS requirements. Navigating the data silos of a national network with over 300 sites involves significant logistical and technical complexity. You might also face the challenge of cultural alignment, ensuring that operational teams across quarries and plants understand the necessity of precise data reporting. Balancing the need for audit-grade accuracy with the fast pace of industrial operations requires resilience and excellent communication skills.

How could a typical day look like for someone in this position?

A typical day might begin with a review of emissions data submissions from various production sites, followed by a meeting with the Finance team to align on internal control methodologies. You could spend the afternoon drafting governance papers for the senior executive team or mentoring your team of analysts. Interspersed with these tasks are sessions dedicated to process automation, where you might work with IT to improve how energy usage is captured in real-time. The day often concludes with monitoring global regulatory updates to ensure the local reporting calendar remains compliant.

What are the opportunities for professional growth and development in this role?

As a senior leader in a high-growth function, there are clear paths toward executive sustainability management or specialized roles in ESG risk and governance. Given the company's part in a global group, there could be opportunities for international knowledge exchange. Success in this role builds a profile as a subject matter expert in Australian climate disclosure, a niche that is currently experiencing a talent shortage. This provides significant leverage for future career moves into strategic ESG consulting or corporate leadership roles within the building materials sector.

The main stakeholders you might be interacting with

You will interact frequently with the Group Reporting Manager and Finance stakeholders to integrate sustainability into the company’s annual reports. Collaborating with the Risk and Operations teams is also crucial for validating environmental data and identifying operational efficiencies. Externally, you will be the primary point of contact for auditors and assurance providers, defending the company's reporting methodologies. You may also engage with regulatory bodies and industry associations to stay at the forefront of Australian climate-related financial disclosure standards.

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