Senior Technology Lead

About the Company

We are Australia's most progressive boutique consulting and training firm specialising in the Defence and Government sector, with a 15+ year track record helping organisations achieve sustainable competitive advantage through strategic planning, industry engagement, and professional development.

Our work spans four core service areas: Strategy & Management Advisory, Industry Engagement and Supply Chain Management, Collaborative Working Support Services, and Professional Development & Training Solutions. We're known for a distinct proprietary strategic planning process applied across hundreds of real-world engagements with some of the world's most prominent Defence and Government organisations.

We're now entering an exciting new chapter — converting our proven intellectual property into an AI-enabled enterprise solution platform for critical industry sectors, including Defence, Maritime, and Oil & Gas.

The Opportunity

We're looking for an experienced, hands-on technology leader to act as our CTO as we build our first AI-enabled platform. This is a full-time, in-house executive position — a technical leadership role for a founder/leadership team that needs senior-level technology guidance to bring a Defence and Government-grade platform to life.

You'll set technical direction, guide architecture and platform decisions, and provide the technology judgement our leadership team needs to convert our IP into a secure, scalable product — while overseeing developers or a development partner who carry out the day-to-day build.

This role suits an experienced technology leader who wants full ownership of a platform's technical direction, in a company with deep credibility across Defence and Government clients.

Key Responsibilities

Technology Strategy & Architecture

• Advise the CEO and leadership team on technology strategy, platform architecture, and build-vs-buy decisions for the AI-enabled platform.
• Define the technical roadmap and translate business/product goals into an achievable engineering plan.
• Set architecture standards and technology choices appropriate for a regulated, security-conscious customer base (Defence, Government, Maritime, Oil & Gas).

AI Platform Guidance

• Guide the design of AI-enabled features — recommending appropriate tools, models, and integration approaches.
• Review technical decisions for scalability, data security, and long-term maintainability.

Team & Delivery Oversight

• Provide technical oversight of developers, directly managing day-to-day delivery.
• Review progress against the roadmap on a regular (e.g. weekly) cadence and flag risks early.
• Support hiring or vendor-selection decisions for future technical roles as the platform scales.

Advisory & Communication

• Act as a technical sounding board for the CEO.
• Prepare concise technical updates or briefings for leadership as required.
• Bring strong awareness of security and compliance expectations relevant to Defence/Government-adjacent software.

About You

You're a senior technology leader — likely a current or former CTO, Head of Engineering, or VP of Engineering — who has real experience taking a software or AI-enabled product from concept to live product, ideally within Government, Defence, or other highly regulated environments. You know how to make high-leverage architecture and security decisions and can operate with full ownership of a platform's technical direction.

Essential Experience

• Proven technology leadership experience (CTO, Head of Technology, VP Engineering, or equivalent), including architecture and platform-level decision-making.
• Prior experience working within a Government sector environment (as an employee, contractor, or vendor) is required.
• Strong, hands-on familiarity with Microsoft Azure cloud architecture and services.
• Familiarity with defence-grade security setups and frameworks (e.g. ISM, IRAP, or equivalent security-by-design practices).
• Demonstrated experience delivering AI-enabled or SaaS platforms from early stage through to production.
• Based in the Philippines, available for regular video calls aligned to Australian business hours.

Highly Regarded

• Direct experience advising on or building software for Defence, Maritime, or Oil & Gas sectors.
• Experience working with or advising Australian companies or clients.
• Formal security certifications or clearances relevant to Government or Defence work.

Why Join? Join a 15-year-old, established consulting firm with a proven track record and blue-chip Defence/Government client base as it builds its first AI-enabled product. This is a chance to own the technical direction of a new platform at a company with real credibility in its sector.