Join to apply for the Chief Executive Officer role at YLab
* Location: Naarm/Melbourne office location with flexible WFH arrangements
* Status: Permanent (0.8-1.0 FTE)
YLab's CEO leads the organisation through a balance of strategic direction-setting, organisational stewardship, and relational, people‑focused leadership.
Working closely with the Board, the CEO sets the direction of the organisation, ensuring that all activities align with YLab's mission and long-term goals. They track organisational progress while maintaining a strong awareness of market conditions and YLab's position within the broader social impact and youth engagement sectors, adjusting or recalibrating strategic initiatives as needed.
Across a typical week, the CEO maintains a strategic focus, supports and empowers staff, strengthens partnerships, and ensures YLab remains financially resilient, mission-aligned, and well-positioned to deliver a meaningful impact. At all times, the CEO must ensure that all aspects of the business, from the work we deliver to the way we structure our teams, are working together in unison to help us achieve our goals.
YLab is a social enterprise that exists to design better systems and services with young people. Imagined by the Foundation for Young Australians (FYA) in 2016, YLab has since established itself as an independent subsidiary of FYA, and appointed its inaugural Board in 2024.
We are a co‑design, strategy and creative services consultancy that employs and trains young people to centre their lived expertise and deliver design projects with our clients. We work not only to build the capabilities of young people, but to also shift the mindsets and build the capacity of institutions to value young people as equal partners in decision‑making.
Since our conception, we have worked on over 250 projects with clients like the Australian Electoral Commission, Office for Youth and VicHealth, and have directly employed and trained over 190 young people through our Associate program.
Our work mainly focuses on the health, employment and education systems with an intersectional focus, and this is where we see co‑design being a high‑impact tool to shift systems and services.
What you'll do
Strategic Leadership
* Oversee the delivery of YLab's 2026–29 strategic plan, ensuring progress is tracked, success is measurable, and strategic initiatives are continuously refined to remain responsive to emerging opportunities, risks, and shifts across the economic, cultural and social landscape.
* Champion youth‑led practice, creating the conditions for young people's diverse voices, experiences and skills to meaningfully inform YLab's purpose and impact.
* Work closely with the YLab and FYA Boards, building strong, trust‑based relationships that support effective governance and organisational accountability.
* Hold and evolve YLab's strategic position within the social impact, consulting and youth engagement ecosystems. Continuously scanning the market and assessing sector trends, The CEO ensures the organisation remains relevant, differentiated and mission‑aligned.
* Oversee enterprise risk management, ensuring organisational, financial, cultural and project risks are identified early, escalated appropriately and managed proactively.
* Represent YLab with credibility, acting as a key spokesperson across public forums, panels, media opportunities, sector events and partner engagements to strengthen the organisation's profile.
* Ensure organisational focus on long‑term impact, tracking progress toward strategic goals and adjusting strategic initiatives when necessary to keep the organisation on track in a dynamic environment.
* Champion YLab's ongoing journey of First Nations allyship by creating space for learning, reflection and relationship‑building, and ensuring our strategic direction and everyday practices are guided by First Nations knowledge, leadership and community‑led priorities.
Business Development
* Secure mission‑aligned funding by cultivating a strong network of philanthropic partners and social impact funders who share YLab's commitment to youth‑led systems change. This includes exploring coalitions, multi‑organisation initiatives, and innovative funding models that extend YLab's reach and long‑term sustainability.
* Identify and secure client projects, partnerships, and grant opportunities that align with YLab's strategic priorities, expand our influence, and enable the delivery of impactful, youth‑centred work.
* Oversee the delivery of targeted proposals for government and sector partners, ensuring they are aligned with YLab's annual financial and impact goals.
* Oversee YLab's annual business budgets, ensuring they reflect organisational priorities, resource needs and strategic goals.
* Design and implement long‑term financial models that support YLab's financial sustainability, growth and mission delivery.
* Provide clear and timely financial reporting to the Board and Finance, Audit and Risk Committee, tracking progress against the budget and highlighting emerging risks, opportunities and required adjustments.
* Diversify and strengthen YLab's revenue base, identifying opportunities to expand funding streams and codify and commoditise our offerings to ensure long‑term organisational stability.
* Champion strong financial management practices, ensuring budgets are adhered to, financial risks are identified early, and the organisation achieves financial sustainability while enabling high‑quality delivery.
* Lead with empathy, clarity and confidence, modelling an inclusive leadership style that balances compassion with decisive action, and fosters a culturally strong and psychologically safe workplace for all.
* Role‑model YLab's values, of authenticity, innovation, justice and connection, through every action, decision and interaction, ensuring they are embedded across the organisation.
* Provide mentorship and guidance to YLab's senior management team, ensuring they are equipped to excel in their roles and effectively lead their teams.
* Oversee the management of the broader YLab team, including the hiring, development and transition of staff when necessary, while ensuring all employment decisions are fair, transparent and aligned with organisational values.
* Build and uphold a cohesive team culture through effective communication, quality feedback, consistent role‑modeling, and the design and facilitation of rituals that nurture connection and accountability.
* Strengthen and develop YLab's practices, ensuring that the organisation's ways of working remain industry‑leading and aligned to our mission.
* Ensure YLab's Associates have an optimal experience throughout the Associate Program, one that enables them to learn, build skills, and apply their expertise to real‑world challenges in ways that set them up for future career success.
* Identify and support capability‑building opportunities for the broader YLab team and Associates, ensuring they have access to the knowledge, mentorship and development pathways they need to grow in their careers.
Our work is guided by a commitment to intersectional justice. We strongly encourage applications from First Nations people, young people, people of colour, women, people with disability, people from LGBTIQA+ communities, and people with lived experience of economic injustice and housing insecurity.
We recognise that charities and nonprofits have systematically excluded these communities. The problems we face are complex and the more diversity of experiences we can bring to the table, the better our solutions are. Even if you only meet some of what we're looking for, or feel that you might not entirely be 'the right fit', we'd love to hear from you.
Other important things
* Working with Children Check and National Police Records Check are mandatory requirements of this position - we'll help you with this if you are successful.
* Applicants for this role must have a valid, legal right to work in Australia.
* YLab is committed to safeguarding young people. We require all staff to commit to following our safeguarding procedures and ensure all work is performed through a lens of safeguarding. The successful applicant will also commit to attend training to expand their understanding of safeguarding.
How to apply
* Head to and click 'apply now' on the relevant position.
* Please complete the form provided, attaching your resume (no more than 3 pages) and/or a link to your LinkedIn profile.
* Please provide brief answers to the three questions listed (no more than 300 words each):
* When you think about how you lead, what feels most uniquely 'you'?
* What draws you to working in a way that centres young people's voices and lived experiences?
* How has your own lived experience shaped your personal practice over time?
Alternatively, submit your responses to the above questions along with your resume and contact details to
Successful candidates will be called for an online interview and be provided with all interview questions in advance. As this is a critical role in our organisation, follow‑up interviews, key stakeholder meetings and/or tasks may be required to finalise our successful candidate.
We understand that applications can be stressful and often inaccessible, and we're committed to an inclusive recruitment process. Please let us know if there's anything we can do to create an accessible and safe space with you.
Applications will close at 11:59PM on Sunday, 11th January 2026.
Email us at for more information, questions, or to book a confidential discussion about the role.
Please note that our team will be unavailable from Saturday, 20th December until Monday, 5th January during our office closure period.
Seniority level
Executive
Employment type
Full‑time
Job function
Business Development and Sales
Industries
Civic and Social Organizations
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