Principal Geotechnical Risk & Assurance

Principal Engineer Geotechnical - Perth

• Opportunity to play a leading role in one of the largest and most well established geotechnical communities within Australia
• Drive change, innovation and promote value added growth as part of our work
• Lead the business by making balanced decisions that consider economic, environmental and sustainability perspectives for future success
• Perth based role offering great work life balance 

Where we’re all welcome  

We are committed to an inclusive environment where people feel comfortable to be themselves. We want our people to feel that all voices are heard, all cultures respected and that a variety of perspectives are not only welcome – they are essential to our success. We treat each other fairly and with dignity regardless of race, gender, nationality, ethnic origin, religion, age, sexual orientation, or anything else that makes us different.  

At Rio Tinto, we particularly welcome and encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, women, the LGBTI+ community, mature workers, people with disabilities and people from different cultural backgrounds.  

We acknowledge that all people are different and believe that our differences are our strength. The diversity of skills, life experiences and perspectives within our team enhances our way of working and our ability to achieve success together. 

About the role 

We are looking for a Principal Geotechnical Engineer to join our Geotechnical Engineering Team in Perth.  You will lead a team of geotechnical professionals who are responsible for the geotechnical assurance across all of our Pilbara Mining Operations and will therefore the have significant insight and influence on the technical development and direction of the site based geotechnical community.  You will work closely with the design geotechnical engineering principals to provide site performance feedback to ensure that our geotechnical design strategy is optimised.  You will also contribute to identifying developing and implementing of strategic geotechnical projects to benefit RTIO.

This role is a great opportunity for someone with the ability to effectively engage and influence a professional team to achieve business objectives. Reporting to the geotechnical engineering manager in the Mine Technical Services division, you will:

• Lead and work in a way that puts health, safety and wellbeing of employees as a first priority
• Develop effective relationships with site based operational and technical leadership to promote the proactive implementation of our slope risk management standard.
• Ensuring the team has appropriate resources and training to succeed in their roles.
• Mentor and provide coaching to direct team members and identify where coaching may be needed within the broader geotechnical community of 70+ professionals.
• Facilitating the interaction between the Life of Mine team and other key stakeholders to produce the best outcome for Rio Tinto. Managing stakeholder expectations through clear and appropriately frequent communication.
• Providing slope stability assurance guidance, geotechnical processes, and assurance reviews recommendations to all operational sites and associates stakeholders (Water Resource Evaluation, Resource Evaluation, Rail, Ports, etc).
• additional responsibility of “Qualified Individual” for selected Pilbara mines under Rio Tinto D3 standard for management of pit slopes, stockpiles, spoil, waste dumps and natural slopes, where you will work closely with a range of stakeholders to drive compliance to this standard

What you’ll bring

• A tertiary degree in Geotechnical Engineering or similar with extensive experience in the resources industry and a strong multi-disciplinary and multi-commodity background.
• Technical and operational understanding of surface mine design, operating practices and the impact of the mining operations on value chain outcomes
• Competency in Risk Management and Risk Assessment
• A good understanding of the geotechnical requirements aligned with the risk profile as projects transition from early stage exploration through OOM, PFS and FS.
• Knowledge of specialised geotechnical software applications and experience working with 3D mine planning software
• Proven ability to work collaboratively with senior technical professionals and senior leaders to achieve outcomes through the sharing of expertise, skills and technical capability.
• Excellent verbal and written communication, a C class driver’s license and a shared vision for an injury free workplace where safety, teamwork, respect, integrity and excellence are valued

If you are excited about the role and think you have what it takes but your experience doesn't align 100%, we still want to hear from you.

We are committed to promoting diversity within Rio Tinto and as a special measure to we strongly encourage women to apply.

What we offer 

• A work environment where safety is always the number one priority. 
• A permanent position working directly for Rio Tinto 
• Flexible working arrangements 
• A competitive base salary reflective of your skills and experience with annual incentive program 
• Comprehensive medical benefits including subsidized private health insurance for employees and immediate family. 
• Attractive share ownership plan 
• Company provided insurance cover. 
• Extensive salary sacrifice & salary packaging options. 
• Career development & education assistance to further your technical or leadership ambitions. 
• Ongoing access to family-friendly health and medical wellbeing support 
• Leave for all of life’s reasons (vacation/annual, paid parental, sick leave, cultural leave) 
• To better suit different family needs, our paid parental leave approach gives all parents the option to take 18 weeks of paid leave after a new child arrives – at a time that suits them. 
• Exclusive employee discounts including hotel stays, banking, accommodation, cars, retail and more 

About Rio Tinto 

Rio Tinto is a leading global mining and materials company. We operate in 35 countries where we produce iron ore, copper, aluminum, critical minerals and other materials needed for the global energy transition and for people, communities, and nations to thrive. We have been mining for 150 years and operate with knowledge built up across generations and continents. Our purpose is finding better ways to provide the materials the world needs – striving for innovation and continuous improvement to produce materials with low emissions and to the right environmental, social and governance standards. But we can’t do it on our own, so we’re focused on creating partnerships to solve problems, create win-win and meet opportunities.  

Where you will be working

The role is based in our Perth Hub, located in the Central Park building, 152-158 St Georges Terrace. The role will require some travel to our operating sites in the Pilbara region as required.

In the Pilbara region of Western Australia, Rio Tinto operates the world's largest integrated portfolio of iron ore assets with industry-leading performance and technology. Our iron ore business continues to be the world's largest autonomous truck operator and a proud leader in automated mining technologies.

Applications close on 22 November 2024 (Rio Tinto reserves the right to remove advertised roles prior to this date). 

About Rio TintoRio Tinto is a leading global mining and materials company. We operate in 35 countries where we produce iron ore, copper, aluminium, critical minerals, and other materials needed for the global energy transition and for people, communities, and nations to thrive.We have been mining for 150 years and operate with knowledge built up across generations and continents. Our purpose is finding better ways to provide the materials the world needs – striving for innovation and continuous improvement to produce materials with low emissions and to the right environmental, social and governance standards. But we can’t do it on our own, so we’re focused on creating partnerships to solve problems, create win-win situations and meet opportunities.

Every Voice MattersAt Rio Tinto, we particularly welcome and encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, women, the LGBTI+ community, mature workers, people with disabilities and people from different cultural backgrounds.We are committed to an inclusive environment where people feel comfortable to be themselves. We want our people to feel that all voices are heard, all cultures respected and that a variety of perspectives are not only welcome – they are essential to our success. We treat each other fairly and with dignity regardless of race, gender, nationality, ethnic origin, religion, age, sexual orientation or anything else that makes us different.