Principal Project Lead – Operational Integration

About the role

Rio Tinto is transitioning Simfer from project delivery to a large‑scale operating environment. The Principal Project Lead – Operational Integration will partner with the General Manager Operations and senior leaders to turn strategic initiatives into coordinated execution across the entire value chain.

Key responsibilities

• Coordinate and integrate the portfolio of strategic and operational initiatives across Mining, Fixed Plant, Maintenance, Technical and supporting functions.
• Translate business strategy and priorities into practical execution roadmaps with clear ownership, milestones and outcomes.
• Establish governance, reporting and dashboard tools to provide visibility of progress, risks and decisions.
• Identify dependencies, resource conflicts, risks and opportunities across workstreams and facilitate their resolution.
• Work with operational and functional leaders to keep initiatives aligned with high‑value business priorities.
• Facilitate structured portfolio and project reviews with the senior leadership team.
• Track actions and commitments through to completion, strengthening execution discipline.
• Support leaders in prioritising initiatives when resources or organisational capacity are constrained.

Required profile

• Proven experience coordinating cross‑functional initiatives in mining or other large‑scale industrial operations.
• Strong ability to see across the whole operating system and understand where functions intersect.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills with senior leaders and functional heads.
• Demonstrated capability to translate strategic objectives into actionable work plans.

Required skills

What we offer

• Opportunity to shape the operational foundation of a world‑leading mining project.
• Collaborative, inclusive environment that values diverse perspectives.
• Access to Rio Tinto’s global resources and development programs.