Moran was educated at Parade College and received a BA from La Trobe University. He spent his early career as a bureaucrat in the Australian and Victorian Public Services. Moran’s first position as a public sector CEO was as Chief Executive of the Office of the State Training Board in Victoria from late 1987 until May 1993. In May 1993 he was appointed as the first Chief Executive Officer of the Australian National Training Authority in Brisbane. In August 1998 he became Queensland's Director-General of Education. Moran was appointed Secretary of the Department of Premier and Cabinet for the State of Victoria in July 2000 and held this position until his appointment as Secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.
Moran was the Secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet from March 2008 to September 2011, the most senior position in the Australian Public Service. He was appointed by former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, and continued in the position under Rudd's successor Prime Minister Julia Gillard. As Secretary, Moran was responsible for overseeing work on national security and international policy; environment, industry and economic policy; social policy and reforms negotiated by the Council of Australian Governments; and coordination of government administration, including Cabinet support. During the financial crisis of 2007–2008, Moran helped to lead the development of Australia's highly successful policy responses. Moran also led development, negotiation and implementation planning for the National Reform Agenda for the Council of Australian Governments, work he began while head of the Victorian Public Service. This agenda reshaped relations between the Commonwealth and the States, particularly in the areas of business regulation, health care and hospitals, schooling, vocational education and training, social housing and indigenous affairs. Moran chaired the Advisory Group on the Reform of Australian Government Administration, which developed a blueprint for reform of the Australian Public Service. He was the chair of the Secretaries Board, the lead forum for discussing matters affecting the Australian Public Service, composed of all departmental Secretaries and the Australian Public Service Commissioner.
Honours
In 2006, Moran was appointed as an Officer of the Order of Australia for service to public sector leadership in key policy areas and program implementation, including technical and further education at state and national levels. In 2012, Moran was invested as a Companion of the Order of Australia for eminent service to the community through public sector leadership, as a significant contributor to policy development, program delivery and effective governance, and to the implementation of contemporary government administration.
