Senior Service Designer at Ara Poutama Aotearoa (Department of Corrections), Wellington (Te Whanganui a Tara)

Mō tēnei tūranga mahi | About this role

• Lead service design thinking across high-impact People & Capability services
• Turn complex challenges into practical, people-centred solutions
• Based in Wellington. Fixed Term opportunity until December 2027.

Mō te tūnga | About the role

We're looking for an experienced Senior Service Designer to help shape the future of People & Capability services.

This is an exciting opportunity to influence work that sits at the heart of how we support our and staff across the organisation be safe, support and capable. You'll help define the services we provide, design how we measure success, and influence how People & Capability improves its service delivery.

If you're energised by bringing together customer needs, organisational strategy and practical implementation, we'd love to hear from you.

Mōu | About you

This role is ideal for someone who enjoys building organisational capability, not just delivering projects. We're looking for a Service Designer who can confidently operate across both strategic and delivery environments, helping turn complex challenges into practical, customer-centred solutions.

Ngā pūkenga me ngā wheako | Skills and experience

To be successful in this role you will bring:

• Proven experience in service design, service improvement, and operating model design.
• Strong experience leading research, analysis and insight generation to understand employee, operational and organisational needs, translating evidence into actionable recommendations.
• Expertise in creating and applying service design artefacts, including service blueprints, customer journeys, process maps, wireframes and prototypes.
• The ability to work collaboratively with technical and delivery teams to ensure solutions are feasible, scalable and aligned with technology and platform capabilities.
• Excellent facilitation, stakeholder engagement, communication and influencing skills, with the ability to build alignment across diverse groups.
• Strong systems thinking and the ability to see connections across people, processes, technology, policy and organisational structures.

Ngā painga | The benefits

You'll be part of a collaborative and supportive team that is passionate about improving outcomes through human-centred design, evidence-based decision-making and continuous improvement.

Most importantly, you'll have the opportunity to help transform how services are understood, delivered and measured, creating meaningful improvements for both our people and the organisation.

The midpoint of the salary range is $123,511 per annum and the full range (85%-120%) is $104,985 - $148,214 per annum. Appointment and remuneration will reflect skills and experience relevant to the role.

Mō mātou | About us

Join Ara Poutama Aotearoa - Department of Corrections, where your work will contribute to improving public safety, reducing re-offending, and address the overrepresentation of Māori in correctional facilities. As a values-led organisation, we use the principles of rangatira (leadership), manaaki (respect), wairua (spirituality), kaitiaki (guardianship), and whānau (relationships) to guide our work and achieve the goals of our Hōkai Rangi strategy.

We value inclusion and diversity in our workforce, and as a Public Service organisation we are committed to building a workforce that reflects the public we serve. We strive to make our recruitment process fair, and we encourage you to discuss reasonable accommodations with us if required.

Tono ināianei | Apply Now

To submit an application and view the position description, click the apply link. All applications must be submitted through our careers site to ensure transparency – applications received via email will not be considered.

When applying, submit a tailored CV and a cover letter describing your motivation for joining the department highlighting relevant skills and experience and the alignment to our work.

Applications close on: Sunday the 18^th of October.

If you have any questions or want to learn more about a career with us, contact Sarah.Newbold@corrections.govt.nz, or visit careers.corrections.govt.nz.

We are not accepting applications via recruitment agencies for this role. Unsolicited CVs submitted by agencies will not be accepted and no agency fees will apply.