Principal Advisor - Ministerial Services at Te Whatu Ora, Wellington

Mō tēnei tūranga mahi | About this role

Ko wai mātou | Our Organisation

It's not very often something happens that's big; like, really big. Big to the point that it will touch the lives of every single person in the motu. That's what we're talking about here. The provision of health services in Aotearoa, and how they are delivered, is changing in a big way.

Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand and Te Aka Whai Ora Māori Health Authority will together shape the delivery of health services in Aotearoa for generations to come and will form the core of a modern and integrated service looking after the needs of all our whānau. Te Whatu Ora is ‘the weaving of wellness'. Whatu is the combining together of people, resources, organisations, thoughts and actions for the betterment and wellbeing of all. Whatu is also a direct reference to the pupil of the eye, and the vision required of the new entity and system. Come and join us in this mahi...

Te whiwhinga mahi | The Opportunity

As a member of the Governance, Partnerships and Risk team, this role has shared accountability for supporting the interface between Te Whatu Ora, government, and the wider state sector. The group is responsible for functions which support the agency, its Ministers, and provide accountability to New Zealanders. These functions include processing Parliamentary Questions, responding to correspondence on behalf of Te Whatu Ora and Ministers, responding to OIA requests, Select Committee hearings, creating the Weekly Report to Ministers, coordinating briefing advice to Ministers, and managing Privacy Act requests.    

This is an opportunity to join a high performing, supportive, innovative, and collaborative team. Where the team work together producing timely, high-quality responses and compiling well written products on behalf of our stakeholders. In this diverse role, the ability to manage your own workload and ability to scale up and down as workflow allows is essential.

The Principal Advisor Ministerial Services provides leadership, management of high profile tasks, oversight and direction on key pieces of work. The role is responsible for providing high quality advice in support of the work programs in the Group, such as the strategic direction and management of the Proactive Release Strategy. The role ensures consistency of direction and that risks are mitigated for the agency.

Mōu | About you

You'll have extensive experience of the machinery of government with a strong background of working at the political interface. You'll be well versed in the best practices across all the group's functions. You'll bring your experience of navigating and interpreting all the relevant New Zealand legislation with your ability to exercise sound judgement. You'll easily identify, mitigate and escalate risks, while connecting with all levels of the agency. 

You'll be a clear communicator, self-driven, motivated by completing tasks, comfortable making the relevant key connections and partnerships. Someone who leads from the front and brings people along with them, capable of providing experience and mentoring to your colleagues.

Ngā pūkenga me ngā wheako | Skills and experience

• In depth knowledge and experience of operating within of the machinery of government
• Strong experience of navigating and managing at the political interface
• Experience working within and interpreting relevant New Zealand legislation.
• Proven ability to exercise sound judgement to identify, mitigate and escalate risk.
• Experience in coaching and/or mentoring with the ability to provide constructive feedback in an effective way and strong ability to influence others.
• Experience in liaising with and establishing successful relationships with Ministers, Leadership Teams and staff within the public sector, while maintaining independent and objective professionalism.
• Experience with processing mapping and continuous improvement projects.
• Strong written and oral communication skills with the ability to tailor complex messages to a range of audiences in a clear and concise manner.

This role requires and/or would benefit from the following

• An understanding of the significance of and obligations under Te Tiriti o Waitangi, including how to apply Te Tiriti principles in a meaningful way in your role
• Competency with te ao Māori, tikanga, and te reo Māori or a willingness to learn and grow

Nau mai, uru mai | Come and join us

Te Whatu Ora is committed to equity, diversity, and inclusion, and that means people from all the communities we serve being represented in our workforce. We want to see the real you in your application and welcome the real you on board if you come and work with us. Skills are gained across many areas of our life, not just in formal employment. If you can demonstrate the skills listed in the ad, but the experience was gained through whānau life, community or mahi aroha (volunteering) we encourage you to apply and share your story with us in your cover letter. At Te Whatu Ora we acknowledge and respect our people's diversity and spiritual needs, ensuring a safe workplace that is a whānau orientated and supportive environment. We particularly welcome applications from Māori, Pacific, disabled, and rainbow communities.

Te painga o te mahi tahi me matou | Benefits

This is a truly rewarding role where you will come to work each day making a difference, leading change, and creating capabilities across our health service.

Te Whatu Ora offers a genuinely competitive salary with a great range of fringe benefits. Te Whatu Ora supports flexible and hybrid working, offers learning and growth opportunities

Me pēhea te tuku tono | How to apply

To view the position description and/or apply for the role (by submitting your cover letter and CV), please click “APPLY NOW.”  For tracking and reporting purposes, all applications must be submitted through our online career portal.

The applications closing date is midnight 05th February 2023. If you have any questions about the role, please feel free to contact Samantha van der Merwe on careers@health.govt.nz