Programme Administrator at Transpower New Zealand Limited, Wellington

Mō tēnei tūranga mahi | About this role

• Nationally significant multiyear programme of critical infrastructure projects
• Build diverse relationships across our head office in Willis Street Wellington
• Unique opportunity to support the upgrade to NZ’s vital electricity connection

Transpower's purpose is to empower the energy future for New Zealand - a future that delivers a net-zero carbon economy and a reliable, secure electricity system.

Our context

Much of New Zealand's electricity is generated from renewable energy sources (primarily hydro, and increasingly wind and solar) which are located in remote areas. Essential to powering our country, the HVDC link connects the transmission grid between the North and South Islands and plays an increasingly important role in balancing intermittent renewable generation across both Islands.

The HVDC Upgrade Programme (HVDC Project) aims to replace the three existing high voltage direct current (HVDC) cables that connect the North Island and South Island power transmission systems with like-for-like cables by 2032 and at the same time install a fourth cable of the same type. Read more here https://www.transpower.co.nz/hvdc-upgrade

The opportunity

We are seeking an outstanding programme administrator who will be the primary point of contract for project support and information across all areas of our high-profile upgrade programme, providing support to a team of up to 20 people and across $1.5 billion in expenditure.

You’ll deliver accurate and timely coordination, updating and drafting of project artefacts as the need arises: Business Case Adjustments, Contracts, Risk Registers, Status Updates, Stage Gate reports, Asset Closure forms, Stakeholder Letters, across the project lifecycle.  Project information is maintained in Transpower Systems including, but not limited to:

• Financial and Contract information management systems
• SharePoint
• Project Online
• Recollect (Transpower’s central, cloud‑based repository for operational and project media primarily photos, designed to ensure that images taken in the field are captured once and reused many times across the business)
• Maximo
• Power BI

Assisting in the planning and coordination of meetings, workshops and reviews, including note taking where appropriate, you’ll ensure that lessons are detailed and shared with the team.  Verbally and in writing you’ll fully utilise your communication and exceptional relationship management skills to liaise with service providers, stakeholders and business contacts as required to enable information flow between groups. You’ll also work closely with the broader Grid Delivery project support team. 

What will you bring?

Sound experience in a busy project environment working at pace!  You’ll be known for strengthening a team’s effectiveness, and comfortable chasing people for what’s required on time, and of the right quality.  You’ll also enjoy learning and balancing ongoing and new requests, with clear and proactive expectation management and a “can-do” attitude.

Your CV and cover letter will demonstrate:

• Experience providing reliable programme or project administration, keeping documentation, registers, and records accurate, up to date, and easy to use.
• The ability to review information, spot issues or risks, and raise them clearly so they can be addressed early.
• Confidence using business and collaboration systems (such as Microsoft Office, SharePoint, and project or financial systems) to manage information and reporting.
• Capability supporting financial administration, including tracking costs, commitments, and keeping records accurate.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to produce clear, well‑structured updates and documents for different audiences.
• Excellent organisation and attention to detail, with the ability to prioritise tasks and perform consistently in a fast‑paced programme environment.

Join us at Transpower

With over 28 nationalities, our people provide diverse perspectives, knowledge, and deep and varied experience which they love to share and which we celebrate. We work in the office or on-site for a minimum of three days each week, which helps us build and maintain relationships, support learning, deliver outcomes, and sustain our culture.

This approach also offers staff the flexibility they need for both work and personal commitments, with adaptable daily start and finish times.

We prioritise wellbeing with a range of employee health and wellness benefits including generous insurances - check them out here.

Next steps

We are seeking an outstanding project administrator who will keep the programme team connected, organised and operating smoothly!  Please review the position description and submit your application along with a cover letter outlining your interest in this once in a lifetime programme.

Role closes Tuesday 12 May. Applications will be reviewed as they are received and informal screening conversations will commence prior to the close date where possible.

Existing eligibility to work in New Zealand is essential.