Policy Advisor at Pharmaceutical Management Agency, Wellington

Mō tēnei tūranga mahi | About this role

About Us

Pharmac is the Crown Entity that ensures New Zealanders have the medicines, medical devices, and vaccines our communities need.   

Our model is unique; every year Pharmac makes more medicines available for more New Zealanders to help them achieve health and maintain health.

With approximately 150 employees; we are a small organisation where your expertise is respected, and you can make a real difference to the everyday lives of New Zealanders.  

We are a pro-equity organisation, with a dedicated focus on Māori and Pacific communities gaining health equity.  

The Role

Due to parental leave, our Policy and Government Services Team is seeking a Policy advisor for a fixed term opportunity until June 2023.

In this rewarding and varied role, you will be responsible for assisting and leading policy work and supporting the workflow of government services correspondence.

This is a real opportunity to be at the core of Pharmac's work - influencing our relationships with external agencies and participating in the machinery of government, all while shaping the future state of Pharmac through policy development.

It's an exciting time to join Pharmac - there's a lot of change happening, and you'll have the very real opportunity to influence the future of Pharmac, ensuring that we provide the medicines, medical devices, and vaccines our diverse communities need.

About You

Your high level of initiative, analytical ability and problem solving will be critical when presenting clear policy advice or communicating with either government officials or members of the public through ministerial or OIA responses. Your ability to work with ease with senior stakeholders will serve you well within this role.

Our ideal candidate would have:

• Well-developed written and verbal communication skills, including an ability to present information clearly and succinctly.
• An understanding of the machinery of government.
• Competency in problem solving, conceptual thinking, and distillation of ideas into decision making.
• Work experience in policy development or tertiary study in a relevant field. Familiarity and comfort within government policy processes is useful but not essential.
• The ability to effectively manage relationships at all levels, including to convey Pharmac's position on policy issues in a persuasive way, demonstrating inclusivity of the views/perspectives of other stakeholders.
• Understanding of te Tiriti o Waitangi and the role te Tiriti plays in relation to Government, Pharmac and its operations.

The role has a level of autonomy and applicants will need to be self-driven to manage time-pressured work but also need to work as part of a team.

You will be part of the Policy and Government Services team and will be supported to learn and succeed in our fast paced and dynamic workplace.

What We Offer

Pharmac is a learning organisation; we support our people to grow and develop into the best version of themselves.  You will have a manager that is genuinely interested in your development and will support you to achieve your goals at Pharmac.

We are a modern workplace and are happy to consider arrangements to maintain your work life balance, whether that be remote working or flexible hours. Our employees are offered wellbeing resources, generous professional development support and five weeks of annual leave. Pharmac is also a member of the N3 program, which provides significant discounts to our employees at several leading New Zealand retailers, and we offer an annual paid Volunteer Day at a charity or community initiative of your choice.

We are committed to championing workplace inclusion, acknowledging that in order to do their best work, people must be able to bring their whole selves to work and work in a way that best suits their individual needs.  This includes supporting accessibility and facilitating the inclusion of people of all gender identities, ages, ethnicities, sexual orientations, disability, and religions.

We may identify our preferred candidate earlier than the listed closing date, apply today to avoid missing out!