Principal Business Advisor

Tēnei tūranga – About the role

The Principal Business Advisor is a member of the Group Business Management team within the Office of the Deputy Secretary, Building, Resources and Markets (BRM) and brings their extensive business understanding and perspective to work in partnership with managers and other staff to deliver BRM’s business management responsibilities, including accountability and reporting, business planning, organisational development (e.g. group wide people initiatives) and BRM enterprise management such as risk mitigation and assurance.

The Principal Business Advisor:

• Partners with the Manager, Group Business Management and Head of the Office of the Deputy Secretary, BRM to drive the agenda/set direction for the Building, Resources and Markets group’s business management functions.
• Provides practice and thought leadership across the team’s work programmes, working in partnership with colleagues and group leadership teams and leveraging positive relationships across BRM and MBIE.
• Leads programmes of work and project teams on complex and sensitive areas.
• Effectively influences through positive engagement and communication across internal and external stakeholders and service providers.
• Enhances the overall capability of the team through guiding and mentoring senior advisors and advisors in their day-to-day work.
• Acts for the Manager, Group Business Management as required.

Ngā herenga – Requirements of the role

Personal specifications

• A strong understanding of and demonstrated experience with managing processes that underpin the operations of the public sector environment, including Cabinet and parliamentary processes, portfolio / appropriation and budget development, management and reporting, and development of accountability products.
• Proven ability as a conceptual thinker and problem solver and demonstrating innovation and excellent judgement.
• Clear, concise communicator with strengths in writing briefing notes for senior leadership and the Minister.
• Able to cut a clear path through complexity and work through ambiguous problems to find satisfactory outcomes, with an ability to be flexible and responsive to changing demands.
• Self-motivated and results-driven, including the ability to do what is difficult or unpopular when required, to work effectively under pressure and focus on key issues.
• Ability to quickly assimilate new information or areas of work and come to an understanding of unfamiliar and complex issues.
• Excellent interpersonal skills with an ability to liaise and collaborate effectively at all levels of the organisation and an ability to build and maintain strategic and effective relationships.
• Proven ability to develop trust and credibility with managers and staff.
• Maturity, political nous, sound judgement, flexibility, and a sense of teamwork in a demanding and unpredictable work environment, which can involve urgent problem resolution.
• Experience and interest in leading, coaching and mentoring team members.
• Experience in acting in people leadership roles and/or people leadership experience.
• Understanding of the functions and workings of Ministers’ offices.
• Deep knowledge of MBIE practices, systems and networks, or experience in an agency with an equivalent level of complexity.
• Relevant tertiary qualification (or equivalent) with extensive hands on experience, most at a senior or equivalent level.
• Legal right to live and work in NZ.

Takohanga tuhinga o mua – Key accountabilities and deliverables

Delivers quality results which contribute to the Ministry’s outcomes

The Principal Business Advisor will be required to deliver results in the following areas:

• Leading projects to deliver branch input to central planning, policy, performance, reporting, risk management, business continuity planning, and continuous improvement processes.
• Leading business advisory services and support as required for the Deputy Secretary, General Managers and the business group, in coordination with the Business Management Team and other relevant teams in MBIE to help strengthen the overall capability of the business group, and help ensure the quality and consistency of advice, services and practices across the business groups.
• Lead and coach other Business and Senior Business Advisors to help ensure capability needs of the team are met, and that staff are developed and up skilled in order to better perform their roles.
• Contribute to the development and monitoring of budgets at a branch level, identifying risks and working with others to put mitigations in place.
• Where required, assist with managing branch contracts, and other information systems.
• Work with Branch Leadership Teams to ensure they are clear on what accountability and reporting requirements are, and information is provided on time.
• Preparation of Ministerial reporting for the Deputy Secretary and/or General Managers including any coordinated reporting across the Groups required by the Senior Leadership Team.
• Delivery of business advice that actively leads, supports and contributes to the achievement of the Ministry’s outcomes and that deliver to the needs of internal and external stakeholders.

Organisational development

• Work in partnership with colleagues within the group and across MBIE to achieve continuous business improvements.
• Well considered planning, analysis, and reporting on corporate functions is provided to the BRM Leadership Team and Head of Office of the Deputy Secretary.
• BRM organisational development activity is supported to be delivered in line with MBIE systems and policies, including for example finance, communications, human resources, information technology, risk management and assurance, information management, business continuity, security and privacy.
• Innovative ideas are actively raised and tested to improve efficiencies, lift performance, and ensure continuous improvements.
• Participation in and leadership of ongoing BRM organisational development initiatives, including staff engagement, building capability, and shaping culture, in collaboration with colleagues.

Work management

• Uses project planning and management techniques to effectively carry out the agreed work, using initiative to resolve most conflicts, manage risks and coordinate work with others.
• Works within the resources available and provides timely reports on progress.
• Leads multiple pieces of work concurrently and actively and independently plans and manages workload.
• Takes a leadership role in cross-MBIE and cross-government projects as required.
• Chairs and contributes to meetings, including where matters are complex or sensitive, require negotiation or working towards solutions.

Coaching and mentoring

• Leads project teams and understands and utilises the capability of team members to deliver high quality project outputs.
• Provides intellectual leadership and coaches others by bringing new ideas and knowledge to the team’s work programme and practice.
• Working with the Manager, Group Business Management, provides guidance, coaching and mentoring and on-the-job training to team members.
• Contributes to the performance of the team through providing peer review and quality control including projects and tasks that others in the team are leading.
• Working with the Head of the Office of the Deputy Secretary, support the private secretary work programme, including induction and planning documents.

Relationship management

• Maintains effective and positive relationships across the Ministry to support the breadth of the Team’s work.
• Draws upon multiple relationships to exchange ideas, resources, and know how to support the Team’s work, and influence change when required.
• Pro-actively seeks to build and maintain a network of contacts.

Wellbeing, health and safety

• Displays commitment through actively supporting all safety and wellbeing initiatives.
• Ensures own and others safety at all times.
• Complies with relevant safety and wellbeing policies, procedures, safe systems of work and event reporting.
• Reports all incidents/accidents, including near misses in a timely fashion.
• Is involved in health and safety through participation and consultation.

Tō tūranga i roto i te Manatū – Your place in the Ministry

The Principal Business Advisor position reports into the Manager, Group Business Management within the Office of the Deputy Secretary, BRM branch. The branch sits within the Building, Resources and Markets group.

More information about MBIE’s structure

To mātou aronga – What we do for Aotearoa New Zealand

Hīkina Whakatutuki is the te reo Māori name for the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment. Hīkina means to uplift. Whakatutuki means to move forward, to make successful. Our name speaks to our purpose, Grow Aotearoa New Zealand for All.

To Grow Aotearoa New Zealand for All, we put people at the heart of our mahi. Based on the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi / The Treaty of Waitangi, we are committed to upholding authentic partnerships with Māori.

As agile public service leaders, we use our breadth and experience to navigate the ever-changing world. We are service providers, policy makers, investors and regulators. We engage with diverse communities, businesses and regions. Our work touches on the daily lives of New Zealanders. We grow opportunities (Puāwai), guard and protect (Kaihāpai) and innovate and navigate towards a better future (Auaha).

Ngā matatau – Our competencies

Cultivates innovation We create new and better ways for the organisation to be successful by challenging the status quo generating new and creative ideas and translating them into workable solutions.

Nimble learning We are curious and actively learn through experimentation when tackling new problems by learning as we go when facing new situations and challenges.

Customer focus We build strong customer relationships and deliver customer-centric solutions by listening and gaining insights into the needs of the communities we serve and actively seeking and responding to feedback.

Decision quality We make quality and timely decisions that shape the future for our communities and keep the organisation moving forward by relying on an appropriate mix of analysis, wisdom, experience, and judgement to make valid and reliable decisions.

Action oriented We step up, taking on new opportunities and tough challenges with purpose, urgency and discipline by taking responsibility, ownership and action on challenges, and being accountable for the results.

Collaborates We connect, working together to build partnerships with our communities, working collaboratively to meet shared objectives by gaining trust and support of others; actively seeking the views, experiences, and opinions of others and by working co-operatively with others across MBIE, the public sector and external stakeholder groups.

Te Tiriti o Waitangi

As an agency of the public service, MBIE has a responsibility to contribute to the Crown meeting its obligations under Te Tiriti o Waitangi (Te Tiriti). Meeting our commitment to Te Tiriti will contribute towards us realising the overall aims of Te Ara Amiorangi – Our Path, Our Direction, and achieve the outcome of Growing New Zealand for All. The principles of Te Tiriti - including partnership, good faith, and active protection – are at the core of our work. MBIE is committed to delivering on our obligations as a Treaty partner with authenticity and integrity and to enable Māori interests. We are committed to ensuring that MBIE is well placed to meet our obligations under the Public Service Act 2020 (Te Ao Tūmatanui) to support the Crown in strengthening the Māori/Crown Relationship under the Treaty and to build MBIE’s capability, capacity and cultural intelligence to deliver this.

Mahi i roto i te Ratonga Tūmatanui – Working in the public service

Ka mahitahi mātou o te ratonga tūmatanui kia hei painga mō ngā tāngata o Aotearoa i āianei, ā, hei ngā rā ki tua hoki. He kawenga tino whaitake tā mātou hei tautoko i te Karauna i runga i āna hononga ki a ngāi Māori i raro i te Tiriti o Waitangi. Ka tautoko mātou i te kāwanatanga manapori. Ka whakakotahingia mātou e te wairua whakarato ki ō mātou hapori, ā, e arahina ana mātou e ngā mātāpono me ngā tikanga matua o te ratonga tūmatanui i roto i ā mātou mahi.

In the public service we work collectively to make a meaningful difference for New Zealanders now and in the future. We have an important role in supporting the Crown in its relationships with Māori under the Treaty of Waitangi. We support democratic government. We are unified by a spirit of service to our communities and guided by the core principles and values of the public service in our work.

What does it mean to work in Aotearoa New Zealand’s Public Service?(external link) — Te Kawa Mataaho The Public Service Commission