Research and Development Specialist

Tēnei tūranga – About the role

The Research and Development Tax Incentive (RDTI) is a cornerstone of New Zealand’s approach to increase business research and development (R&D) spending. Delivered jointly by the Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment (MBIE) and Inland Revenue (IR), the scheme supports businesses to innovate and grow.

R&D Specialists assess the eligibility of business R&D for RDTI support. R&D Specialists are technical leaders in their field with at least 7 years’ experience of R&D with prior industry-based experience. They are great active listeners who thrive when discussions get technical. All applications for the RDTI are assessed by the RDTI Assessment Team at MBIE and the team delivers high-quality, timely and transparent eligibility decisions to the RDTI’s stakeholders. The role is customer-facing and forms a key part of the customer experience of the RDTI for businesses. 

R&D Specialists leverage their technical expertise and balance this with regulatory compliance. They are driven by a constant curiosity about innovation. Their work ensures government funding supports impactful R&D that strengthens New Zealand’s innovation ecosystem and business outcomes. As technical leaders and compliance experts, they enable businesses to innovate.

Ngā herenga – Requirements of the role

Personal specifications

• Technical expertise in a scientific/technological field, with a willingness to discover new areas.
• Extensive and deep experience in R&D, with a strong track record in commercial and industry-based settings, spanning at least 7 years.
• Experience of working in industries with high levels of compliance. 
• Proven ability to rapidly develop an understanding of regulatory practice or align with relevant legislation.
• A curious, learning mindset and an ability to efficiently absorb new information.
• Experience of the scientific and technological challenges that innovative businesses face, including an understanding of systematic research methodology and basic project phases.
• An eye for detail, with an ability to interpret complex technical information. 
• A team ethic, able to thrive in a collaborative culture.
• Proven ability to act as a trusted liaison, ensuring alignment between customer needs and organisational objectives.
• Exceptional communication skills, with the ability to adjust tone, style, and approach to suit a wide range of audiences, from technical specialists to senior executives.
• Strong interpersonal skills, with clear evidence of influencing skills, and the ability to establish and maintain effective and collaborative working relationships with a wide range of people.
• An ability to perform a range of tasks under competing demands, prioritise effectively, and escalate issues accordingly.  
• Excellent written skills for conveying highly technical information to a wide range of stakeholders, including business leaders, policy experts, and customers across diverse sectors.
• A relevant tertiary qualification in engineering, science, or information technology.  
• Legal right to live and work in New Zealand.  
• Travel from time to time to support service delivery. 
• You must fulfil the requirements of an IR vetting process.

Takohanga tuhinga o mua – Key accountabilities and deliverables

Technical Assessment

• Independently assess RDTI applications to evaluate R&D activities, related business context, and regulatory compliance under the Commissioner’s delegated functions (Tax Administration Act 1994).
• Provide high quality assessments of technical R&D applications for Inland Revenue to make a final determination on funding businesses R&D innovations. 
• Prioritise own work queue to ensure timely completion of allocated work to align with the regime’s performance requirements. 
• Proven ability to consistently communicate in a clear and concise manner on complex matters to a wide audience.
• Identify and escalate potential risks and opportunities that may impact the programme and develop options for mitigating them.
• Work with other R&D Specialists to ensure advice and recommendations provided are consistent and high quality.
• Participate in an environment and culture of continuous improvement.
• Work closely with RDTI colleagues from Inland Revenue to deliver programme outcomes. 
• Participate in assessments for other innovation funding products when needed, applying technical expertise and policy understanding.  
• Provide expert insight for the RDTI Customer Engagement Team when required.

Influence and delivery

• Deliver high-quality, transparent and consistent RDTI eligibility recommendations.
• Support customers, engage with business leaders and senior decision-makers to determine the extent of their R&D activities.
• Ensure businesses fully leverage their RDTI entitlement while safeguarding the integrity and compliance of the tax system. 
• Advocate for RDTI, actively contribute to enhancing customer experience, and the scheme.   
• A persuasive, adaptable communicator with a natural ability to simplify complex concepts for any audience, using the most effective medium—whether written or verbal.
• Actively contribute to, and participate in, developing and expanding technical knowledge and capability across the team, by sharing your knowledge and developing your own skills.
• Identify trends, pain points, and opportunities for enhancing customer experience, and the scheme.  
• Contribute to the continuous development of assessment practices, processes and policies, including collaborating in the drafting and review of customer guidance material.

Relationship Management

• Demonstrates an understanding of, and focus on, meeting customer needs, and actively looks for opportunities and synergies with internal and external stakeholders.
• Build trusted relationships with customers. 
• Proactively build and maintain professional working relationships with IR / MBIE colleagues and key stakeholders, including tax advisors and external businesses, to help achieve regime goals.
• Demonstrated ability to successfully navigate discussions where parties disagree.

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 R&D Specialist position reports into the Assessment Manager within the Business and Consumer branch. The branch sits within the Te Whakatairanga Service Delivery 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 (work). 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