Triage Officer – Employment Services

Tēnei tūranga – About the role

The Triage Officer is a member of the team who are responsible for the triage, assessment and allocation of contacts (complaints, requests and applications) on behalf of Employment Services regulatory functions and the delivery of reporting to inform compliance activity decisions.

The Triage Officer is responsible for:

• Carrying out their functions to a high standard and in accordance with national consistency practice, operational policy and business process frameworks.
• Responsible for the triaging and allocation of complaints, requests for resolution, enquiries and applications, ensuring quality and consistency in decision making and handling.
• Analysing complex data and information to reach sound conclusions.
• Identifying the appropriate regulatory response to each complaint or request for service and ensuring service delivery timeframes are met.

Ngā herenga – Requirements of the role

Personal specifications

This role is to be technically competent and able to undertake evidenced assessment and decision making.  If a candidate does not already hold the necessary skills to delivery this, they must have the demonstrated ability to obtain these in an agreed timeframe.  Within this context, the position holder must demonstrate skills, knowledge and experience in the following areas:

• Experience in operating front line response, triage and/or allocation functions, complaint management, case management or similar.
• A strong interest, and/or study towards developing a career, in employment relations.
• Knowledge of the relevant legislation, operational policy, practice frameworks and business processes and how these should be applied to effectively undertake triage assessment and allocation (or an ability to gain such knowledge quickly).
• Effective questioning ability to understand client’s circumstances and identify underlying issues, and apply relevant legislative/policy principles.
• Strong analytical ability and sound judgment to ensure effective and evidenced decisions are made regarding allocation of work across the branch.
• Ability to listen empathetically to people’s needs and concerns while remaining firm, professional and impartial, including managing conflict and aggression.
• Strong written communication, specifically writing clear and complete reports and recommendations with robust analysis, sound conclusions and effective recommendations.
• Managing conflicting priorities and ensuring that commitments, complaints or requests are addressed within efficient and acceptable timeframes.
• Ability to quickly establish and build strong working relationships with a wide range of people from different backgrounds.
• Well organised, have a high degree of initiative and excellent interpersonal, analytical and communication skills with the ability to multitask, prioritise and escalate where necessary.
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to work cooperatively within a team.
• Able to work as a public servant and accept having to complete tasks or take approaches that may not always fit with one’s own personal opinions.
• Understanding of the implications of and commitment to the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi.

Prerequisite

• Must have the legal right to live and work in New Zealand.
• All employees are required to comply with MBIE's vaccination policy which seeks to protect the wellbeing, health and safety of our people, their whānau and the community. You are required to hold a valid vaccination pass to be employed at MBIE.

Takohanga tuhinga o mua – Key accountabilities and deliverables

Critical areas of success

The Triage Officer will be required to deliver results in the following areas:

• Support the manager in the effective triaging of complaints, enquiries and requests for support to the appropriate teams across Employment Services and INZ (through the Joint Tasking and Coordination Group).
• Undertake consistent and high quality assessment of complaints and efficient allocation to actively support and contribute to the achievement of the Ministry’s outcomes and that deliver to the needs of internal and external stakeholders.
• Upholding agreed quality and timeliness standards in all aspects of enquiry and complaint management.
• Creating records and managing information, documents, records in a manner consistent with MBIEs systems and information management requirements, including recognising and managing risks associated with the management of personal information in accordance with MBIEs policies and processes.
• Assisting with responses to Official Information Act and supporting the team and wider branch to manage privacy breaches.

Workflow and Customer Management

Undertake consistent and high quality assessment of complaints allocate to actively support and contribute to the achievement of the Ministry’s outcomes and that deliver to the needs of internal and external stakeholders and customers; including

• Asking the right questions of stakeholders and customers to get the right information to make informed and accurate triage, assessment and allocation decisions.
• Taking a ‘no further action’ approach to a complaint where appropriate and managing customers’ and stakeholders’ expectations around this.
• Applying verbal, legal and numerical reasoning skills to problem-solving and decision-making.
• Creating records and managing information, documents, records in a manner consistent with MBIEs systems and information management requirements, including recognising and managing risks associated with the management of personal information in accordance with MBIEs policies and processes.

Knowledge & Data Management, Research and Analysis

The Triage Officer will contribute to a defined and consistent approach to the team’s work by:

• Maintaining an in-depth knowledge of agreed business processes and practice resources and the purpose they play in growing consistency of practice.
• Following and applying agreed business processes and practice guidance.
• Applying assessment and triage processes effectively and documenting decision-making processes.
• Actively contributing to the collective review and improvement of processes and guidance resources.
• Contributing to the development and embedding of new branch-wide practice resources.
• Being flexible and responsive to changes in requirements.
• Providing timely and helpful information to others across the organisation.
• Maintaining detailed and accurate records and recording all transactions on the case management system.
• Remaining informed in relation to changes in employment related legislation and relevant case law.

The Triage Officer will contribute to and make use of the wider MBIE intelligence system by:

• Making risk-based, intelligence-led decisions.
• Identifying where trends or more systemic issues may exist.
• Ensuring that information collected is fed into the MBIE Intelligence system.
• Applying the principles of the Privacy Act, Official Information Act, Public Records Act and other relevant legislation in how they document and share information about their work.

The Triage Officer will be proportionate and consistent in how we interpret and apply the legislation, by:

• Drawing on a solid understanding of the relevant legislation.
• Working with peers to review current or unusual complaints to ensure similar approaches for similar situations.
• Involving other parts of the Te Whakatairanga Service Delivery Group, MBIE or other regulators when appropriate.

Wellbeing, health & 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 Triage Officer position reports into the Manager Triage and Allocation 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. 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