General Manager – Employment, Skills and Immigration Policy
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Tēnei tūranga – About the role
The GM Employment, Skills and Immigration Policy is responsible for leading the delivery of policy advice relating to skills, employment, immigration, the labour market, and human capital to support MBIE’s strategic direction.
The Employment, Skills and Immigration Policy branch is particularly focused (working in tandem with their partners across Government) on growing a workforce with the right knowledge and skills and enabling the effective utilisation of these skills in workplaces. This helps drive economic growth by lifting the competitiveness and profitability of firms and sectors and facilitating innovation across the economy.
The branch works to:
- Support effective labour market performance, increasing productivity, and alignment between the education, welfare, employment, and immigration systems.
- Improve the skills of the working population to provide the talent that firms, sectors, and regions need to grow, including through access to the global labour market, and to support individuals to participate in work.
- Support better regional workforce planning and co-ordination, in part through Regional Skills Leadership Groups.
- Support high participation in work to ensure that the benefits of that work accrue to a broad base of New Zealanders.
The branch is also responsible for a range of wider immigration policy objectives and settings. These include facilitating family reunification, the growth of New Zealand's export markets and investment into New Zealand; supporting global humanitarian initiatives; strengthening migrant settlement outcomes and combatting migrant exploitation; and supporting national security and foreign policy objectives through effective immigration systems.
As a member of the Labour, Science and Enterprise (LSE) Group’s Leadership Team, this role will actively contribute to the development of LSE’s strategy and business plans and will provide critical leadership.
Ngā herenga – Requirements of the role
Personal specifications
- Relevant tertiary qualification or extensive and comparable relevant experience
- Experience leading the development and delivery of policy advice at a senior level
- Proven leadership skills including demonstrated ability to engage and motivate staff and an ability to build strong, high performing teams in a complex organisation
- Ability to quickly establish and build strong working relationships and to develop and maintain effective relationships with Ministers, senior public service officials, and internal and external stakeholders
- Demonstrated ability to manoeuvre though complex political situations effectively and efficiently and to keep inquiring and learning under extreme pressure or in situations with high ambiguity
- A strategic thinker who can make the connections between various aspects of the organisation and implications for their business unit
- Proven ability to develop trust and credibility with senior managers
- Understanding of Government decision-making and operating procedures
- Demonstrated ability to lead complex programmes over a range of specialist areas considering both strategic and operational needs, including the design and delivery of performance monitoring systems
- A wide-ranging knowledge of policy monitoring and accountability disciplines and processes, including the latest developments in techniques and practices
- Demonstrated ability to lead and develop diverse teams and different specialisations to deliver on the group’s expectations
- Extensive experience at a senior level managing people, finances, and resources
- A solid understanding of the key influences on the New Zealand economy and business environment
- To be considered for this position you must have a legal right to live and work in New Zealand either hold or be suitable to attain an appropriate national security clearance
Takohanga tuhinga o mua – Key accountabilities and deliverables
Key deliverables
- Leads the development and delivery of policy advice relating to the labour market and human capital
- Leads the development of policy advice relating to the employment and immigration portfolios
- Provides advice on the effect initiatives in other areas of MBIE or external agencies may have on skills, employment, and immigration
- Provides advice on the development of the skills system, including immigration policy, to provide the skills to meet the current and future needs of the economy, and as part of the wider Employment, Education and Training cross-agency leadership group
Collective leadership
- Participates collaboratively as a member of the LSE Leadership Team to support the integration process for MBIE and ensure the development of sustainable organisational capability, and achieve expected efficiency benefits and on-going improvements in cost effectiveness
- Represents Senior Leadership Team views to staff
- Takes collective responsibility for the cohesion and performance of MBIE as a whole and provides peer support to other senior managers
- Works with the leadership team to define the outcomes and outputs expected from the Group to deliver on MBIE’s strategic direction
- Contributes beyond core functional area to enhance overall effectiveness of the Group and related work in MBIE
- Ensures consistency and alignment between different teams in MBIE and promotes solution seeking where there are legitimate differences
General management
- Develops strategies, work programmes and performance targets, with supporting measurement, monitoring and reporting mechanisms
- Aligns work programmes with MBIE’s strategic direction and other Groups’ work programmes
- Monitors and adjusts work programmes through the agreed processes to enable the Branch to adapt to changing circumstances
- Regularly monitors and reports on progress towards achievement of plans and strategies
- Manages expenditure and resources in line with approved guidelines, budget, deadlines and reporting requirements, with a focus on driving cost effectiveness in MBIE
- Builds continuous review and improvement throughout all elements of Branch operations
- Effectively and consistently identifies and manages risk
Relationship management
- Participates as an active team member and contributes knowledge and expertise needed to achieve MBIE’s outcomes
- Develops effective working relationships with other MBIE managers and staff in order to transfer knowledge and learning from the branch to the wider organisation
- Represents whole-of-Ministry views and protects its reputation in external interactions
- Achieve Ministerial confidence with Ministers and stakeholders actively seeking MBIE advice and support in times of difficulty
- Builds strategic alliances with key government and non-government representatives to ensure MBIE’s views are influential in their decision making
- Builds and maintains effective relationships and partnerships with national and international organisations to identify and share best practice information and to promote MBIE, its products and services
- Tests the effectiveness of stakeholder relationships using a range of appropriate measures and processes (including stakeholder feedback)
Personal leadership
- Models exemplary management and leadership behaviours and State sector ethics and values
- Creates a sense of vision, engages and motivates people to participate, and makes things happen
- Fosters an open, collaborative environment that encourages quality, innovation, on-going learning and knowledge sharing
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 General Manager Employment, Skills and Immigration Policy position reports into the Deputy Secretary within the Labour Science and Enterprise group. The branch sits within the Labour Science and Enterprise group.
Matatautanga – Competencies (Leadership Success Profile)
The Leadership Success Profile (LSP) is a leadership capability framework, developed by the New Zealand public sector for the New Zealand public sector. It creates a common language for leadership and establishes what great leadership looks like. You can look at the twelve underpinning capabilities and four leadership characters here: Leadership Success Profile | Te Kawa Mataaho Public Service Commission(external link)
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).
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
