Principal Strategy Advisor

Tēnei tūranga – About the role

The Principal Strategy Advisor is a future-focused, strategic leadership position within MBIE. The Principal Strategy Advisor is responsible for supporting the Director Strategy to provide oversight of the future strategy management and to ensure there is integration across Immigration New Zealand (INZ) and the wider Ministry of Business Innovation & Employment.

This is an outward-looking support function, keeping abreast of and analysing global trends, initiatives and research, maintaining relationships with key government and non-government stakeholders. 

The Principal Strategy Advisor provides an expert strategic perspective while working in partnership with the Director Strategy, Immigration Leadership Team and other INZ and MBIE leaders. They also provide excellent thinking, analysis and support across the major activities of INZ to drive improved business performance.

This is a hands-on role requiring excellent facilitation skills and an agile and collaborative approach to customer-centric strategic capability development for the future.

Ngā herenga – Requirements of the role

Personal specifications

• A strategic thinker who considers the bigger picture and can think laterally about issues, risks and opportunities.
• The ability to apply frameworks and lead approaches that enable staff across INZ to apply thoughtful consideration to the challenges of developing and maintaining business strategies.
• Excellent communication skills, both written and oral, and the ability to facilitate workshops, present information and display ideas in a way that is effective and engaging to a wide range of audiences.
• Strong analytical skills as well as strong capability in research and evaluation methodologies, design, processes and reporting.
• Strong stakeholder relationship building and engagement skills to effectively bring about solutions to challenges by gaining the cooperation and commitment of others.
• The ability to influence others to achieve the required outcomes through their sound evidence-based knowledge and professional credibility.
• A demonstrated ability to deal with complex and emerging issues.
• Proven ability to deliver results and the ability to lead.
• Some experience of strategy work in the private or consultancy sector preferred.
• A relevant tertiary qualification or equivalent experience in a relevant discipline.
• The ability to gain and maintain a national security clearance as required.
• Must be a NZ citizen or hold a residence class visa (if the role is located in New Zealand).
• Must have the legal right to live and work in the country in which this position resides (if the role is located outside of New Zealand).

Takohanga tuhinga o mua – Key accountabilities and deliverables

Strategic performance

• Embeds Striking the Balance across all areas of organisational capability, reporting on achievement as well as supporting the necessary governance framework for Striking the Balance.
• Oversee the embedding of the endorsed future strategy into executable strategic action plans, including assessment of multi-year priority and resource allocation and investment.
• Monitor the execution of business strategy and cross INZ integration and provide assurance about achievement to ILT including developing system-level performance frameworks and intervention logic maps to define what success looks like, outputs and outcomes levers to pull to achieve and monitor progress.
• Contribute to the establishment and maintenance of a strategic INZ workforce plan for the future to ensure the necessary level of skills and to nurture the desired values and behaviours.
• Lead the development and monitoring of effective stakeholder management and communications to support the execution of business strategy.

Strategy management

Lead the development of a fit for purpose approach to strategy development and management that includes ensuring:

• Business strategies are aligned to agreed outcomes.
• Strong key performance indicators and reporting lines.
• Emerging risks, opportunities and changes in the environment feed into business strategy adjustments.
• Maintain an overview of INZ’s organisational health, including strong links with INZ’s Enablement Branch and MBIE corporate functions.
• Lead the development and maintenance of high quality artefacts that help build the strategy, drive performance and bring cohesion and direction to business plans.
• Develop sound, research-based ‘think pieces’ for ILT engagement on business strategy outcomes.
• Contribute to the leadership of a high-performing team that delivers innovative advice, which supports a contemporary INZ and in turn MBIE’s strategic direction. 

Ensure strategy execution is achieved in an integrated manner across the business through:

• Testing and adapting the strategy.
• Communicating the strategy.
• Integrating the strategy into business plans across INZ.
• Executing strategic initiatives.
• Ensuring resource and capability plans are aligned with strategic objectives.

Relationship management

• Manages constructive relationships with work colleagues and external stakeholders.
• Represents whole-of-Ministry views and protects its reputation in all interactions.
• Tests the effectiveness of stakeholder relationships using a range of appropriate measures and processes (including stakeholder feedback).

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 Principal Strategy Advisor position reports into the Director Strategy within the Office of the Associate Deputy Secretary. The branch sits within the Immigration NZ 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