Domain Architect

Tēnei tūranga – About the role

The Digital Data and Insights group leads, connects and strengthens MBIE's core data and insights, digital and technology capabilities.

The Domain Architect is a trusted advisor and subject matter expert, responsible for providing technology advice and strategic direction to the wider Architecture practice and working with them and DDI to ensure that the strategies and roadmaps support the Business Group’s ability to deliver their goals.

The Domain Architect will perform a critical role in the Governance of their assigned Technology Domain(s) technology direction, and delivery programmes, working alongside key business and DDI stakeholders and supporting/guiding the Business and Solutions Architects with regards to the Business Group’s strategy and direction.

The Domain Architect will provide both Architectural and Technology leadership across MBIE extended community of architects, strategic partners, and technology vendors, ensuring alignment to MBIE Technology strategies, standards and patterns.

The Domain Architect responsibilities include:

• Building long term strategic relationships across DDI and the business to understand business requirements and help them understand how technology trade-offs influence strategy.
• Building long term strategic relationships with external key technology vendors within their technology domain, understanding the technology direction and trends the industry/market domain is moving towards so provide the correct level of advice to DDI Senior Leadership.
• Identifies, evaluates and recommends strategic technology directions for MBIE. Advice on those options, risks, benefits, costs and over impact upon MBIE operating rhythms.
• Establishes the contribution that technology can make to business objectives, conducting feasibility studies, producing high level business models, and preparing or contributing to business cases.
• Leads the creation and review of a domain capability strategies that meets the strategic requirements of the business.
• Develops and presents business cases for high-level initiatives, for approval, funding, and prioritisation. Provides input into the allocation of invested dollars to meet MBIE initiatives through review of development (business and technical) initiatives within the context of architecture.
• Understanding, capturing and disseminating the business group(s) core capabilities including products, processes, channels, interactions etc. This will also include purpose and functional makeup, business strategies and objectives, market and environmental trends and how the systems deliver to the business group’s goals
• Creating and successfully adopting technology-based strategies, discussion papers and roadmaps that will transform or optimise existing or new digital services and underlying platforms
• Ensures compliance between business strategies, enterprise transformation activities and technology directions, setting strategies, policies, standards and practices. This includes the support of all architectural disciplines and champions architectural initiatives.

Ngā herenga – Requirements of the role

Personal specifications

• Proven experience and achievement in a senior strategic technology role.
• Expert knowledge of ICT environments, business practice and systems.
• Ability to demonstrate skills in directing, developing and motivating a team of information communications and technology professionals.
• Demonstrated understanding of medium to long-term technology trends and the implications for heavily digital and technology dependent organisations.
• A passion for emerging technology, and evaluating how it can benefit and enhance organisations and customers/users experience.
• Demonstrated ability to contribute to multi year planning and investment cases in the ICT domain.
• Proven ability to successfully build the trust and engagement of senior leaders through personal advocacy, vision, drive and working collaboratively with colleagues.
• Proven ability to proactively lead and build a sense of common purpose across Digital Data & Insights, actively looking for opportunities to build engagement and commitment within the group and across MBIE.
• Proven ability to remain up-to-date on key technical changes and opportunities in their specialist area and proactively use this to continuously improve MBIE services. 
• Strong understanding of the processes and systems that underpin operations of the public sector environment.
• Ability to lead through influence, set a clear vision, and move others toward a common vision or goal.
• Knowledge and experience of Te ao Māori and Te ao Māori practices; tikanga, te reo and a comprehensive understanding of the Treaty, Te Tiriti and the Treaty Principles.
• Demonstrated ability to develop trust and credibility with senior leaders.
• Tertiary qualification or extensive and comparable relevant experience at a senior management level in the public and private sector.
• Must have the legal right to live and work in New Zealand. 
• Credit check required (no).
• Required to drive (no).
• Police vetting (no).

Takohanga tuhinga o mua – Key accountabilities and deliverables

Critical Areas of Success

• An advocate for the enterprise digital strategy and Blueprint to support MBIE’s strategic requirements.
• Helps build the development and maintenance of a multi-year investment strategy by working with the Enterprise/Business/Portfolio Architects, Heads of Digital and Portfolio and key business stakeholders.
• Provide strategic advice to the DDI and Business Leadership team to maximise MBIE’s technology enablement.
• Partner with business focused Heads of Digital & Programmes, Solution Architects to provide expert leadership for selection of future state solutions and support for complex technology implementations.
• Develop and maintain MBIE technology domain roadmaps ensuring that these meet business groups digital, technology and data strategy needs while also providing strategic technological alignment with other agencies.
• Contribute to the implementation of enterprise-wide architecture standards and practices (aligned to the Government Enterprise Architecture for NZ).
• Research, evaluate, and communicate emerging domain technologies or strategic / tactical system investments to help shape MBIE-wide business strategies.
• Ensure effective governance arrangements are in place to support robust technology design.
• Ensure the application, integration and use of Te ao Māori and Te ao Māori practices in the work of the Branch and as such MBIE; tikanga, te reo and an appreciation of the Treaty of Waitangi, Te Tiriti and the Treaty Principles.
• Represent the views and aspirations of MBIE in leadership forums.
• Foster a customer-focused culture across the Branch.

Strategic Leadership - Applies sound Strategic Management Practices

• Provide strategic and professional leadership for the Ministry and across Digital Data & Insights and the wider Ministry extended leadership team.
• Lead the strategic development of Digital, Data & Insights work programme to align with and support MBIE’s strategic direction and adopt a business-like and customer centric culture.
• Guide, challenge and consult the organisation towards both economical decision making, value generation, a common understanding of business opportunities and their consequences.

Work collaboratively with other Managers across the Ministry and Digital Data & Insights to drive coherent system wide outcomes.

Collective Leadership - Work collaboratively with other members of the Business Group’s Leadership Team to support achievement of MBIE outcomes

• Take collective responsibility for the cohesion and performance of MBIE as a whole and provides peer support to other senior managers, managers, stakeholders and practitioners.
• Work collaboratively across MBIE to define the outcomes and outputs expected to deliver on MBIE’s strategic direction.
• Participate collaboratively as a member of the Technology and Architecture Branch to ensure the development of sustainable organisational capability, and achieve expected efficiency benefits and ongoing improvements in cost effectiveness.
• Lead, where possible, using Te ao Māori.
• Ensure consistency and alignment between different teams in MBIE and promote solution seeking where there are legitimate differences.

General Management - Apply sound management practices

• Develop and implement strategies, work programmes and performance targets for Technology & Architecture, with supporting measurement, monitoring and reporting mechanisms.
• Monitor and adjust work programmes through the agreed processes to enable Technology & Architecture to adapt to changing circumstances.
• Regularly monitor and report on progress towards achievement of plans and strategies.
• Manage expenditure and resources in line with approved guidelines, budget, deadlines and reporting requirements, with a focus on driving cost effectiveness for the Ministry.
• Effectively and proactively identify and manage risks; build continuous review and improvement throughout all elements of Technology & Architecture operations.

People Leadership - Provide leadership that engages and motivates others to succeed and develop

• Create a sense of vision, engages and motivates people to participate and make things happen.
• Foster an open, collaborative environment that encourages quality, innovation, ongoing learning and knowledge sharing.
• Support all organisational development activities, modelling expected behaviours to managers and staff to create healthy workplace culture and engaged workforce.
• Relationship Management - Work collaboratively with others to support the achievement of MBIE outcomes
• Build strategic alliances with key government and non-government representatives to ensure MBIE’s views are influential in their decision-making.
• Build and maintain effective relationships and partnerships with national and international organisations to identify and share best practice information and to promote the Ministry, its products and services.
• Lead any engagement programme(s) with identified influencers and key stakeholders.
• Actively look for opportunities and synergies with internal and external stakeholders that focus on and meet customer needs.
• Use a one organisation perspective when contributing to internal forums and governance bodies.
• Represent whole-of-Ministry views and protect its reputation in external interactions.

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 Domain Architect position reports into the Technology and Architecture Branch.  The branch sits within the Digital Data & Insights group.

More information about MBIE's structure

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