Data Product Owner

New Zealand Transport Agency; Palmerston North; On-site; NZD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary & benefits

Flexible working arrangements

Modern cloud, analytics & AI tech

Professional development & career成长

Five weeks annual leave

Income Protection & Critical Illness

Job summary

New Zealand Transport Agency is seeking a Data Product Owner to guide its data product journey. You will partner with business groups to identify opportunities, define ownership and roadmaps, and deliver trusted data products.

You will own vision, value and lifecycle while embedding product-centric practices across governance and delivery teams. You’ll drive adoption, measure early value, and balance immediate needs with long-term enterprise reuse, building scalable data product capabilities

Qualifications

• Experience establishing or evolving products, services or data capabilities in a complex organisation.
• Ability to uncover business and user needs and balance immediate requirements with enterprise reuse.
• Track record turning ideas into roadmaps and working products, managing dependencies and demonstrating early value.

Responsibilities

• Identify and prioritise initial data product opportunities with business groups, defining user needs, ownership, outcomes and roadmaps.
• Establish and own product backlogs, balancing immediate project needs with reusable enterprise value.
• Collaborate with delivery teams to move data products from discovery to release, showing value.
• Partner with governance, architecture and platform teams to embed quality, security, privacy and stewardship.
• Help stakeholders adopt product-centric ways of working and grow lifecycle management.

Skills

Product mindset

Stakeholder influence

Roadmaps & backlogs

Change management

Adoption of data products

Tools

Data governance tools

Privacy & security basics

Job description

Te Whiwhinga mahi | The opportunity

Help NZTA's data product journey and shape the shift to a data product-centric agencyDeliver trusted, reusable data products and demonstrate their value across NZTABring people on the journey and establish product ownership, adoption and continuous improvement Te Whiwhinga mahi | The opportunityAs Data Product Owner, you'll help begin NZ Transport Agency | Waka Kotahi (NZTA)'s data product journey and support our transition from project-led data delivery to a data product-centric agency. This is an opportunity to establish the foundations, not simply manage an existing portfolio. Working within the Chief Technology Office's Data and AI function, you'll partner with business groups and specialist teams to identify data product opportunities, define clear ownership and roadmaps, and deliver trusted, reusable data products. You'll own the vision, value and lifecycle of assigned data products while helping embed ways of working that support NZTA's regulatory, operational, customer and organisational outcomes.You will:Identify and prioritise initial data product opportunities with business groups, defining clear user needs, ownership, outcomes and roadmaps.Establish and own product backlogs, balancing immediate project needs with reusable enterprise value and making practical trade-offs across risk, cost and dependencies.Work with delivery teams to take data products from discovery through to release, demonstrating value and establishing repeatable delivery practices.Partner with governance, architecture and platform teams to build quality, security, privacy and stewardship into data products from the outset.Build understanding of data products across NZTA, helping stakeholders adopt product-centric ways of working and discover, trust and reuse products.Measure early value and adoption, use feedback to improve assigned products, and apply lessons to strengthen lifecycle management as the approach grows.You will find out more about the role here Position Description

Ko koe tēnei | About you

You’ll bring a product mindset, a practical approach to change and the confidence to build something new. You'll be comfortable working where processes and ownership are still evolving, creating clarity and turning ambition into achievable first steps.You'll combine hands‑on product delivery with the ability to bring stakeholders on the journey, influence without direct people‑management authority and help shift thinking from one‑off project outputs to trusted data products with ongoing ownership and value.

• Experience establishing or evolving products, services or data capabilities in a complex organisation, ideally introducing product‑centric ways of working.
• The ability to uncover business and user needs, identify practical starting points and balance immediate requirements with long‑term enterprise reuse.
• A track record of turning ideas into roadmaps, prioritised backlogs and working products, managing dependencies and demonstrating early value.
• A practical understanding of data governance, quality, privacy, security and stewardship, and how to manage risks throughout the product lifecycle.
• Strong relationship‑building and influencing skills, with the ability to create shared understanding, navigate uncertainty and build commitment to new ways of working.
• Experience bringing users on a change journey, addressing adoption barriers and using engagement, communications, guidance and training to embed new products.
• A pragmatic, outcome‑focused approach: start small, measure value and usage, learn from feedback and build sustainable practices that can scale.

You will demonstrate knowledge of, or a willingness to gain an understanding of Te Ao Māori and promote tikanga and Te Reo Māori. You will also have knowledge of, or a willingness to gain an appreciation of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and its application in the public sector.

Mō mātou | About Us

Te Aukaha | Digital exists to improve service offerings, support decision‑making and make it easier for people to interact with NZTA. We provide modern, fit‑for‑purpose digital, information and technology solutions that enable our people, partners and customers to deliver better outcomes. Within Digital, the Chief Technology Office (CTO) is a strategic business enabler responsible for delivering the digital capabilities, platforms and leadership needed to support NZTA's operational performance, regulatory responsibilities and future transport vision. The CTO ensures digital investments and services deliver measurable value while supporting efficient service delivery, improved customer experiences and long‑term organisational success.

Ka whiwhi koe i te aha | What you will get in return

• A competitive salary and benefits packageFlexible working arrangementsOpportunities to work with modern cloud, analytics and AI technologiesA collaborative, inclusive and purpose‑driven environmentProfessional development and career growth opportunitiesFive weeks annual leaveIncome Protection and Critical Illness Insurance for permanent employees

Rā Katinga | Applications close

17 November 2026

email: [e-mail]

To be considered for this position you must have a legal right to live and work in New Zealand.

NZTA| Waka Kotahi is an equal opportunity employer (EOE). We recognise the importance of diversity and inclusion and are committed to providing a working environment that embraces these values.

Please let us know if you need any support or have any access requirements that will help you through the recruitment process.