Practice Lead - Software Engineering | Wellington

Ministry of Social Development; Wellington; On-site; NZD 138,000 - 172,000; Full time

Job summary

Ministry of Social Development Wellington is seeking a Practice Lead in Software Engineering to lead and develop software engineers, translate strategy into practice, and embed standards across delivery teams.

You will coach, mentor, manage performance, and drive secure, cloud-native solutions while supporting recruitment and workforce planning.

Qualifications

• Proven experience leading and developing software engineering teams in a complex technology environment.
• Experience delivering modern software solutions using contemporary engineering practices and technologies.
• Strong coaching, mentoring, and performance leadership capability, focused on growing technical talent.
• Experience driving engineering excellence through software quality, testing, automation, DevOps, CI/CD.
• Strong understanding of secure coding, cloud-native development, system reliability, maintainable architecture.
• Strong stakeholder management and relationship-building across product, platform, architecture, and delivery.
• Excellent communication, facilitation, problem-solving, able to translate complex tech for diverse audiences.
• Collaborative leadership style and passion for innovation, continuous learning, and engineering excellence.
• Ability to navigate ambiguity and provide practical recommendations.

Responsibilities

• Leading and developing software engineers through coaching, performance management, wellbeing support, and career development.
• Building engineering capability and maturity by identifying capability needs, supporting recruitment and workforce planning, and contributing to continuous improvement initiatives.
• Embedding engineering standards and best practices, including secure coding, software quality, testing, automation, DevOps, and modern development methodologies.
• Providing technical leadership and guidance by supporting teams to navigate complex technical challenges, manage technical debt, and deliver sustainable engineering solutions.
• Contributing to practice leadership through stakeholder engagement, operational insight, and active participation in the ongoing development of the Software Engineering Practice.
• Supporting decision-making through the evaluation of technical options, working through ambiguity, and providing clear and practical recommendations.

Skills

Leadership

Coaching

Performance management

Stakeholder management

Cloud-native development

DevOps

CI/CD

Communication

Job description

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Practice Lead - Software Engineering | Wellington

• Lead and grow a community of Software Engineering professionals, building capability, performance, and wellbeing.
• Drive engineering excellence, modern software development practices, and continuous improvement across Technology.
• Provide people leadership and technical practice oversight to enable the delivery of secure, scalable, and high-quality digital solutions.

Play a key role in connecting strategic engineering leadership with day-to-day delivery, ensuring our engineers are supported, capable, and equipped to create quality technology outcomes.

Every week, around 1.4 million New Zealanders count on MSD for income support and services to connect with work, housing and better lives for their families.

Our Technology group provides the technologies, innovation and expertise that enable MSD staff and partners to deliver these essential services, today and into the future.

We’re driving a once in a lifetime transformation of services for New Zealanders. The group is a key enabler of this change bringing together strategic thinkers, technology specialists and delivery leaders to design solutions and deliver change while keeping vital services running reliably every day.

About the role | Mō te tūnga

The Practice Lead is a key leadership role within the Software Engineering Practice. Operating within a matrix environment, the Practice Lead is responsible for leading and developing Software Engineering practitioners while supporting the successful delivery of technology products and services across MSD.

The role combines people leadership, practice leadership, and engineering oversight. Practice Leads work closely with engineers, technical leads, platform and product teams, and other practice leaders to strengthen engineering capability, embed software development standards, and support high-quality technology outcomes.

As a Practice Lead, you will be the primary people leader for Software Engineering practitioners, helping them grow their careers, expand their technical capability, and perform at their best. You will play an important role in translating engineering strategy into day-to-day practice, ensuring agreed engineering principles, standards, and ways of working are consistently applied.

This is an opportunity for an experienced engineering leader who is passionate about developing people, advancing engineering capability, and contributing to the ongoing growth and maturity of the Software Engineering Practice.

This role is based in our Wellington National Office.

Key responsibilities include:

• Leading and developing software engineers through coaching, performance management, wellbeing support, and career development.
• Building engineering capability and maturity by identifying capability needs, supporting recruitment and workforce planning, and contributing to continuous improvement initiatives.
• Embedding engineering standards and best practices, including secure coding, software quality, testing, automation, DevOps, and modern development methodologies.
• Providing technical leadership and guidance by supporting teams to navigate complex technical challenges, manage technical debt, and deliver sustainable engineering solutions.
• Contributing to practice leadership through stakeholder engagement, operational insight, and active participation in the ongoing development of the Software Engineering Practice.
• Supporting decision-making through the evaluation of technical options, working through ambiguity, and providing clear and practical recommendations.

We’re committed to creating a workplace that reflects the communities we serve. We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, cultures, and experiences. Diverse perspectives strengthen our mahi, and we value the unique contributions everyone brings to the team.

Please contact us if there is any support that we can provide to ensure the recruitment process is accessible to you.

• Proven experience leading and developing software engineering teams in a complex technology environment.
• Demonstrated experience delivering modern software solutions using contemporary engineering practices and technologies.
• Strong coaching, mentoring, and performance leadership capability, with a focus on growing technical talent and fostering career development.
• Experience driving engineering excellence through software quality, testing, automation, DevOps, CI/CD, and continuous improvement practices.
• Strong understanding of modern software engineering principles, including secure coding, cloud-native development, system reliability, and maintainable architecture.
• Strong stakeholder management, influencing, and relationship-building skills, including the ability to work effectively across product, platform, architecture, and delivery functions.
• Excellent communication, facilitation, and problem-solving skills, with the ability to translate complex technical concepts for diverse audiences.
• A collaborative leadership style and a passion for innovation, continuous learning, and engineering excellence.
• Ability to work through ambiguity, consider multiple perspectives, and provide practical recommendations that support sound decision-making and delivery outcomes.

Salary | Utu-ā-tau: $138,125.00 - $171,889.00

We expect to appoint this position up to $161,146 however a salary offer will be based on the preferred candidates’ skills and experience and our team relativities.

The Ministry of Social Development (MSD) is a people-centred organisation. We’re in communities across the motu, working with partners to help New Zealanders be safe, strong and independent.

We provide social policy advice to government, and assistance including income, employment and housing support to people of all ages, families, whānau and communities.

As a Te Tiriti o Waitangi partner, we are committed to supporting and enabling Māori, whānau, hapū, Iwi and communities to realise their own potential and aspirations.

Our people are as diverse as the communities we serve. We care about the wellbeing and success of our people and provide a supportive and inclusive working environment where people can thrive and be who they are.

Joining MSD means being part of a whānau that celebrates the diversity each individual represents.

We show manaaki, we care about the wellbeing and success of people and want everyone to thrive and be who they are in a supportive and inclusive working environment. We work together to make a difference for communities while doing the right thing with integrity. You can find out more about our values here.