Senior Advisor, Commercial

Ministry of Cities, Environment, Regions and Transport; Wellington; Hybrid; NZD 108,000 - 132,000; Full time

Job summary

The Ministry of Cities, Environment, Regions and Transport (MCERT) in New Zealand is seeking a Senior Advisor, Commercial to help assess funding proposals and tests financial assumptions. This fixed-term role supports housing outcomes across Aotearoa and requires strong analytical judgement and commercial acumen.

You will work with internal teams and external stakeholders to ensure value for money and viability of investments.

Qualifications

• Experience assessing proposals, business cases and funding requests.
• Strong analytical skills with ability to assess value for money and affordability.
• Ability to interpret incomplete or evolving information and provide clear advice.

Responsibilities

• Assess funding applications with internal teams and external stakeholders.
• Analyze proposals for value for money, affordability, deliverability and viability.
• Test cost, funding, delivery and risk assumptions.
• Identify commercial and financial risks and recommend mitigations.
• Support negotiations on funding agreements and commercial terms.
• Provide commercial insight throughout project delivery.
• Build relationships across MCERT and with external partners.

Skills

Analytical skills

Commercial judgement

Proposal assessment

Budgeting & numbers

Education

Relevant qualification

Tools

Excel

Job description

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Ministry of Cities, Environment, Regions and Transport – Wellington, North Island

• 2 x fixed-term roles through to February 2027, providing backfill for two internal secondments.
• Apply your commercial, analytical and problem-solving skills to support high-quality public investment decisions
• Bring experience from construction, infrastructure, civil works, procurement, finance, quantity surveying, investment analysis or related fields
• Help assess funding proposals that support better housing outcomes for people across Aotearoa
• Wellington or Auckland based opportunity

Group: Delivery
Team: Commercial
Position Type: 2 x fixed-term roles through to February 2027, providing backfill for two internal secondments.
Salary band: Housing sector band 17 ($107,895 to $131,872)
Location: Wellington / Auckland

About us

The Ministry for Cities, Environment, Regions and Transport (MCERT) takes a long-term view of how New Zealand's towns, cities and regions grow and change. We work across housing, transport, the environment, urban development, infrastructure and investment, and partner closely with local government.

We provide joined-up policy and investment advice to government, support effective regulation and market settings, and work with others to help deliver affordable housing, connected communities, well-planned infrastructure, and a healthy, sustainable environment.

About the role

This role is a great opportunity for someone with strong analytical judgement and commercial curiosity. You do not need to have a background in housing. We are interested in people who can apply transferable skills from areas such as infrastructure, construction, civil works, procurement, investment, finance, accounting, quantity surveying, project delivery or funding assessment.

As Senior Advisor, Commercial, you will play an important role in helping MCERT make sound investment decisions that deliver value for money and support housing outcomes across Aotearoa.

You will work as part of a collaborative team assessing development and funding proposals, testing financial and commercial assumptions, identifying risks, supporting negotiations and monitoring projects as they move through delivery. Your advice will help ensure proposals are viable, fit for purpose and aligned with the outcomes they are intended to deliver.

You will be responsible for:

• Assessing funding applications with internal teams and external stakeholders
• Analysing proposals for value for money, affordability, deliverability and commercial viability
• Testing cost, funding, delivery and risk assumptions
• Identifying commercial and financial risks and recommending mitigations
• Supporting negotiations on funding agreements and commercial terms
• Providing commercial insight throughout project delivery
• Using assessment insights to inform policy, process and funding settings
• Building strong relationships across MCERT and with external partners

Skills and experience

This is an opportunity for someone with strong commercial judgement, analytical skills and the ability to assess complex proposals. Your experience may come from housing, but it could also be from construction, infrastructure, civil works, transport, environmental investment, regional delivery, procurement, finance, accounting, quantity surveying, project delivery or a related field.

You do not need to know housing funding from day one. What matters most is your ability to understand proposals, test assumptions, identify risks and provide clear advice to support good decision-making.

You’ll bring:

• A relevant qualification or equivalent practical experience
• Experience assessing proposals, business cases, funding requests, project costs, commercial arrangements or investment options
• Strong analytical skills, including the ability to assess value for money, affordability, sustainability and delivery risk
• Confidence working with financial and commercial information, including budgets, cost assumptions, funding models or project data
• Good working knowledge of Excel and confidence working with numbers and evidence
• Sound judgement and comfort working with incomplete, evolving or ambiguous information
• Strong organisational skills and the ability to manage multiple priorities
• Clear written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to turn complex information into concise advice
• A collaborative working style and the ability to build trusted relationships

Experience in housing, social housing or government funding programmes would be useful, but it is not essential. We are particularly interested in people who can bring transferable commercial, financial, procurement, infrastructure or delivery experience and apply it to a new context.

We are committed to equal opportunities and building a diverse, inclusive workplace. We support our people to work in ways that help them do their best. We welcome applications from all backgrounds and are dedicated to providing a safe and inclusive environment for everyone.

We want our recruitment process to be fair and accessible for everyone. If you need any support or adjustments, please let us know or get in touch at ***********@mcert.govt.nz

You must have the right to live and work in New Zealand to apply for this role.