Senior Contracts Strategist, Education Workforce

Kumara Vine; Wellington; Hybrid; NZD 141,000 - 171,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

KiwiSaver

Job summary

Kumara Vine in New Zealand seeks an experienced Chief Advisor, Contracts to lead a broad portfolio within the Education Workforce Contracts Team. You will design, negotiate, implement and manage strategic contracts that support growth, retention and development of NZ's education workforce.

You will mentor teams, strengthen contract management frameworks, engage senior leaders and suppliers, and drive value for money while upholding public service integrity and governance standards.

Qualifications

• Extensive experience managing or advising on complex, high-value and high-risk contracts.
• Strong knowledge of contract management, procurement, and government processes.
• Proven track record coaching and building high-performance teams.
• Ability to provide strategic advice to senior leaders and decision makers.
• Exceptional stakeholder engagement and negotiation skills.
• Experience leading continuous improvement and major programmes of work.
• Knowledge of governance, compliance and contract management frameworks.
• Experience strengthening Māori-Crown relationships.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership across a significant portfolio of contracts.
• Lead design, negotiation, implementation and ongoing management of contracts.
• Strengthen commercial outcomes, manage risk and deliver value for money.
• Mentor others, improve frameworks and embed high-quality contract management practices.
• Collaborate with senior leaders, contract owners, suppliers and stakeholders.

Skills

Contract management

Procurement

Commercial risk

Contract negotiation

Stakeholder management

Leadership coaching

Strategic advisory

Governance & compliance

Māori-Crown relations

Public service standards

Ambiguity navigation

Education

Tertiary qualification

Contract management qualification

Job description

Kumara Vine in New Zealand seeks an experienced Chief Advisor, Contracts to lead a broad portfolio within the Education Workforce Contracts Team. You will design, negotiate, implement and manage strategic contracts that support growth, retention and development of NZ's education workforce.

You will mentor teams, strengthen contract management frameworks, engage senior leaders and suppliers, and drive value for money while upholding public service integrity and governance standards.