Senior Programme Manager ERM

TribeRecruit New Zealand; Wellington; On-site; NZD 250,000 - 356,000; Full time

Job summary

Jora New Zealand invites a seasoned Senior Programme Manager to lead Phase One of a major enterprise transformation within a large public sector environment. The role focuses on HR, Workforce Management and Payroll upgrades with a strong SAP component, requiring strong governance, stakeholder leadership and multi-vendor oversight.

You will own the Phase One delivery, develop the implementation Business Case, manage dependencies and drive change across the organisation to ensure adoption of new

Qualifications

• Extensive senior-level programme management experience.
• Proven delivery of large, complex technology transformations.
• Strong SAP programme experience.
• Experience delivering HR, Payroll, Workforce Management transformations.
• Significant public sector experience in large organisations.
• NZ Police experience would be advantageous.
• Strong multi-vendor delivery and vendor management.
• Experience developing and implementing commercial delivery models.
• Treasury business case experience.
• Experience with Gateway, IQA or comparable frameworks.
• Excellent executive and senior stakeholder management capability.
• Strong understanding of organisational change management.
• Ability to drive adoption of new processes and ways of working.
• Confident challenging established thinking while maintaining strong relationships.
• Strong programme governance, commercial and delivery disciplines.

Responsibilities

• Lead the delivery of Phase One of the ERM programme.
• Oversee the upgrade of HR, Workforce Management and Payroll systems.
• Lead the development of the implementation Business Case.
• Support the definition and development of Phase Two.
• Establish strong programme governance, delivery disciplines and reporting.
• Manage multiple technology and delivery vendors.
• Develop and manage the commercial delivery model.
• Work closely with executive sponsors, governance groups and senior stakeholders.
• Support difficult organisational decisions and challenge practices.
• Manage dependencies, risks, issues and delivery priorities.
• Ensure alignment of technology, business process and organisational change activities.
• Support the organisation through significant changes to processes and ways of working.
• Build and maintain a positive, delivery-oriented programme culture.

Skills

Senior programme management

SAP programme experience

Public sector delivery

Vendor management

Stakeholder management

Change management

Commercial delivery models

Treasury business case

Gateway/IQA frameworks

Programme governance

Job description

Jora New Zealand will close on 16th September 2026. Thank you for being with us, we are cheering you on as you continue your career journey.

12-month contract | Wellington | Up to $220 per hour | ASAP start

We are looking for an experienced Senior Programme Manager to lead Phase One of a significant enterprise transformation programme within a large and complex public sector environment. This is a high-profile programme focused on the upgrade and transformation of Human Resources, Workforce Management and Payroll systems, with a strong SAP component. The successful candidate will take ownership of Phase One delivery, lead the development of the implementation Business Case, manage multiple vendors and senior stakeholders, and help shape the development of Phase Two of the broader Enterprise Resource Management programme. This is not simply a technology implementation role. The programme will require significant organisational change, process improvement and stakeholder leadership. We are therefore looking for someone who can challenge existing ways of working, build confidence in new approaches and drive genuine adoption across the organisation.

The role

As Senior Programme Manager, you will be responsible for leading a complex, multi-stream transformation programme through its next major phase. Your responsibilities will include:

• Leading the delivery of Phase One of the ERM programme
• Overseeing the upgrade of HR, Workforce Management and Payroll systems
• Leading the development of the implementation Business Case
• Supporting the definition and development of Phase Two
• Establishing strong programme governance, delivery disciplines and reporting
• Managing multiple technology and delivery vendors
• Developing and managing the commercial delivery model
• Working closely with executive sponsors, governance groups and senior stakeholders
• Supporting difficult organisational decisions and constructively challenging existing practices
• Managing programme dependencies, risks, issues and delivery priorities
• Ensuring technology, business process and organisational change activities remain aligned
• Supporting the organisation through significant changes to processes and ways of working
• Building and maintaining a positive, focused and delivery-oriented programme culture

What we are looking for

This role requires a highly experienced programme leader who has successfully delivered large and complex enterprise technology transformation programmes. You will ideally bring:

• Extensive programme management experience at a senior level
• Proven delivery of large, complex technology transformation programmes
• Strong and current SAP programme experience
• Experience delivering HR, Payroll, Workforce Management or comparable enterprise platform transformations
• Significant experience working within large public sector organisations
• NZ Police experience would be highly advantageous
• Strong multi-vendor delivery and vendor management experience
• Experience developing and implementing commercial delivery models
• Strong Treasury Business Case experience
• Experience with Gateway, IQA or comparable programme assurance frameworks
• Excellent executive and senior stakeholder management capability
• Strong understanding of organisational change management
• Demonstrated ability to drive adoption of new processes and ways of working
• Confidence challenging established thinking while maintaining strong stakeholder relationships
• Strong programme governance, commercial and delivery disciplines

While strong SAP knowledge is important, this role is primarily about programme leadership, process transformation and organisational implementation rather than hands‑on technical delivery. We are looking for someone who understands the technology, but more importantly knows how to take a complex organisation through the decisions, changes and disciplines required to successfully implement it.

The opportunity

This is an opportunity to lead a major enterprise transformation programme with genuine organisational impact.

You will be working across technology, business operations, commercial partners and senior leadership, with significant influence over both the immediate programme and the future direction of the wider ERM transformation.

If you have led major SAP-enabled enterprise transformation programmes and are comfortable operating at the intersection of technology, process, commercial delivery and organisational change, we would like to hear from you.

To apply for this vacancy, you MUST be a New Zealand citizen, resident, or have already secured the right to work in New Zealand and therefore hold a valid visa.