Technical Operations Manager

New Zealand Government; Wellington; Hybrid; NZD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Vision care

KiwiSaver contributions

Generous leave benefits

Childcare allowance

Career growth

Job summary

NZSIS, based in Wellington, seeks a Technical Operations Manager to lead an operational team applying cutting‑edge tradecraft and technology in national‑security investigations. You will influence culture, uplift capability, and oversee relationships with domestic and international partners.

As a member of the Operations Delivery Leadership team, you will work with other leaders to deliver strong outcomes while ensuring confidentiality and high‑tempo operations.

Qualifications

• 7+ years experience leading and developing teams in an operational environment.
• Experience driving a culture of innovation to deliver technical operations.
• Excellent problem solving and decision-making skills under ambiguous situations.
• Strong collaboration and ability to build productive relationships.
• Expert experience in setting technical and operational standards, tactics and tradecraft.
• Ideally experience championing change in a dynamic environment.

Responsibilities

• Lead an operational team applying cutting-edge tradecraft and technology to support national-security investigations.
• Drive culture across Technical Operations Teams and uplift technical capability.
• Maintain relationships with domestic and international partners.
• Collaborate with leadership to deliver excellent operational outcomes.

Skills

Team leadership

Operational leadership

Collaboration

Problem solving

Decision making

Change management

Tradecraft

Standards setting

Tools

Security clearance handling

Job description

Join our diverse and talented people and work at the heart of national security, providing essential intelligence to the NZ government to protect New Zealand and its people.

Why join the NZSIS?

The NewZealand Security Intelligence Service (NZSIS) is the nation’s domestic security intelligence agency. Our mission is to protect NewZealand and its people from emerging threats through the collection, analysis and reporting of high‑value intelligence.

Mō te tūranga mahi – About the role

As one of two Technical Operations Managers you will lead an operational team that is responsible for applying cutting‑edge tradecraft and technology to support national‑security investigations that directly impact the safety of all NewZealanders.

You'll play a critical role in working with the other Technical Operations Manager to drive the culture across the Technical Operations Teams, uplift technical and digital capability, and maintain operational relationships with both domestic and international partners.

This role is also a member of the Operations Delivery Leadership team, and will be working closely with other operational leaders to deliver excellent operational outcomes and uplift our overall capability. Working closely with these leaders in a collaborative and productive manner will be critical.

Please note this is not an operationally deployed role and this position is Wellington based.

Ko wai koe – About you

We are looking for a confident manager with proven leadership experience and commitment to the team's ongoing wellbeing and development.

Ideally you will have experience in leading an operational team.

You will need:

• 7+ years experience leading and developing teams in an operational environment
• Experience in driving a culture of innovation to deliver successful technical operations, improving overall efficiency and effectiveness.
• Excellent problem solving and decision-making skills under ambiguous situations
• Strong approach to collaboration and the ability to build and maintain positive and productive work relationships
• Expert experience in setting technical and operational standards, tactics and tradecraft.
• Ideally experience in championing and implementing change with team culture in an ever-changing environment

We encourage applications from people of all genders, cultural backgrounds, ages, abilities and life experiences. NZSIS recognises that diverse perspectives strengthen our ability to protect the nation. If you do not meet every single attribute but have transferable skills, a positive mindset and a commitment to our mission, you are still encouraged to apply.

Why work for us

Alongside getting to work with other talented people, we also offer a range of comprehensive benefits which include:

• Medical Insurance and Vision Care packages
• Enhanced employer contributions to your Kiwisaver
• Generous Leave benefits, including additional paid days off and enhanced sick and parental leave
• Childcare allowance for your preschoolers
• Opportunities for personal and professional growth and career pathways across the intelligence community

This opportunity requires you to lead a specialised team in a unique and high tempo operational area, so if you have these skills and experience, we would love to hear from you.

Before you apply

Working within our unique environment means we have to ensure you're eligible for employment.

You must:

• Have been a New Zealand Citizen for at least 10 yearsORHold a current NZ Residency Class Visa and ideally have been a citizen of the UK, USA, Canada or Australia for at least 10 years
• Be eligible to obtain a Top Secret Special (TSS) security clearance
• Ordinarily, this means you'll have a 15 year checkable background in countries
• NZSIS Vetting can make meaningful and reliable checks.

Still unsure? Use this online tool to self-check your eligibility for a TSS security clearance:http://www.protectivesecurity.govt.nz/eligibility-tool

The NZIC treats all applications for employment in the strictest confidence and we expect that you maintain a similar level of confidentiality during the recruitment process and throughout your career.

We'll provide you with information and tips throughout the recruitment process, but in the meantime check out some of our Security FAQs here The security clearance process | Beyond Ordinary Careers You can also learn more about our work and understand our areas of focus by readingNew Zealand's Security Threat Environment | New Zealand Security Intelligence Service