- Lead and manage a high-performing preconstruction team, ensuring timely, budget-aligned delivery from project brief to building consent, while facilitating a seamless handover to construction and providing continued support throughout the build lifecycle on design and cost-related matters
- Champion collaboration and continuous improvement, fostering autonomy, coaching team members, and engaging with internal and external stakeholders to support strategic housing outcomes.
- Permanent role at $234,555 p/a (includes industry rate) + 5 weeks' annual leave
Te whiwhinga mahi - Our opportunity
As the Preconstruction Workstream Lead, you will facilitate team engagement and progress through regular check-ins, daily stand-ups, and integration events, ensuring early detection of obstacles and consistent, scheduled outcomes. You will champion the Management Operating System (MOS), ensuring its disciplines are followed and lessons learned are embedded into practice. With support from the 2IC, you will actively manage team resourcing, ensuring the right mix of skills is available across projects and during leave periods. Your oversight will span all aspects of preconstruction, from the Draft Work Order to Building Consent , ensuring projects are delivered on time, within budget, and to the highest standards. You will also facilitate the seamless handover to construction while providing continued support throughout the build lifecycle on design and cost-related matters.
In this role, you will lead with empathy and situational awareness, encouraging autonomy while maintaining clear direction. You will cultivate a culture of collaboration, agility, and continuous improvement, staying approachable and available to your team. You'll facilitate gallery participation, defend the Takting process, and ensure ongoing customer value aligned with strategic outcomes. Coaching and mentoring will be central to your leadership, helping team members grow and deliver results while shielding them from external distractions. You'll ensure the team has the resources and support needed to succeed, maintain a prioritized backlog, and develop a broad understanding of the business aspects of your Mini Business Unit (MBU).
You will oversee the workstream programme to ensure alignment with strategic, budgetary, and process requirements of the Housing Delivery System. As a champion of MOS, you'll identify variances, resolve operational issues, and lead weekly integration events to plan outputs and apply lessons learned. Accurate reporting and active participation in leadership committees and governance forums will be key to supporting consistent decision-making and prioritisation across K inga Ora. You'll also ensure your team operates in accordance with K inga Ora's legislated principles and contributes meaningfully to the wider organisational mandate.
You'll work closely with a wide range of internal stakeholders, including the Director - HDS, the MBU team, other MBUs and construction teams, the wider Housing Delivery Group, Place-based teams and supporting services across the organisation. Externally, you'll engage with utilities and service providers such as Vector and Chorus, local councils and consenting authorities, build partners, consultants, and community partners - including local iwi.
Ng pumanawatanga ou - What you will bring
You'll be resilient, willing to learn from failure, and skilled in root cause analysis and problem-solving. As this role involves managing up to 10 reports and oversight of up to 40 indirect reports, you'll demonstrate:
- Proven Leadership Experience: At least 10+ years leading large, diverse and complex teams, with a strong track record of delivering results at scale in dynamic and evolving environments. You will impress with your proven capability in setting strategic direction, driving performance, operational delivery and cost efficiency, and fostering a culture of ownership and accountability across teams.
- Operational Delivery & Consistency: Strong track record of driving consistent, high-quality outcomes across service, cost, and performance metrics.
- Transformational Change Leadership: Adept at navigating ambiguity in dynamic environments, shaping vision, aligning teams, and embedding sustainable improvements. Familiarity with Lean principles and their application in driving operational excellence and cultural change is a valued asset
- People & Culture Leadership: Skilled in building capability, fostering ownership and accountability, and cultivating a high-performing, engaged workforce.
- Strategic Thinking & Execution: Ability to translate strategy into action, balancing long-term vision with day-to-day delivery.
Nou te rourou - What's in it for you?
We offer competitive salaries, five weeks' annual leave and a benefits package including a range of insurances, flexible working arrangements and career development. These benefits are described in more detail here https://careers.kaingaora.govt.nz/a-great-place-to-work/benefits
As a K inga Ora - Homes and Communities employee, we want to make sure that you have all the tools and support you need. We want to ensure you are healthy and have work-life balance. We also want to support and grow your personal and career development through on-the-job learning, training courses, secondments and study opportunities.
Mo m tou - Our Organisation
At K inga Ora, ours is the important responsibility of transforming New Zealand's housing choices, outcomes and the entire housing sector by creating homes and communities that allow New Zealanders to thrive.
What is exciting about working for K inga Ora is getting the chance to make a real and positive impact on New Zealanders' lives. With skills, planning and purposeful action, our people are creating the homes and neighbourhoods that will build the future of Aotearoa.
We are passionate about transforming New Zealand for the better. That includes being a trusted partner for M ori and iwi, protecting and enabling their rights, interests and aspirations under the guidance of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
O t tou uara - Our values
Our values were developed by us, for us. They unite us as an organisation and guide how we work every day. Our values are:
- Manaakitanga - People at the Heart
- Mahi Tahi - Better Together
- Whanake - Be Bold
Tuhono mai - Join us
To view the position description and apply for this role, please follow the online process via https://careers.kaingaora.govt.nz. Please note: all applicants, including existing employees, need to follow this process. If you have any questions about this role, please contact [email protected]
Applications will be reviewed as they are received, and we may progress suitable candidates prior to the closing date. This helps us ensure a timely and streamlined recruitment process and supports prompt feedback for all applicants including those impacted by organisational change.
Applications close on Thursday, 4 September 2025 at 11:55pm.
We value diversity and are committed to working with each other and our customers in an inclusive and respectful way. We welcome applicants from all walks of life and appreciate the richness of experience that your point of difference brings to the organisation.
