Senior Advisor, Accountability

Provide advice and support across NEMA in relation to meeting the agency's obligations under the Official Information Act.

Type: Fixed-term until 30 June 2027

Location: Wellington

Applications Close: 5pm Sunday 5th July 2026

Please apply using this Link, not directly on Government Jobs.

Mo tenei turanga mahi | About this role

The purpose of the Senior Advisor, Accountability is to:

• provide advice and support across NEMA in relation to meeting the agency's obligations under the Official Information Act.
• take responsibility for ensuring the appropriate tools, systems, and templates are used, processes are adhered to, and records are accurate and up to date.
• assist with drafting responses to ministerial correspondence and written Parliamentary Questions (PQs) and working with the Minister's office to proactively release Cabinet and other material.
• provide general support across the unit for areas including the preparation of business plans, reports for the Minister and other accountability reporting.

Essential skills/ experience

• A relevant tertiary qualification or an equivalent body of knowledge and experience
• An in-depth understanding of the Official Information Act 1982
• Significant experience in managing Official Information Act requests
• Ability to identify, manage and minimise risks
• Experience in persuading, influencing, building and maintaining effective collaborative relationships.
• Knowledge of the Machinery of Government

ideally:

• An understanding of the emergency management sector
• Experience in preparing and managing workflows for Ministers Office(s)
• Experience contributing to corporate accountability documents and reports
• An understanding of the Privacy Act 2020

As NEMA is an operational agency, there may be a requirement to respond to emergency activations in the event of a national emergency response. This may include potentially long hours and challenging working conditions, e.g. an emergency could occur at any time of the day or night and may require working shifts and/or working weekends. NEMA provides thorough training prior to you being required to assist in a response. NEMA will do all in its power to support staff in meeting their work and family responsibilities during an emergency. The welfare and wellbeing of our staff is of utmost importance.

Due to the nature of our role in Emergency Management, NEMA has a very dynamic work environment and as a small agency, staff are often required to pivot and change focus on their work at short notice. Attributes of adaptability, agility, resilience and curiosity are all required on a daily basis, in and out of times of emergency response.

Ko wai matou | About us

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) provides national leadership to New Zealand's distributed emergency management system. NEMA's primary focus is on the performance and capability of the emergency management system as a whole, across all hazards and all risks and the 4 Rs of risk reduction, readiness, response and recovery.

NEMA values diversity and inclusion. We want our workforce to reflect the diversity of our communities. We value and respect the contributions of our people with diverse backgrounds, experiences, skills and perspectives.

We are committed to doing our part to deliver on the Crown's commitments to Maori under Te Tiriti o Waitangi. We strive to actively build te Ao Maori perspectives and capability into our day to day work, values and practices.

Ta matou e tuku | What we offer

We pride ourselves on the quality of our staff and understand the importance of fostering a working environment where excellence is recognised and where staff are encouraged to develop their own talents and potential. We welcome diversity, in all its forms and we believe it is a strength.

NEMA values staff health, safety and wellbeing, and a positive work life balance is encouraged.

The indicative BASE salary range for this role is $108,018 - $117,951.

NEMA offers other benefits such as Department leave, Wellbeing allowance, Vision allowances and more.

Whakaritenga Haumaru | Security Requirements

Due to the security requirements of this role, applicants must be a New Zealand citizen or New Zealand Permanent Resident.

Me pehea te tono | How to apply

Please apply using this Link, not directly on Government Jobs. If you have any questions, contact us at NEMATalent@nema.govt.nz We do not accept unsolicited approaches from agencies or 3rd parties.

To see the full job description, please click here.