Engineering Manager - Projects Engineering
Transpower New Zealand
Date: 4 days ago
City: Wellington, Wellington
Contract type: Full time
- Lead a team of :eight engineers, and outsourced design consultancies
- Bring your drive for results, commercial approach, and customer centricity
- Ensure strategic objectives are met at the heart of the electricity sector
At Transpower, our core purpose is to empower the energy future for New Zealand — a future that delivers a net-zero carbon economy and a reliable, secure electricity system. Our transmission network includes over 12,000 km of transmission lines, 25,000 transmission towers, and 170 substations — assets worth more than $5 billion that provide direct benefit to Aotearoa.
Our Grid Development division identifies and communicates future grid needs—looking out 30 years and beyond—and develops transmission asset management strategies to meet our strategic objectives. It's an exciting time to join Transpower as we shape the Future Grid: Te Kanapu | Transpower
About The Team
The Transmission Lines Projects Engineering team plays a critical role within our Tactical Engineering and Estimation group. They work collaboratively to develop transmission line projects across the country, taking a risk-based approach with a strong focus on safety, cost optimisation, and efficiency to ensure grid requirements are met.
The team is responsible for engineering and asset management investigations, design, project support, technical specifications, and cost estimation across high voltage electricity transmission—focusing specifically on Transmission Lines—with a capital value of $300-$400 million per annum. They work closely with teams across Protection and Automation, Substations, Asset Planning, and Operations.
The opportunity - due to lateral progression!
Based at our Waikoukou head office in Wellington (other Transpower locations may be considered), you'll lead a team of around eight engineers who provide project engineering support to the Asset Management Planning team, while also developing and maintaining standards.
We use an outsourcing model for engineering design on projects. This approach requires astute management and guidance to ensure the level of risk Transpower takes on is balanced against project cost. As a result, this role plays a key oversight function in ensuring projects deliver maximum value.
You'll guide and lead others across the wider team to achieve positive outcomes for Transpower, our clients, and ultimately New Zealand. You'll support Senior Leaders to identify and implement new approaches, innovations, and technologies that drive safety, optimisation, and efficiency through engineering design.
A strong focus on resourcing and customer service will enable your team to prioritise work effectively and deliver efficiently on our strategic priorities. We'll support and develop you to initiate and guide continuous improvement and provide an efficient engineering service that supports project delivery within schedule, budget, and quality expectations.
Ultimately, you'll enjoy future-focused, varied work and build intellectually stimulating relationships across Transpower, as well as with our outsourced engineering design partners, customers, and stakeholders.
What will you bring?
Outstanding people leadership, strong collaboration and judgement skills, and experience driving continuous improvement within technical teams to meet evolving business needs.
Priorities and operational requirements can shift quickly, so experience navigating and leading in a dynamic environment is a plus. Ideally, you're known for building teams where people are highly engaged and feel empowered with accountability—where they are challenged, supported to grow, and develop their capabilities while playing to their strengths.
To be considered, your career to date, cover letter, and CV will demonstrate:
- A relevant Engineering degree (mechanical, civil, electrical, or industrial preferred), ideally with CPEng or a postgraduate business management qualification.
- Experience leading successful teams, including coaching, supervising, motivating, and developing people in an asset-centric, scaling, and evolving business.
- Proven expertise in contract and project management, aligning business strategy, setting and tracking team goals, work prioritisation, and resource planning.
- Clear and concise verbal and written communication skills for conveying technical issues to non-technical audiences or technical leaders with differing viewpoints.
- Strong relationship management skills, including advocacy and influencing, ideally within a fast-paced projects engineering and delivery environment.
Join us at Transpower
Aotearoa is powered by the people who work here. Every home, every marae, every electric vehicle, every hospital relies on the electricity we manage and deliver. This is your opportunity to join us on a mission that affects all New Zealanders, every day and long into the future.
With over 28 nationalities, our people provide diverse perspectives, knowledge, and deep and varied experience which they love to share and which we celebrate. We work in the office or on-site for a minimum of three days each week, which helps us build and maintain relationships, support learning, deliver outcomes, and sustain our culture. This approach also offers staff the flexibility they need for both work and personal commitments, with adaptable daily start and finish times.
We prioritise employee wellbeing with a range of health and wellness benefits - check them out here.
Next steps
To help deliver accelerated electrification for Aotearoa, please review the position via our careers site https://careers.transpower.co.nz/search and apply without delay.
Role closes Monday 16 June; however, applications will be reviewed as they are received, and you may be contacted prior to the close date for an initial exploratory conversation to facilitate shortlisting or to arrange an interview.
See more jobs in Wellington, Wellington