Senior Advisor, Social & Community Resilience

Senior Advisor, Social and Community Resilience

Type: Fixed term until 30 June 2027

Location: Wellington

Help shape how Aotearoa New Zealand supports communities before, during, and after emergencies.

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.

Mo tenei turanga mahi | About this role

In this role, you will operate as a trusted and experienced Senior Advisor, contributing to the development and implementation of NEMA's work focused on planning, supporting, and advocating for people, communities and their animals in New Zealand's emergency management system.

This role is for someone who is passionate about putting people at the heart of emergencies and can confidently operate in complex and ambiguous environments, provide sound strategic advice, and is accomplished at building and maintaining strong relationships.

We are looking for a team player with expertise, experience, and a track record of delivery to join us in progressing key programmes of work such as the National Civil Defence Emergency Management Plan Order review and Welfare Needs Assessment guidance and operationalisation, alongside our legislated responsibilities for national coordination, delivery, and leadership for Welfare.

You will work across government, NGOs, and the wider emergency management sector to design and deliver national-level frameworks, guidance, and capability uplift initiatives, particularly across emergency welfare services and community resilience.

The position sits within the Planning and Sector Partnerships Unit, which is responsible for developing and maintaining New Zealand's national emergency management planning framework and partnering with social and infrastructure sectors to build resilience across the 4 Rs of risk reduction, readiness, response and recovery in support of communities.

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.

Your response role will be in the Welfare function.

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 koe | About you

We are looking for a candidate with the following attributes:

• Experience in building and maintaining effective relationships
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Resilience, agility, and curiosity
• Knowledge/experience with the welfare services in emergencies arrangements
• Ability to apply problem-solving, analytical, and judgement skills
• Proven experience delivering complex programmes, policy, or system-level initiatives
• Ability to think strategically with strong initiative and problem-solving abilities
• Ability to lead work programmes and influence outcomes without direct authority
• Ability to adapt to changing priorities and operational demands
• Ability to deliver high quality outputs under pressure
• A confident, reliable, resilient demeanour
• High levels of professionalism, integrity and accountability

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

If you have any questions, email us at ***email_hidden***. We do not accept unsolicited approaches from agencies or 3rd parties.

Applications close 5:00pm, 24 June 2026.