Industry Portfolio Lead

Help shape a future‑ready workforce for New Zealand’s energy and infrastructure sectors by acting as a trusted interface between industry and the vocational education system.

This role suits someone who enjoys senior relationship management, turning insight into influence, and ensuring industry needs are clearly reflected in national skills and training decisions.

About us

The Energy & Infrastructure Industry Skills Board (EIISB) provides industry leadership within Aotearoa New Zealand’s vocational education system.  We work closely with industry, training providers, and the Tertiary Education Commission to ensure vocational education and workforce development are aligned with real sector needs.

For more information on the Energy and Infrastructure ISB: Energy & Infrastructure Industry Skills Board

About the role

As Industry Portfolio Lead, you will be a key connector between industry and the vocational education system.

You’ll lead engagement and intelligence gathering across an assigned portfolio within the energy and infrastructure sectors, ensuring industry perspectives inform qualifications, delivery models and future skills development. You’ll also contribute to organisation‑wide engagement activity, working closely with the Stakeholder Manager and colleagues across the ISB network.

This is a senior, relationship‑led role focused on influence, insight and collaboration.

What you’ll do

• Build trusted relationships with employers, industry associations, peak bodies, iwi and other stakeholders
• Represent the ISB at industry forums, advisory groups, meetings and working groups
• Gather and analyse sector intelligence, including workforce trends, skills gaps, risks and emerging issues
• Ensure sector insights inform qualifications, programme endorsement, moderation and workforce advice
• Collaborate across the ISB and the wider ISB network to share intelligence, align approaches, and support consistent, effective engagement
• Contribute to organisation‑wide engagement planning, reporting and continuous improvement
• Support culturally grounded engagement approaches and Māori–Crown relationships

About you

You’re a strong relationship‑builder who enjoys navigating complexity, bringing curiosity, credibility and the ability to connect industry insight to system‑level change.

What you will bring

• Bachelor’s degree in education, business, communications or a related field or equivalent experience is strongly preferred
• Proven experience in stakeholder engagement in complex, multi‑stakeholder environments including industry associations or peak bodies
• An understanding of the vocational education and training system and its regulatory environment
• Knowledge of the civil infrastructure and/or water sectors is preferred
• High level of proficiency with MS Office, Teams, SharePoint and Customer Relationship Management Systems

Why join us?

This is an opportunity to influence the future of vocational education in sectors that are essential to everyday life in New Zealand. You’ll collaborate with experienced colleagues and a wide range of industry stakeholders within sectors undergoing significant transition.

The role is relationship‑led and nationally connected, offering the chance to influence system settings, support more inclusive outcomes for learners, and contribute to a future‑ready workforce across energy and infrastructure.

Apply now
If you enjoy building strong relationships and working at the intersection of industry, education and workforce development, we’d welcome your application.

If this sounds like you, please click the Apply button to make your application. You can view the position description via the link: https://isb.careercentre.net.nz/Job/Industry-Portfolio-Lead/Auckland/574 .

For a confidential conversation about the role, please email [email protected].

Applications close Friday, 28 August 2026, at 11:59pm.

Please note: Applications will be assessed as they are received, and we reserve the right to close the role early should suitable candidates be shortlisted.

Apply now.