Strategic Consenting Programme Manager

12-Month Contract | Auckland
We're seeking an experienced Programme Manager to lead a high-profile strategic programme that will help shape the future direction of critical infrastructure across Auckland.

This is not a traditional construction or delivery programme. Instead, we're looking for someone who has successfully managed complex strategic programmes involving multiple stakeholders, governance groups, regulatory considerations, external consultants, and interconnected workstreams.

You'll play a pivotal role in bringing structure, coordination, and strategic oversight to a programme that will run over several years and influence long-term infrastructure planning and investment decisions.

About the Role

This role sits at the centre of a large and complex programme comprising several interconnected workstreams spanning strategic planning, regulatory requirements, technology, and stakeholder engagement.

You'll be responsible for establishing and embedding programme governance, developing integrated programme plans, coordinating external stakeholders, and ensuring the programme remains aligned, well-managed, and positioned for success.

Success in this role will come from your ability to understand how multiple moving parts connect, identify critical dependencies and decision points, and keep a diverse group of stakeholders working towards a common objective.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the day-to-day management and coordination of a large-scale strategic programme.
• Develop and maintain an integrated programme plan across multiple workstreams.
• Establish governance structures, steering groups, reporting frameworks, and programme controls.
• Coordinate procurement activities and management of external consultants and professional service providers.
• Identify programme milestones, dependencies, risks, and critical decision points.
• Prepare reporting and insights for executive leaders and governance groups.
• Build strong relationships with regulators, iwi, community groups, local authorities, consultants, and senior stakeholders.
• Ensure alignment and collaboration across programme teams and stakeholders.

About You

We're looking for someone who has previously managed a strategic programme of similar scale and complexity.

You'll bring:

• Proven experience managing large, complex strategic programmes with multiple workstreams and stakeholders.
• Strong programme governance, planning, reporting, and risk management capability.
• Experience establishing programme frameworks, operational structures, and executive reporting processes.
• The ability to quickly understand complex programmes and how different workstreams and timelines interconnect.
• Experience working across a range of programme delivery methodologies and applying the right approach to the situation.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence and engage at executive level.
• Experience working with regulators, iwi, community groups, local government, or similarly complex stakeholder environments.
• Strong commercial awareness, including procurement planning and management of external service providers.

Highly Regarded Experience within one or more of the following environments would be advantageous:

• Utilities or infrastructure sectors with a regulatory or environmental focus.
• Strategic planning or resource management.
• Transport or public sector organisations.
• Resource Management Act (RMA) knowledge.
• Science, environmental, or planning-related backgrounds.

What's on Offer

• Initial 12-month contract with the potential to extend
• Opportunity to work on a strategically important initiative with long-term impact.
• Exposure to senior leadership, governance groups, regulators, and key external stakeholders.
• Collaborative and high-performing programme environment.
• Competitive daily rate.

If you've successfully delivered complex strategic programmes and thrive in environments where governance, stakeholder engagement, planning, and coordination are critical to success, we'd love to hear from you.