Chief Digital & Technology Officer
New Zealand, Wellington
About the role
Chief Digital & Technology Officer
The organisation
We’re working with a well-established, purpose-driven public sector organisation that plays a key role in supporting fairness and accountability across New Zealand’s government system. With a workforce of less than 300 staff across multiple locations, the organisation is continuing to evolve its digital and technology capability to better support its people, systems, and services. The environment is collaborative, values-led, and operating within the realities of a regulated, risk-aware setting.
The role
As Chief Digital & Technology Officer, you will lead the organisation’s digital and technology function, reporting to the General Manager Corporate & Transformation. It’s important to be clear upfront: despite the title, this is not a large-scale, strategy-only CDTO role. This is a hands-on, operationally anchored leadership position where you will be expected to balance strategy with execution, and transformation with the day-to-day realities of running technology in a small-to-mid-sized organisation. You’ll lead a small internal team (5–6 direct reports) and a broader group of external vendors who deliver much of the technical capability.
Success in the role will depend heavily on your ability to prioritise effectively, hold vendors to account, and ensure technology initiatives actually land and are adopted by the business. There is opportunity here to shape direction and lift digital maturity, but it will be incremental, pragmatic, and delivered within constraint, not greenfield transformation at scale.
Your responsibilities
- Lead the digital and technology function, spanning strategy, delivery, and operations.
- Develop and execute a practical, fit-for-purpose roadmap aligned to organisational priorities.
- Oversee core technology services, platforms, and infrastructure to ensure stability, security, and performance.
- Manage and optimise a vendor-led delivery model, ensuring value for money and service quality.
- Partner closely with senior leadership to align technology initiatives with business outcomes.
- Support and embed organisational change, ensuring new systems and processes are adopted effectively.
- Contribute to governance forums, business cases, and investment decisions.
- Build and lead a small, high-performing team, setting clear direction and expectations.
- Experience in a Head of IT, Digital, CIO or equivalent role in a small-to-mid-sized or complex organisation.
- A track record of delivering practical digital uplift, not just defining strategy.
- Strong vendor and service provider management capability.
- The ability to engage and influence senior stakeholders, translating technical concepts into business outcomes.
- A pragmatic, delivery-focused mindset, with a willingness to stay close to the detail when required.
- Comfort working in constrained, risk-aware environments where pace and change must be carefully managed.
- A senior leadership role with direct influence on organisational direction
- The opportunity to shape and progressively lift digital capability in a meaningful, purpose-led environment
- Broad scope across technology, digital, and organisational change
If you’re looking for a large-scale, highly resourced, or purely strategic CDTO position, this is unlikely to be the right fit. If, however, you enjoy leading from the front, working within real-world constraints, and making steady, meaningful progress over time, this role offers a genuine opportunity to add value.
To be considered for a position, you must have a legal right to live and work in New Zealand and are required to complete a Ministry of Justice Criminal Records Check. All applications should include a covering letter and curriculum vitae.
BH-19837
