He kōrero mō mātou | About Watercare
Ki te ora te wai, ka ora te whenua, ka ora te tangata
When the water is healthy, the land and the people are healthy
Now is an exciting time to join Watercare, we're planning to spend $14 billion over the next 10 years to ensure we can continue to support our growing city in a climate-resilient way. When you average that out, that's an investment of $3.8 million every day!
He whakamārama mō te tūranga mahi | About the role
Reporting to the Head of Strategy and Consenting, this is a pivotal role where you will shape and deliver consenting outcomes across large, complex programmes of work.
As a Principal Resource Consents Planner, you will:
Lead the development and implementation of programme-level consenting strategies that support critical infrastructure delivery
Provide expert statutory planning advice in a changing legislative framework
Drive and oversee the end-to-end consenting process, ensuring successful delivery of major resource consents and approvals
Lead multidisciplinary teams, consultants, and technical specialists to achieve high-quality outcomes
Build strong relationships with mana whenua, regulators, community groups, and key stakeholders
Mentor and coach team members, contributing to capability uplift across the consenting function
Provide strategic insight into current and emerging legislation, ensuring Watercare remains future-ready
This is a unique opportunity to work at scale—helping deliver essential infrastructure that will shape Auckland for generations.
Ngā pūkenga e rapu nei mātou | About you
You are a highly experienced and strategic resource management professional who thrives on complexity and collaboration.
You will bring:
A relevant tertiary qualification and extensive experience in resource management and consent planning
A strong track record of leading large, complex consenting programmes and securing statutory approvals
Deep expertise in Resource Management Act (RMA) processes and related legislation
Proven ability to lead multidisciplinary teams and influence at senior levels
Experience working with iwi/mana whenua, councils, and community stakeholders
Exceptional communication skills, with confidence presenting to leadership and external forums
Strategic thinking, sound judgement, and a proactive, solutions-focused mindset
Experience in the water or infrastructure sector is advantageous but not essential.
Ngā hua mōu | What's in it for you
We offer a competitive salary and staff benefits package including:
• Training and development opportunities
• Life and income protection insurance plans
• Generous parental leave
• Employee discounts at a range of large retailers
Me pēhea te tono mai | How to Apply
Come and join our team! If you are looking for an exciting career opportunity with a fantastic team then please apply online today - careers.watercare.co.nz.
Skills Required
- Relevant tertiary qualification
- Extensive experience in resource management and consent planning
- Track record leading large, complex consenting programmes and securing statutory approvals
- Deep expertise in Resource Management Act processes and related legislation
- Experience leading multidisciplinary teams and influencing senior stakeholders
- Experience working with iwi or mana whenua, councils, and community stakeholders
- Exceptional written, verbal, presentation, and communication skills
- Strategic thinking, sound judgment, and a proactive solutions-focused approach
- Experience in the water or infrastructure sector
What We Do
At Watercare we’re proud to provide a lifeline service to the people of Auckland, while protecting the environment for future generations. Every day we provide the highest quality drinking water to 1.7 million Aucklanders, and take it away again once it’s been used in the sink or flushed down the loo. Without using chemicals, we treat wastewater to a very high standard and safely return it to the environment. We also plan for new and upgraded infrastructure far into the future to ensure we can meet the needs of our fast-growing city. We operate assets worth more than $9 billion – but it’s our people who are our most valuable assets. Our staff are passionate, motivated and trustworthy people who are the leaders in their fields. They’re not afraid of a challenge and are constantly looking for new ways of improving our processes and the service we offer our customers. If this sounds like you, please visit our careers centre to see our job vacancies and be notified of future opportunities: https://careers.watercare.co.nz
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