Welcome to the Policy and Research Group's Career Page

Thank you for your interest in exploring a career within the Policy and Research Group. This page will provide you with the information you need to make an application to join the Group.

Here you will find information on:

So, have a look around and learn more about the Policy and Research Group. Hopefully all of your questions will be answered. If you do have further questions please send us an email to: prgvacancies@dol.govt.nz

Please note: it may take us a few days to respond.

Vacancies close on Sunday 31 July at 5pm (NZ Time)

To join us as a Policy Manager To join us as a Principal Advisor
 


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A little bit about us..

Ropu Kaupapahere me te Rangahau

The Policy and Research Group was established in December 2010 to provide integrated policy and research, evaluation and monitoring support to the Department of Labour's four Ministers and a range of other stakeholders including the Government and other Government agencies, business and employee groups. The Group aims to be the authoritative source for advice and information that assists the development of the labour market and New Zealand's social and economic wellbeing.


Structure of the Group

The Policy and Research Group has four "Divisions", each led by a General Manager who reports to the Group's Deputy Chief Executive. The Divisions are:

Within Divisions there may be "Units" that have a specialist or subject-matter focus. These Units are each led by a Manager who reports to the General Manager. More information on each Division, and the Units within them is outlined below.


Jeremy Corban.

Jeremy Corban is the Deputy Chief Executive of the Policy and Research Group.

Jeremy Corban is the Deputy Chief Executive of the Policy and Research Group. Prior to joining the Group in March 2011, Jeremy was a Deputy Secretary at The Treasury where his responsibilities included policy advice regarding labour markets and institutions, as well as financial markets and institutions, social security, education and training, housing and tax strategy.

Previously, Jeremy has been an Economic Counsellor with the New Zealand Delegation to the OECD at the New Zealand Embassy in Paris, and an economics and finance advisor with the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. He has also worked with Deloitte and Touche, Volunteer Service Abroad, the Ministry of Education and New Zealand Post Office/Telecom.


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Strategic Labour Market Policy Division

The Strategic Labour Market Division works across the Policy and Research Group, the Department and Government to provide advice on issues related to the New Zealand Labour market. The Division has responsibility for the relationship with the Minister of Social Development and Employment and the Vote Employment policy portfolio.

The Division's responsibilities also include leading the Department's policy advice on the Government's response to the Canterbury Earthquake.


Doug Gorman.

Doug Gorman is the General Manager of Strategic Labour Market Policy Division. He is supported by a Policy Manager, a Chief Adviser and a team of Principal Analysts.

Before joining the Department in early 2011, Doug worked as a Principal Advisor in the Social Services Policy division of the Ministry of Social Development (MSD). Doug provided advice on labour market programmes, youth and education issues and child and family policy. While working for MSD Doug was seconded to the secretariat for the Welfare Working Group and the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet.

Before joining MSD, Doug worked for the Australian government at State and Federal levels in education and training, child support and service delivery administration.


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Labour and Immigration Policy Division

Labour and Immigration Policy Division provides high quality and operationally grounded advice on immigration, health and safety, and labour and employment relations. The Division has responsibility for the policy relationship with the Minister for Immigration and the Minister of Labour.


Michael Papesch.

Michael Papesch is the General Manager of Labour and Immigration Policy Division. He is supported by Policy Managers responsible for three Units.

Michael Papesch joined the Department of Labour in January 2011, and has been General Manager, Labour and Immigration Policy since then. Before joining the Department, Michael held senior roles in the Ministry of Social Development (both as the Director, Value for Money and as the General Manager, Older Peoples' Policy) and in the Department of Building and Housing (as Manager, Sector Productivity).

Earlier in his career, Michael spent over 22 years at the Treasury, with roles in state sector performance, health, natural resources, labour and energy policy.



Immigration Policy Unit

The Immigration Policy Unit's key focus areas include increasing immigration's contribution to economic growth, through policy development for temporary workers, students, visitors, and skilled migrants. The Unit also helps ensure that immigration policy supports New Zealand's international obligations.

Health and Safety Policy

The Health and Safety Policy Unit leads the Government's Workplace Health and Safety Strategy and provides high impact, evidence-based policy advice to the Minister of Labour on how best to achieve the Government's workplace health and safety strategic goals, in a wider labour market context. The Unit maintains the legislative framework, to create healthy and safe workplace conditions that improve productivity and stimulate growth.

Employment Relations Policy

The Employment Relations Policy Unit advises the Government on the operation of New Zealand's employment relations regulatory framework and is responsible for administering employment relations legislation and assist in meeting New Zealand's international labour commitments. Key areas of focus for the Unit include the impact of the employment relations framework on labour productivity and participation.

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Accident Compensation Policy and Monitoring Division

Accident Compensation Policy and Monitoring Division leads all aspects of policy development, governance and monitoring of injury prevention, rehabilitation and compensation to ensure that New Zealand's accident compensation scheme is efficient and affordable. It is responsible for managing the Department's relationship with the Minister for ACC.

The accident compensation scheme provides comprehensive, no-fault cover for all who suffer physical injury in New Zealand. It is delivered by one of New Zealand's largest Crown Entities - the Accident Compensation Corporation or ACC - and has multi-billion dollar assets and liabilities.


Todd Krieble.

Todd Krieble is the General Manager of the Accident Compensation Policy and Monitoring Division. He is supported by Policy Managers responsible for two Units.

Todd previously served as Director, Information at the Ministry for the Environment with responsibility for environmental and climate change reporting, science, and statistics. He served 3 years at the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet as a policy advisor.

Todd has held a range of policy management roles in the health sector. He spent a year in the Director General's office of the World Health Organisation in 2000 working on organisational strategy. Todd started his career in public health in the United States and Samoa. He holds master's degrees in public health and public policy.


Accident Compensation Scheme Policy Unit

The Accident Compensation Scheme Policy Unit provides independent policy advice on all broad matters relating to the New Zealand's accident compensation scheme, as well as more on the scheme's legislation and regulation, and ACC policies and practices. The Unit's policy role also includes advice on scheme interfaces with other Departments.

Accident Compensation Funding Policy and Monitoring Unit

The Accident Compensation Funding and Policy Monitoring Unit provides the Department's purchase advice on, and monitoring of, the performance of ACC, and also independent advice on levy setting and funding policy. This role includes monitoring the scheme operationally and financially, and independently analysing the levies recommended by the ACC Board throughout the annual levy setting process. The Unit also monitors ACC's compliance with its legislative obligations.

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Research, Evaluation and Monitoring Division

The Research, Evaluation and Monitoring Division undertakes research, evaluation and monitoring that provides a solid evidence base for labour market and immigration policy development and for improving service delivery across the Department as a whole. Its outputs are of value to Government, Ministers and other agencies, businesses, employee groups and those with an interest in social and economic policy.


Vasantha Krishnan.

Vasantha Krishnan is the General Manager of Research, Evaluation and Monitoring Division. She is supported by four research units.

Vasantha Krishnan has been with the Department since November 2005 and has had over 20 years experience in social policy research both as a practitioner and as a manager.

Prior to working in the Department of Labour, Vasantha worked in the Ministry of Social Development. In this role she was actively involved in leading and researching areas related to poverty and living standards, employment and related welfare and income adequacy policies and programmes.



Labour Research and Evaluation Unit

The Labour Research and Evaluation Unit carries out research and evaluation for Employment Relations Policy, Health and Safety Policy, Accident Compensation Policy, and the Labour Group.

With a strong history of qualitative research methods and evaluation, the Unit is positioned to provide:

Strategic Research, Evaluation and Monitoring Unit

The Strategic Research, Evaluation and Monitoring unit generates and communicates policy-relevant research findings, and develops new data sources to fill key information gaps. Some of the research led by the Unit includes:

IMSED Research Unit

The IMSED Research has the lead role within the Government for research and evaluation regarding International Migration, Settlement, and Employment Dynamics (IMSED). IMSED Research is responsible for the Department of Labour's research on, and evaluation of, immigration and settlement issues facing New Zealand in a globally competitive environment.

Labour Market Information and Analysis Unit

The Labour Market Information and Analysis Unit's role is to provide high-quality labour market information/insights and advice for Government, the Department, and a range of external stakeholders. The Unit does this by analysing and interpreting economic and socio-economic information to provide a comprehensive and dynamic picture of the current and short- to medium-term future of the New Zealand labour market at a national, occupational, regional, and sector level.

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Role Profiles within the Policy and Research Group

Policy Manager - Salary Range NZ$140,000 - NZ$160,000

Role is a 12 month fixed term/secondment. Policy Managers play an important role in the leadership of the Policy and Research Group. They are able to demonstrate their ability to work across sectors and service lines. A Policy Manager also has a high level of policy expertise in their area of responsibility combined with the leadership and people skills needed to manage a highly skilled and intelligent workforce.

They lead and manage a policy unit, which may be made up of a number of teams, and ensure the staff have the knowledge, skills, resources, systems, processes and analytical tools required to deliver high quality policy analysis to an appropriate standard.

They work with the Policy and Research Group Management Team to shape strategic policy directions and the policy agenda. They look ahead to anticipate key issues up to three years out and develop a work programme to manage these issues as well as support current deliverables. They are clear about the overall objectives and can communicate this vision to others in their unit in a way that aids understanding and generates enthusiasm and commitment.

Policy Managers identify, specify, prioritise, commission and delegate policy work effectively. They support their Team and Project Leaders by looking at the wider policy and political context of an issue to help position the team's policy advice, and any paper provided to a Group Manager or Deputy Chief Executive needs no further input to ensure the advice is appropriately positioned.

They have a strategic outlook with the intellectual capability to analyse large, complex policy issues and readily grasp and synthesise the ideas, analysis and advice produced by others. They exercise good judgement and skill in cutting through process to ensure that sufficient work has been done and that the policy advice is well-informed by the appropriate knowledge, views and expertise. They are attuned to emerging risks, alert others and identify and implement sound mitigation strategies.

Policy Managers are able to lead or contribute to the substantive components of the work, provide constructive feedback to staff and shape analysis into effective advice that can be used by Ministers to make decisions.

They plan their workforce needs with an eye to the future and recruit, retain, develop and mobilise the policy expertise needed to deliver policy analysis and advice. They are able to respond quickly and flexibly to changing needs in the Group and can shift policy advisors between projects to ensure they have the people with the skills needed to do the job.

Policy Managers create a working environment that encourages performance, knowledge sharing, ongoing learning, creativity, innovation, and they ensure use of the necessary policy analysis tools in the development of high quality policy analysis and advice. They work closely with their Team Leaders and Principal Advisors to ensure staff meet their stretch objectives and receive the necessary on-the-job coaching and mentoring. They build the capability of Team Leaders and support capability development within teams. They are starting to actively contribute to the organisational development of the wider Group.

Policy Managers are able to represent the Department independently in any forum. They have a strategic network of relationships with key stakeholders and ensure policy advisors have access to the professional networks and expertise they need to develop professional advice.

To apply for this role and view the Job Description in full please Click here

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Principal Advisor (Level 2) - Salary Range NZ$120,000 - NZ$175,000

  1. Strategic Labour Market Policy
  2. Health and Safety Policy
  3. Accident Compensation Policy and Monitoring

There are two levels of Principal Policy Advisor in the Department. The day-to-day activities of the two roles are broadly similar; however, the difference lies in the breadth and depth of knowledge of, and experience in, the professional field.

A Principal Policy Advisor at the higher level (Level 2):

  • Has a macro-outlook on policy issues, can see the inter-connections from one issue to another and applies a wide range of advanced analytical methods
  • Proactively develops approaches which break through previous impasses on important issues, and develops new policy directions
  • Identifies future policy pressures and opportunities over a 5 to 10 year time horizon, sees issues in the wider context, initiates strategic discussions, and advises on and influences strategic policy directions and the policy agenda
  • Produces high-quality, innovative work on complex and sensitive inter-agency, multiple-portfolio and cross-sectoral issues
  • Represents the Department and Ministers independently in any forum on complex, sensitive or controversial issues
  • Has extensive and up-to-date knowledge of all aspects of policy development.

Principal Policy Advisors are recognised as expert practitioners in policy development, and provide professional and intellectual leadership to others. They can develop new solutions to long-standing problems by bringing a range of analytical frameworks and well-reasoned and empirical analysis to these problems.

Principal Advisors are knowledgeable about the underlying issues, opportunities and political forces affecting the Department. They can look ahead to identify future policy pressures and opportunities, see issues in the wider context, contribute to strategic discussions across the Department, and work with management to advise on and influence strategic policy directions and the policy agenda.

They have expert, in-depth institutional knowledge and practical experience in the policy areas for which they are responsible, and they are able to come up to speed quickly on policy issues that are unfamiliar and complex. They have the intellectual capability to develop new policy directions on a policy issue and can see the inter-connections from one issue to another. They lead the more complex and ambiguous projects, and propose practical, new solutions capable of being implemented.

Principal Advisors are able to identify limitations in policy assumptions and proposals and know when to commission research to inform advice. They are knowledgeable about a range of analytical frameworks and their potential application to policy issues and are able to apply these skills in a way that adds fresh insight to the Department's thinking on long-standing issues.

They build the trust and confidence of Ministers and ensure that advice is readily accessible, robust, addresses the issues raised by Ministers and helps them make decisions.

Principal Advisors take the lead in ensuring the Department has robust policy frameworks, quality assurance processes and professional practice models.

They provide robust peer review to more junior staff to ensure quality, validity, accuracy and consistency, with a focus on the thinking and application of policy frameworks. They take a whole-of government approach and assess whether the advice takes into account relevant political and departmental contexts.

They also contribute to the development of other policy staff by transferring skills and knowledge through on-the-job coaching, guidance and leadership on the policy process and frameworks, public sector and Parliamentary processes, planning and project management, and the competencies needed by policy advisors to perform well in their roles.

Principal Advisors are able to represent the Department with Ministers and other stakeholders on complex issues. They have a well-established network of contacts across the Department, in other agencies, with key stakeholders and opinion leaders and use these networks to share ideas and information and influence change.

To apply for one of the three vacant roles, and view the Job Description in full please Click here

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Applications close NZ Time 5pm Sunday 31 July, 2011

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Contact:

For more information about the Policy and Research Group, you can contact prgvacancies@dol.govt.nz

Please note: it may take us a few days to respond

More about the Department of Labour

For further information on all of our vacancies please go to www.dol.govt.nz/careers

For further information about the Department of Labour go to www.dol.govt.nz



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