About us

Whangārei District Council is passionate about supporting you to grow your career, continuously develop your capabilities and really connect with your community. We take pride in setting ourselves apart and know the importance of interacting and supporting our district to grow and thrive. Our district has so much to offer including a stunning natural environment, great schools, and short commutes.

At WDC, we offer awesome employment opportunities, support our team members to succeed, we provide flexible working arrangements, support for ongoing learning and professional development as well as Life and Health Insurances.

About the Role

Our RMA Consents Team are seeking applications from RMA Team Leaders or RMA Planning specialists who can provide a high level of leadership, technical expertise and advice on Resource Consents and associated RMA Planning matters.

We are hoping to hear from you if you are technically sound and are either passionate about leading and mentoring a team, or if you are an expert with a dedication for continuous improvement.

Depending on whether you want to lead people, or continue as a technical expert, the below may vary slightly, however, some of your duties may include:

• Be a trusted leader, leading a passionate, small team of RMA professionals,
• Provide planning advice to the public, consultants, and the organisation,
• Maintain a healthy team environment and bring your innovative ideas,
• Help manage on average, 50-60 applications per month,
• Mentoring the team with a technical lens whilst enabling us, and the wider council, to have a consist approach when interpreting the District Plan,
• Staying abreast of legislative changes that effect the work of our RMA team,
• Developing tools and processes to support efficient working,
• Driving customer focused improvement projects relating to the work of the District Plan team,
• Managing and updating templates that support our team,
• Reviewing District Plan changes from a ‘user' perspective,
• Cross department training on RMA and District Plan.

About You

You will be someone who has a genuine desire to make a real difference in the community we serve. Your great people skills will enable you to work successfully with a wide range of people and your collaborative approach will enable working relationships across the organisation. You enjoy a positive team culture and collaborating to see projects succeed and outcomes delivered. Being resilient and adaptable will be an asset to you in this role. Additionally, you'll be able to demonstrate the following:

• Expert knowledge of the Resource Management Act and at least 5 years in resource consent processing in New Zealand within a territorial authority,
• Proven reasonable understanding of legal processes and interpretation and application,
• Grown your leadership style, with a passion for professional development,
• Ability to effectively influence others through development of strong working relationships and provision of clear well thought out advice,
• Environment Court experience,
• Experience with effectively facilitating successful win-win outcomes and strong focus on issue resolution,
• Ability to operate effectively under pressure,
• Excellent ability to assess and proactively manage risk,
• A full NZPI membership, or commitment to pursuing full membership, is preferred,
• BPlan or BREP or similar degree level qualification related to Planning.

Ready to apply?
If this opportunity has sparked your interest, and you believe you have the required experience and qualifications, please get in touch. As mentioned, we would love to hear from you whether you are a passionate leader, or looking to further develop your technical ability, we are here to answer any questions you may have about the role, team or organisation.

We hire great people from a wide variety of backgrounds as it helps to make our community stronger. If you share our values and commitment, you will find WDC a great place to work.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Amanda Starkie in our People and Capability team for a confidential discussion on: (09) 430 4200 or 0800 932 463 or email at Amanda.Starkie@wdc.govt.nz.

Simon Weston

CHIEF EXECUTIVE