Senior Service Designer

About this role

 

• Work on high priority initiatives, solve complex challenges, drive transformational change.
• Influence how services are designed, delivered, and continuously improved.
• Fixed-term/secondment opportunity available until 30^th of June 2027.

  

Mō te tūnga | About the role

As a Senior Service Designer within our People & Capability group, you will lead work that helps the organisation understand complex challenges, align around the right problems to solve, and design services that create meaningful value for our people and the organisation.

Working across organisational boundaries, you'll apply systems thinking, service design, and human-centred approaches to uncover insights, shape future-state service experiences, and identify opportunities for meaningful change. You'll bring together diverse perspectives to design practical solutions that ensure our workforce is safe, supported, and capable of delivering on our organisational purpose and outcomes.

Collaborating with senior leaders, subject matter experts, and users, you'll balance strategic intent with operational realities, ensuring service improvements are both sustainable and achievable. Your work will contribute to immediate service enhancements while helping to build a more connected, consistent, and service-driven organisation for the future.

 

Mōu | About you

If you're passionate about solving complex problems, designing services that work across the whole system, and creating meaningful outcomes, we'd love to hear from you.

This is an opportunity to:

• Shape the future of employee services and experiences.
• Influence strategic priorities and organisational outcomes.
• Help build a more connected, service-driven organisation.
• Be part of a collaborative, values-driven environment committed to deliver tangible value.

 

Ngā pūkenga me ngā wheako | Skills and experience

We are looking for a collaborative, pragmatic, and adaptable person who brings:

• Proven experience as a Senior Service Designer, leading complex service and system design initiatives from problem definition through to implementation and evaluation.
• Strong expertise in strategic problem framing, human-centred design, and systems thinking, with the ability to navigate complexity and ambiguity.
• Experience designing and improving services across interconnected systems, processes, technology, policy, and ways of working.
• Strong research, analysis, synthesis, and insight generation skills, with the ability to transform evidence into compelling recommendations and design direction.
• Experience planning and facilitating workshops, co-design activities, and stakeholder engagement processes that build alignment, shared understanding, and momentum.
• Excellent communication, storytelling, and visualisation skills, with the ability to influence and engage diverse audiences, including senior leaders.

 

Ngā painga | The benefits

The midpoint of the salary range is $123,511 per annum and the full range (85%-120%) is $104,985 - $148,214 per annum. Appointment and remuneration will reflect skills and experience relevant to the role.

 

Mō mātou | About us

Join Ara Poutama Aotearoa - Department of Corrections, where your work will contribute to improving public safety, reducing re-offending, and address the overrepresentation of Māori in correctional facilities. As a values-led organisation, we use the principles of rangatira (leadership), manaaki (respect), wairua (spirituality), kaitiaki (guardianship), and whānau (relationships) to guide our work and achieve the goals of our Hōkai Rangi strategy.

We value inclusion and diversity in our workforce, and as a Public Service organisation we are committed to building a workforce that reflects the public we serve. We strive to make our recruitment process fair, and we encourage you to discuss reasonable accommodations with us if required.

 

Tono ināianei | Apply Now

To submit an application and view the position description, click the apply link. All applications must be submitted through our careers site to ensure transparency – applications received via email will not be considered.

When applying, submit a tailored CV and a cover letter describing your motivation for joining the department highlighting relevant skills and experience and the alignment to our work.

Applications close on: Wednesday the 29^th of July.

If you have any questions or want to learn more about a career with us, contact Sarah.Newbold@corrections.govt.nz, or visit careers.corrections.govt.nz.