Principal Enterprise Architect - Corporate

NZ Transport Agency (Waka Kotahi) is seeking a strategic and influential Principal Enterprise Architect to partner with our Corporate leadership teams and help shape the future direction of key enterprise capabilities across Commercial & Corporate and People & Culture. This is an enterprise leadership role focused on understanding business strategy, identifying future capability needs, and providing trusted advice that helps leaders make informed decisions about investment, organisational priorities and business outcomes.

Working closely with senior leaders, you will bring an enterprise-wide perspective that helps connect business objectives, capability evolution, digital opportunities and long-term organisational direction. The role profile describes the Principal Enterprise Architect as providing enterprise architecture leadership, shaping target states, supporting executive decision-making and influencing investment and strategic direction.

Te Whiwhinga mahi | The opportunity 

 

As Principal Enterprise Architect, you will become a trusted advisor to business leaders, helping them navigate complex challenges and opportunities while ensuring future decisions are informed by a clear understanding of enterprise impacts, dependencies and possibilities. This role is fundamentally business-led. Success in this position comes from understanding business strategy, organisational priorities, customer outcomes and enterprise capabilities, then translating those insights into clear guidance that helps leaders make better decisions.

Rather than focusing on specific technologies or delivery solutions, you will work upstream of delivery, engaging early with business leaders to influence thinking, shape options and ensure decisions are made with a clear understanding of their broader enterprise implications. You will play a key role in creating stronger connections between business planning and digital enablement, helping NZTA make deliberate and informed decisions about where technology can provide value and how future investments should align to enterprise direction.

This is an opportunity to influence decisions that matter before they become initiatives, programmes or technology investments. You will help shape the future evolution of some of NZTA's most important corporate capabilities, working alongside senior leaders to ensure business strategy, enterprise direction and digital enablement remain closely connected. Role responsibilities:

• Develop deep relationships with senior business stakeholders
• Shape enterprise capability strategies and future-state business direction
• Provide strategic advice on emerging business needs, opportunities and risks
• Identify opportunities to simplify, align and improve services and capabilities across the enterprise
• Influence investment decisions by providing an enterprise perspective
• Connect business priorities with digital, data and technology opportunities
• Help ensure Digital engagement occurs early, allowing opportunities and constraints to be understood before significant decisions are made
• Resolve cross-organisational dependencies and support coherent enterprise outcomes.

Ko koe tēnei | About you   

We are looking for a strategic thinker with the credibility and influence to engage confidently with senior leaders and shape enterprise conversations.

You will bring:

• Extensive experience in enterprise architecture, business architecture or strategic advisory roles
• Strong business capability modelling and enterprise planning experience
• The ability to translate business strategy into practical enterprise direction
• Experience influencing executives and senior decision-makers
• A strong understanding of investment planning, governance and organisational priorities
• Excellent stakeholder engagement and relationship-building skills
• The ability to simplify complexity and provide clear, actionable advice
• A collaborative approach that enables alignment across business, digital and delivery communities.

Mō mātou |About Us

The purpose of our group is to: Improve service offerings, support decision-making and make it easier for us to do our work and for others to interact with us. Provide modern, fit for purpose digital, information and technology solutions for our people, partners, and customers, providing enabling systems and data.

The Chief Technology Office (CTO) is a strategic business enabler within NZTA, accountable for delivering the digital skills, capabilities, platforms, and leadership required to support the agency’s operational performance, regulatory responsibilities, and future transport vision. The CTO function ensures that digital investments, platforms, and services are aligned with organisational priorities, delivering measurable value across the business. It plays a critical role in enabling efficient service delivery, improving customer experience, managing risk, and supporting long-term planning.

Ka whiwhi koe i te aha | What you will get in return

If you enjoy strategic thinking, trusted advisory relationships and helping organisations make better long-term decisions, we'd love to hear from you. Along with our other benefits, we offer:

• Five weeks’ annual leave
• Income protection and critical illness insurance for permanent employees
• Flexible working arrangements, where appropriate for the role
• Opportunities for professional development and continued learning

Me pēhea te tuku tono | How to apply

 

Please click Apply to upload your CV and cover letter detailing your suitability for the role.

Rā Katinga | Applications close:

9 November 2026

For further information, email: careers@nzta.govt.nz

To be considered for this position you must have a legal right to live and work in New Zealand.

Waka Kotahi is an equal opportunity employer (EOE). We recognise the importance of diversity and inclusion and are committed to providing a working environment that embraces these values. Please let us know if you need any support or have any access requirements that will help you through the recruitment process.

Please note that we may begin shortlisting as we receive applications. We encourage early applications as we may withdraw the advertising at any time.