Principal Advisor – Advice and Navigation

Role overview

This fixed-term six-month position supports the Chief Victims Advisor within the Justice Sector Directorate. It is a high-trust role focused on improving the experience of victim-survivors across Aotearoa New Zealand.

You will oversee responses to enquiries and complaints coming into the office, making sure every interaction is managed with care, accuracy, respect, and prompt attention. The insights gathered from this work will be used to drive broader improvements across the justice system.

In this role, you will work across the justice sector and with partners beyond it to provide practical, strategic advice informed by lived experience. Your contribution will help strengthen coordination, improve support for victim-survivors, and shape a more responsive, victim-centred system.

The position calls for strong judgement, adaptability, and the confidence to work through complex and sensitive matters. It is suited to someone who can build trusted relationships, influence senior stakeholders, and remain calm and effective in a fast-moving environment.

Key responsibilities

You will lead the direct handling of victim-survivor enquiries and complaints, ensuring the service provided is empathetic, timely, and well judged. You will also translate recurring issues and patterns from casework into insights that can inform policy, service design, and system-level change.

The role includes advising senior leaders, coordinating with agencies and community partners, and helping strengthen collaboration across government and non-government organisations. Your work will contribute to improved outcomes for individuals, families, and communities affected by crime and trauma.

Skills and experience required

Success in this role will come from substantial experience supporting victim-survivors and people affected by trauma, along with a strong trauma- and violence-informed approach. You should understand justice sector processes across criminal, civil, and family contexts.

Experience handling complex, sensitive enquiries or casework is important, especially where high-quality outcomes must be delivered quickly and professionally. You will need to communicate clearly with varied audiences, using plain, culturally aware, and trauma-informed language.

Knowledge of the Victims' Rights Act and Victims Code is desirable, though the ability to build this knowledge quickly is also valued. Strong relationship management skills are essential, including experience working with government agencies, NGOs, iwi, and community groups.

You should also be able to identify themes from lived experience and turn them into practical recommendations for service improvement and policy development. Comfort with ambiguity, the ability to prioritise effectively, and the confidence to provide clear advice to senior leaders are all key parts of the role.

About the team and organisation

Te Tāhū o te Ture, the Ministry of Justice, works to strengthen trust in the law of Aotearoa New Zealand. The Justice Sector Directorate provides coordination, leadership, and delivery support across justice priorities, with a focus on victim experience, timely justice, and reducing harm.

The Office of the Chief Victims Advisor sits within this directorate and provides independent advice to Ministers on justice sector performance for victim-survivors. The team is small but influential, and its work is rooted in lived experience, community partnership, trauma-informed practice, humility, integrity, service, and excellence.

The environment is fast paced and continually evolving, so adaptability is important. The organisation also values inclusion and welcomes people of all gender identities, ages, ethnicities, sexual orientations, disabilities, and religions.

Benefits

This role offers flexible work hours where possible, access to an online professional development portal, and membership in a range of inclusive and proactive networks. You will also have opportunities to broaden your capability and build your career through varied work and experience.

Salary

The salary range for this fixed-term role is between NZD 130,129 and NZD 179,192, depending on skills and experience.

Application details

Applicants are asked to submit a CV and cover letter through the organisation’s careers website. A detailed position description is available there as well.

Applications close on 15 July, but candidates may be reviewed and invited to interview before that date. Questions can be directed to [email protected].

Additional information

The role is based in Wellington and is onsite. It is a six-month fixed-term contract.

The vacancy is for a principal advisory position supporting advice and navigation functions for the Chief Victims Advisor.

Notice regarding external professional networking platforms has been removed in line with publication requirements.