Principal Software Engineer

Mō tēnei tūranga mahi | About this role

There's a good chance you've heard of the New Zealand Infrastructure Commission, Te Waihanga. We're small (but mighty) and haven't been around long by government standards. But our job is as big as it gets, helping New Zealand get the right infrastructure, whether it's transport connections that get us from A to B, water and power connections needed to support affordable homes, or schools and hospitals that support our communities.

Te Waihanga seeks to transform infrastructure for all New Zealanders. By doing so our goal is to lift the economic performance of Aotearoa and improve the wellbeing of all New Zealanders.

Our Data Science and Analytics team is now seeking an experienced Principal Software Engineer to play a central role in advancing our software applications and analytics capability.

Te Kaupapa o te Tūranga | Role purpose

We're looking for someone to drive our software development forward, delight our users, integrate and operationalise our models and tools, and generally maximise the value from our investment in data and analytics. You'll help to shape the strategic direction for our country's infrastructure through your work on key initiatives like the New Zealand Infrastructure Strategy and the National Infrastructure Plan.

In this role, you will be responsible for:

• Web application development: Design, develop, test, and maintain a suite of integrated web applications supporting identity management, stakeholder engagement, data ingestion, analytics, and data publishing. Leverage Microsoft ASP.NET in C# with Razor Pages, Bootstrap, Tailwind CSS, and JavaScript frameworks to deliver robust front-end experiences.
• Plugin and front-end integration: Architect, build, and deploy custom JavaScript/React plugins to enhance Sigma workbooks and dashboards, enabling seamless integration and interactive user experiences.
• Database engineering: Design, develop, and manage Azure SQL Server databases that underpin core web and plugin services. Ensure performance, reliability, and scalability of data storage and retrieval mechanisms.
• Cloud infrastructure management: Deploy and administer Azure cloud services to support application development and deployment pipelines, ensuring cost-efficiency, scalability, and availability of services.
• Technical and architectural leadership: Serve as a subject matter expert and mentor across the team. Lead architectural planning, code reviews, and solution design, championing best practices in software development, security, performance, and maintainability.
• Performance monitoring and optimisation: Proactively monitor application health and user experience. Identify performance bottlenecks and implement enhancements to ensure optimal system responsiveness and reliability.
• Cross-functional collaboration: Work closely with managers, data scientists, analysts, and data engineers to understand requirements and deliver scalable, user-centric solutions aligned with business objectives.
• Automation and DevOps practices: Design and maintain CI/CD pipelines to automate testing, deployment, and delivery processes. Encourage a DevOps culture of rapid iteration, feedback, and continuous improvement.
• Security and compliance: Ensure that all software and infrastructure implementations adhere to enterprise security, data protection, and regulatory compliance standards. Drive secure coding practices and support risk assessments and reviews.
• Documentation and governance: Maintain high-quality documentation for codebases, systems architecture, and deployment processes. Foster a culture of knowledge sharing, continuous learning, and compliance, and technical excellence across the team.

Who we are after: A passionate and proven Principal or Senior Software Engineer with deep technical expertise and broad generalist skills. You'll combine strong analytical thinking with excellent communication, stakeholder engagement, and project delivery capabilities. This role demands a commitment to understanding organisational context, and specific challenges within the infrastructure sector, to deliver end-to-end software solutions that have impact.

As the Principal Software Engineer, you will be:

• Motivated by purpose: Driven to contribute to the nation's strategic direction on infrastructure through the design and delivery of impactful digital tools and systems.
• Proactive and pragmatic: A dependable self-starter who takes initiative, drives projects forward with urgency, and delivers high-quality outcomes with minimal supervision.
• A natural with technology: Passionate about problem solving and logic and using your programming skills to deliver elegant solutions. 
• Ahead of the curve: Curious by nature and committed to continuous technical excellence, you'll stay up to date with new technologies and methodologies and identify opportunities to improve development processes, tooling, and system efficiency.
• An effective communicator: Confident in presenting complex technical concepts clearly to varied audiences, and skilled at influencing key decision-makers across the organisation.
• Adaptable and resourceful: Highly proficient in our core technology stack, yet agile in learning and mastering new tools and platforms—nothing technical fazes you.
• A champion of data and automation: Committed to maximising the value through our software, data, and analytics products by fully leveraging cloud infrastructure, automation, innovation, and AI.

E riro ai i a koe tēnei tūranga me whai wheako koe ki ngā tūmahi pēnei i ēnei' | To do this you will be experienced at things like

We are seeking a highly experienced Principal Software Engineer with over ten years of hands-on expertise in C# and .NET, with strong proficiency in ASP.NET Core. This role requires a deep understanding of software architecture and engineering principles, along with a passion for innovation and technology leadership.

• Full-stack technical expertise: Extensive experience with ASP.NET Core, C#, Entity Framework, and SQL, Azure, complemented by strong front-end skills using JavaScript, React, Tailwind, Bootstrap, Node.js, and jQuery.
• End-to-end solution architecture: Proven ability to design, build, and deploy secure, scalable, and optimized software solutions. Skilled in integrating these systems seamlessly into existing business processes to drive operational value.
• Codebase ownership & DevOps integration: Adept at maintaining and evolving complex codebases using Git and Azure DevOps. Experience implementing DevOps practices including CI/CD pipelines, automated testing, and deployment of data and ML pipelines. Proficient with containerization and orchestration tools to ensure robust and scalable deployments.
• Technology and innovation leadership: A proactive advocate for innovation, automation, AI, and data-driven approaches. Able to identify and deliver high-impact technical solutions to plan, that advance organizational goals.
• Cross-functional collaboration: Skilled at working with a wide range of stakeholders including data engineers, network architects, consultants, and business users. Capable of rapidly gathering requirements and delivering high-quality solutions and proof-of-concepts.
• Effective communication: Excellent communicator with the ability to articulate complex technical ideas clearly and concisely to both technical and non-technical audiences. Strong written and presentation skills for conveying risks, opportunities, and solution strategies to support decisions.
• Design and systems thinking: Experienced in user-centered design, systems thinking, and agile development methodologies. Focused on delivering solutions that are not only functional but also intuitive and user-friendly.

Me whai hoki e koe | You will also have

A bachelor's or postgraduate degree in computer science, software engineering, statistics/mathematics, or equivalent experience in a relevant field.

Nōu te rourou I What's in it for you

We offer a competitive total remuneration package for this position depending on skills and experience. We also provide:

• a flexible by default approach to support your work-life balance
• generous leave entitlements
• wellbeing support including subsidised health insurance membership for open-tenure employees

Mō te tīma |  About our team

Te Waihanga is what's called an Autonomous Crown Entity or, even better, an ACE. We think about the whole infrastructure system - roads, waterpipes, powerlines, you name it – and our job is to give advice and uncover the insights that can make it all work as well as it can, supporting an Aotearoa that's great for the generations to come. 

Our people are smart and passionate about this stuff.  They're friendly and, this being a relatively small organisation, it's easy to work with anyone here and to have an impact. We don't do hierarchy or stand on ceremony. 

We also value our people, and it's important to us that you feel welcome, supported, and respected. 

How to Apply | Tono mai

Please read the role description on our website 

Apply by emailing recruitment@tewaihanga.govt.nz. We'd like to hear from you. 

Our recruitment process will include an assessment phase so you can demonstrate your technical proficiency and understanding, along with your report writing and presentation skills.

Te Waihanga is a member of Diversity Works New Zealand and is committed to developing a diverse workforce and an inclusive workplace. We provide equal employment opportunities and welcome applications from everyone who can meet the requirements of the role. We also offer flexible working arrangements. 

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

This role is based in Wellington. To be considered, you must have a legal right to live and work in New Zealand.

We will be shortlisting as we receive applications, so we encourage you to apply early.

Applications close, Thursday 12 June 2025.