Principal Engineer

Ratonga Matihiko | Digital Services

Located in Ōtautahi | Christchurch, Aotearoa | New Zealand
- Full-time (37.5 hours per week)
- Permanent position
- Generous annual leave provisions and professional development opportunities
- Kia hiwa rā, kia hiwa rā _He hiahia, he pūkenga nōu ki te mahi a te Principal Engineer - Faculty Enablement? Nāia te pōwhiri nā Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha kia tono mai i te tūranga nei._

**Āu Mahi | What You Will Do**

The Principal Engineer - Faculty Enablement is a senior technical leader driving the modernisation of faculty computing across the University of Canterbury (UC). You will ensure secure, cloud-first, and policy-compliant environments that support teaching and research, aligned with UC's digital strategy. You'll lead technical strategies focused on device lifecycle management, hybrid cloud, virtual desktops (e.g., AVD, Azure Local, AWS Linux), and automation. A key part of this role is transitioning legacy systems into scalable, centralised services that meet enterprise standards.

As a hands-on architect and trusted advisor, you'll collaborate with faculty technicians, academic staff, and Digital Services to deliver fit-for-purpose solutions, embed Zero Trust principles, and support research computing—creating a seamless and future-ready digital experience.

You will make an impact by:

- Designing scalable, innovative faculty computing environments aligned with UC's digital strategy.
- Enhancing service delivery through efficient, tech-enabled support for staff and students.
- Fostering strong partnerships with faculty leaders, staff, and external tech providers.
- Managing secure, standardised endpoints and virtual environments for teaching and research.
- Providing expert, strategic advice aligned with academic and digital priorities.
- Leading change with clear communication and hands-on support to ensure smooth adoption of new technologies**.**

**Mōu | Who You Are**

You will have at least 10 years of experience leading technical solution design and architecture across endpoint, virtualisation, and cloudbased computing environments, with a strong emphasis on modernisation, automation, and secure systems delivery. You will also be able to demonstrate:

- Expert knowledge of endpoint management solutions
- Expertise in virtualization platforms for faculty and research environments
- Proven ability to lead technical strategies for faculty computing modernisation
- Experience implementing automation, security frameworks, and cloud-first computing solutions.
- Experience providing technical mentorship and leadership within cross-functional teams.
- Strong problem-solving ability, with a proactive approach to designing and implementing solutions.
- Excellent communication skills, with the ability to translate technical concepts for non-technical stakeholders.
- An alignment with our organisation's values and culture, promoting a positive and inclusive work environment.
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or a related field (NZQA Level 7).
- Relevant certifications in cloud computing, endpoint management, or enterprise architecture (e.g., Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect, AWS Solutions Architect, TOGAF)
- Certifications in endpoint management and virtualization (e.g., Microsoft Certified: Modern Desktop Administrator, Azure Virtual Desktop Specialty).
- Experience working in higher education or research computing environments
- Familiarity with academic and research computing needs, including high-performance computing (HPC) and cloud-based scientific computing frameworks
- Understanding of academic and research data management policies and best practices.

**Mahi Ngātahi | Who You Will Work With**

Building world-class digital capability is crucial to the University of Canterbury's ongoing success. Digital Services is a large team, striving to provide a modern dynamic foundation from which the University (UC) can explore new business models and ways of working. Digital will transform how we work, behave, and the expectations of the communities we service

**Ngā Painga o UC | Why UC**

Ngā Uara | Our Values of manaakitanga, whanaungatanga and tiakitanga guide our decisions and behaviour and provide a roadmap for how we do things at UC, affirming our commitment to pastoral care and support for our ākonga and staff. They challenge and inspire us to be the best we can, and make UC a great place to work and study. For more info on Ngā Uara | Our Values visit us here.

We are committed to accessible higher education, service to the community and the encouragement of talent without barriers of distance, wealth, class, gender or ethnicity. The University explicitly aims to produce graduates and support staff who are engaged with their communities, empowered to act for good and determined to make a difference in the world.

**The closing date for this position is: 31 August 2025 (midnight, NZ time)**

**Pēhea te tono m