Senior Advisor, Financial Assurance

**Senior Advisor, Financial Assurance**

**Fixed term 24 months**

**Wellington-based role**

Come and assist in creating an effective and efficient Financial Assurance function.

**Ko wai mātou | About us**

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) provides national leadership to New Zealand's distributed emergency management system. NEMA's primary focus is on the performance and capability of the emergency management system as a whole, across all hazards and all risks and the 4 Rs of risk reduction, readiness, response and recovery.

NEMA values diversity and inclusion. We want our workforce to reflect the diversity of our communities. We value and respect the contributions of our people with diverse backgrounds, experiences, skills and perspectives. We support flexible ways of working that bring out the best in you.

We are committed to doing our part to deliver on the Crown's commitments to Māori under Te Tiriti o Waitangi. We strive to actively build te Ao Māori perspectives and capability into our day to day work, values and practices.

**Mō tēnei tūranga mahi | About this role**

The purpose of the Senior Advisor, Financial Assurance is to process and manage claims submitted to NEMA by local authorities and other organisations on a timely basis in accordance with principles, standards, and guidelines. This will be achieved by:

- Managing the end-to-end assurance review, approval and reporting processes related to local authorities and CDEM claims and other funds administered by NEMA
- Mentoring and coaching new team members, as and when required (including managing the Financial Assurance unit in the absence of the Funding and Financial Assurance Manager)
- Identifying and communicating risks to NEMA and funded programmes
- Communicating with NEMA management and local authorities about claims and funding
- Engaging with local authorities on significant infrastructure rebuild programmes after emergency events to provide advice on NEMA funding and eligibility.

The position sits in the Regional Partnerships Unit (RPU), which consists of three teams, Regional Engagement, Emergency Management Leadership Group and Financial Assurance. The Financial Assurance team leads the management of Government financial assistance provisions to CDEM Groups and local authorities through special funding and cost recovery mechanisms.

As NEMA is an operational agency, there may be a requirement to respond to emergency activations in the event of a national emergency response. This may include potentially long hours and challenging working conditions, e.g. an emergency could occur at any time of the day or night and may require working shifts and/or working weekends**.** NEMA provides thorough training prior to you being required to assist in a response. NEMA will do all in its power to support staff in meeting their work and family responsibilities during an emergency. The welfare and wellbeing of our staff is of upmost importance.

**In response you will work in the Finance sub function of Logistics.**

Due to the nature of our role in Emergency Management, NEMA has a very dynamic work environment and as a small agency, staff are often required to pivot and change focus on their work at short notice. Attributes of adaptability, agility, resilience and curiosity are all required on a daily basis, in and out of times of emergency response.

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**Ko wai koe | About you**
- Agility, curiosity, adaptability and resilience
- Attention to detail and an ability to deliver high quality work outputs under pressure
- Flexible approach/thinking, able to adapt in constantly changing circumstances
- Ability to take initiative and work autonomously
- Comfortable facilitating a collaborative work environment, with a constant eye on completing the objective and goals of the business unit
- The discretion and tact to handle confidential and private information
- High level of judgement with the ability to make effective decisions in complex or conflict situations while maintaining independence

**Huanga Whaiaro | Key requirements**
- Chartered Accountant or Certified Internal Auditor / Internal Audit Qualification
- A Tertiary qualification in accounting, auditing or financial management or related disciplines
- At least five years' experience in assurance or auditing
- Strong communication skills including ability to write formal reports
- Experience in persuading, influencing, building and maintaining effective collaborative relationships
- Sound knowledge of MS Applications (in particular word and excel at intermediate level) and IT systems
- Experience working in an operational environment and operational decision making

**Ta matou e tuku | What we offer**

We pride ourselves on the quality of our staff and understand the importance of fostering a working environment where excellence is recognised and where staff are encouraged to develop their own talents and potential. We welcome diversity, in all its forms and we