Director Cyber Defence Operations

Mō tēnei tūranga mahi | About this role

DIRECTOR CYBER DEFENCE OPERATIONS | Whakataka Ngā Whakahaere Ārai a-Ipurangi

Join our diverse and talented people and work at the heart of national security, providing essential intelligence to the NZ government to protect Aotearoa New Zealand and its people.

The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) is the heart of Aotearoa New Zealand's cyber defence. We fulfil the cyber security responsibilities of the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) | Te Tira Tiaki, as the government's lead operational cyber security agency.

Why work for us

Alongside getting to work with our talented people, we also offer a range of comprehensive benefits which include:

• Medical Insurance and Vision Care packages
• Enhanced employer contributions to your Kiwisaver
• Generous leave benefits, including additional paid days off and enhanced sick and parental leave
• Childcare allowance for your pre-schoolers
• Opportunities for personal and professional growth and career pathways across the intelligence community
• Great work-life balance

The role

This position is one of the most challenging and impactful operational leadership roles available. As Director Cyber Defence Operations, you will lead a range of specialist disciplines to detect, disrupt and respond to cyber security incidents from across the motu, while being exposed to international expertise and insights. You will contribute to the defence of New Zealanders and their businesses across the economy and internationally.

The NCSC envisages an Aotearoa New Zealand where good cyber security is practised everywhere, all the time, by everyone. To achieve this, we need a cross-functional approach to identify and address the drivers of poor cyber security, while addressing the immediate challenges of a complex operating environment. This means a keen focus on real world outcomes, proactive and collegial peer relationships and strong constructive engagement with industry partners.

Key responsibilities

• Keep pace with the operating environment to detect and disrupt threats before they cause harm and inform proactive guidance and resilience efforts
• Maintain operational readiness of the 24/7 national cyber security incident response function
• Lead operational coordination for the NCSC in domestic and international contexts
• Working through your leaders, develop priorities and set work programmes that keeps pace with the operational context and system expectations
• Identify and resolve/escalate emerging problems, working collaboratively with others to resolve systemic issues
• Lead stakeholder management in situations where seniors may be operating in crisis
• Collaborate with colleagues across multiple agencies and industry to improve Aotearoa New Zealand's resilience to cyber security threats and vulnerabilities

Who we're looking for

Given the responsibilities and the high-pressure environment this role operates in, you are expected to have the following:

• Significant operational leadership ideally involving incident response
• Strong and effective people management background, with experience in leading leaders
• Extensive public sector stakeholder engagement experience
• Some exposure to intelligence analysis
• Qualification in cyber security, IT, risk management (including law), data or a related field
• Flexibility to accommodate some international travel as part of your role

 
Before you apply

Working within our unique environment means we have to ensure you're eligible for employment.

You must:

• Have been a New Zealand Citizen for at least 10 years

OR

Hold a current NZ Residency Class Visa and ideally have been a citizen of the UK, USA, Canada or Australia for at least 10 years

• Be eligible to obtain a Top Secret Special (TSS) security clearance
  • Ordinarily, this means you'll have a 15 year checkable background in countries NZSIS Vetting can make meaningful and reliable checks.
    
    

Still unsure? Use this online tool to self-check your eligibility for a TSS security clearance: http://www.protectivesecurity.govt.nz/eligibility-tool

The NZIC treats all applications for employment in the strictest confidence and we expect that you maintain a similar level of confidentiality during the recruitment process and throughout your career.

We'll provide you with information and tips throughout the recruitment process, but in the meantime check out our Myth Busting booklet: https://beyondordinary.nzic.govt.nz/mythbusting