Hamilton | Full time | Fixed-term, 17 months - engaged as either employees or contractors. 

DairyNZ’s story 

Deliver a positive future for New Zealand dairy farming 

Te whakaputa i te anamata kounga mō ngā pāmu kau o Aotearoa 

We are full of people who have a passion for delivering great outcomes and creating positive change. We leverage our collective strength by bringing the dairy sector together, helping farmers build more sustainable, profitable, and resilient farm businesses; because a strong dairy sector means a strong New Zealand.  

Your opportunity 

Help shape how DairyNZ governs and enables data for the future. 

We’re looking for a Governance & Platform Enablement Lead for our Data estate. You would play a key role in enabling how data is governed, structured, and used across the organisation and by the sector, partners and farmers. 

This is a specialist role responsible for defining, embedding, and enabling governance frameworks and standards across DairyNZ’s data platforms. You will ensure our data is used safely, consistently, and effectively supporting better decision-making and trusted outcomes. Helping us move to a Data Product management approach for key data that impacts farmers and the sector. 

Acting as a bridge between strategy, governance, and delivery, you’ll work closely with platform owners, business owners and delivery teams to establish the guardrails, tools, and ways of working needed to maintain quality, manage risk, and build trust in our data.  

You’ll also be hands-on in configuring governance within platforms, while coaching and supporting teams to adopt good data practices and ways of working.  

You’ll collaborate with Data, AI and Content platform leads to design and deliver innovation workshops—exploring new ways to support farmers, strengthen research, and enhance DairyNZ’s effectiveness through smarter use of technology and modern ways of working. 

What You’ll Be Doing  

Reporting to the Enterprise Architect, you will lead the DairyNZ team, across the following aspects: 

Governance & standards 

• Define and embed governance frameworks for data platforms, including accountabilities and decision rights 

• Develop and maintain governance artefacts such as standards, policies, templates, and guidance 

• Monitor adoption and effectiveness, and drive improvements where needed  

Operating model & enablement 

• Establish and embed clear roles (e.g. owners, stewards, custodians) and responsibilities 

• Provide onboarding, coaching, and tools to support teams in managing data effectively 

• Embed governance into delivery processes and continuously improve ways of working  

Platform configuration & leadership 

• Translate governance standards into platform configuration, including workflows, permissions, and lifecycle controls 

• Maintain governance tools such as registers and catalogues to ensure data is discoverable and managed appropriately 

• Work with technical teams to implement changes safely and ensure systems support trusted data use 

About you  

You’ll bring strong data governance experience, combined with technical confidence and a collaborative approach. You’re comfortable working both strategically and operationally and enjoy enabling others to succeed. 

We’d love to hear from you if you have: 

• Experience in data management, governance, or data platform roles (e.g. data engineer, architect, or designer)  

• Strong communication and stakeholder engagement skills  

• Experience working with modern data platforms (e.g. Snowflake, Microsoft Purview or similar)  

• The ability to influence and build relationships across technical and business teams  

• A proactive, solutions-focused mindset with strong problem-solving capability  

• Experience leveraging AI and emerging technologies to improve efficiency 

Why you should join us 

Make a difference - Together with our farmers, help us drive positive progress for the sector and country we love. Our credible work supports a sustainable future for farmers, the environment and communities across Aotearoa New Zealand. 

Bring the whole you - We put people at the heart of what we do. We welcome all that you are and support your wellbeing, so you thrive personally and professionally. 

Join a vibrant culture - Be part of a team that truly believes in our values. We have the courage to take bold action and the curiosity to drive innovation. Our credibility shines in our evidence-based work and our connectedness builds meaningful, collaborative relationships. 

Empowering you - We succeed when you do, which is why we champion the development and growth of our people. We empower you to do and be at your best through learning opportunities and great benefits. 

Sound good to you? Come join our team who together, are making a difference. 

Check out the full position description here to read more detail. Applications close Sunday 17 June 2026 at 10.00pm.