Head of Regulatory Support & Compliance Services

Tau ake rā te moana nei, e papaki kau ana ki te ākau tangata, kakenga waka ka mauru te tohu ki te arearenga o Mauao, he pou herenga mōu, he pou hononga mōu, kia herea ki te tika, kia herea ki te pono. Kia mau, kia ita, kia ū – haumi e, hui e, tāiki e!

Te Tūranga | About the role

This is a rare opportunity to step into a senior leadership role with broad influence across Tauranga City Council and the wider community.

As Head of Regulatory Support and Compliance Services, you’ll lead a large and diverse portfolio that supports services our community relies on every day. It’s a role with real breadth, challenge and variety, bringing together people leadership, strategic influence and operational delivery in a complex public sector environment.

While regulatory experience is important, we’re not looking for a technical expert. We're looking for a strategic leader who can help define the future direction of regulatory services at Tauranga City Council. Someone who can bring a systems view, challenge traditional approaches, and create a regulatory environment that balances legislative obligations with customer experience, community expectations, and city outcomes.

You’ll lead through experienced managers and technical specialists across Animal Services, Health and Alcohol Licensing, Parking and Bylaws, Development Engineering, LIM and Property Files, and Business Support, bringing focus and connection across a broad and highly visible portfolio.

You’ll work through influence as much as authority, bringing people together around shared priorities and helping teams balance regulatory responsibilities with strong customer-focused delivery. Success will come from your ability to make sound decisions, lead through complexity and create an environment where people feel supported, empowered and accountable.

This is a role for someone with the credibility, judgement and leadership presence to work alongside senior leaders, elected members and subject matter experts. You’ll be comfortable navigating competing priorities, leading through change and earning trust through authenticity, collaboration and delivery.

What you'll be doing

• Provide strategic leadership across a broad regulatory portfolio that directly impacts the safety, wellbeing and growth of our city.


• Shape and evolve Council's regulatory approach to meet changing community expectations, legislative requirements and future challenges.


• Lead experienced leaders and specialist teams to deliver consistent, high-quality regulatory services.


• Build strong relationships with elected members, senior leaders, iwi, partners and key stakeholders.


• Make balanced, evidence-based decisions that consider legislation, risk, customer needs and community outcomes.


• Drive service improvement, innovation and organisational performance across multiple service areas.


• Foster a culture of trust, accountability and continuous improvement.

Ngā Pūkenga | What you’ll need to succeed

For this role, a strong regulatory background is essential. You’ll combine this with significant senior leadership experience and the credibility, judgement and confidence to lead complex services, support technical specialists and make sound decisions in a highly visible environment.

Alongside this, you’ll bring:

• Significant leadership experience in a regulatory or compliance environment, ideally within a public sector or complex operational setting.


• Proven ability to lead through influence, bring together diverse perspectives and create alignment across teams and priorities.


• Strong strategic thinking and sound judgement, particularly when navigating complexity or competing priorities.


• Experience leading leaders, developing capability and building high-performing teams.


• A genuine commitment to customer-focused service delivery and better outcomes for the community.


• Excellent communication and relationship-building skills, with the ability to build trust with senior leaders, elected members and technical experts.


• A leadership style that is credible, authentic and empowering.


• Resilience, adaptability and political awareness when working in a dynamic environment.

Why this opportunity?

Tauranga is growing rapidly, bringing both opportunities and challenges for regulatory service delivery. This role offers the chance to influence how Council responds to that growth, shaping regulatory practices that support a safe, thriving and well-functioning city.

You’ll be supported by experienced leaders and highly capable technical specialists who are passionate about their work. Your role will be to bring people together, strengthen leadership capability and create the conditions for both people and performance to thrive.

If you’re looking for a senior leadership role where you can lead leaders, influence at scale and help shape high-quality services for Tauranga, we’d love to hear from you.

Tō Tātou Kaunihera | About Tauranga City Council

At Tauranga City Council, our work has a direct impact on the city and the people who call it home. From planning for growth to delivering everyday services, our teams help shape a city we can all be proud of.

If you’re collaborative, forward-thinking, and community minded, you’ll find meaningful work and opportunity here.

We offer a supportive and flexible workplace, with benefits including 5 weeks’ annual leave, flexible hours and career development opportunities.

You can find out more about working at Tauranga City Council here.

Te Tukanga | How to apply

To submit your application, please apply online, as we are unable to accept applications via email.

Applications will close Sunday 6th September

For more detail about the role, you can find the full job description linked at the bottom of the job posting on our careers site.

If you have any specific questions not addressed above, please contact Tracey Cotterell at [email protected]

We’re committed to building a diverse team that reflects the communities we serve. We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, including those living with disabilities.
If you need any support or adjustments to take part in our recruitment process, please contact our Talent Acquisition team at [email protected]

• You must have the legal right to live and work in New Zealand to apply for this role.


• Tauranga City Council does not accept unsolicited contact or applications from recruitment agencies. We will not pay fees or commissions related to unsolicited contact.

Job Description: Head of Regulatory Support & Compliance Services