Health & Safety Manager - North Island

Te Tākinatanga | Our Story    

At Contact, we believe home is the most important place in the world. That belief shapes everything we do, from leading the energy transition to how we power Aotearoa and care for our people and communities.

We’re a power, broadband, and mobile company, but we’re also investing boldly in renewable energy and smarter, more connected ways of working (mahi). Our ambition is simple: to leave Aotearoa better than we found it.

Guided by our values & behaviours, we’re a team who care deeply about the work we do, how we support one another, and the impact we have. Simply put, we touch lives to make life better.

Across the North Island, our generation teams are doing some incredibly important mahi. From geothermal and hydro to thermal, solar, wind and battery assets, they're helping power homes, communities and businesses every day.

As our generation portfolio continues to evolve, so too does the way we think about health and safety.

We're looking for a leader who is passionate about understanding how work really happens. Someone who loves being alongside teams, listening, learning and helping create the conditions for people to do great work safely.

This role sits at the heart of that. You'll lead our North Island Health & Safety team, helping bring together operational reality, frontline insight and strong safety thinking to support safer, healthier outcomes for our people every day.

Te Whiwhinga mahi | The Opportunity 

This is a highly visible leadership role where you'll partner closely with operational leaders, frontline teams, contractors and our wider People Experience team to strengthen health and safety across Contact's North Island generation portfolio.

Rather than sitting on the sidelines, you'll be out where the work happens. Building relationships, understanding challenges, coaching leaders and helping teams navigate complexity with confidence.

You'll lead a team of Health & Safety Advisors, creating an environment where they can do their best work while continuing to grow their capability and influence across the business.

Some of the things you'll spend your time on include:

• Leading, coaching and developing a high-performing team of Health & Safety Advisors across the North Island.
• Partnering with operational leaders to strengthen safety leadership, capability and ownership at every level.
• Keeping connected to the realities of frontline work and using those insights to influence decisions and improvements.
• Helping teams identify and manage critical risks in practical, meaningful ways.
• Creating a culture where people feel comfortable speaking up, sharing what they're learning and challenging how things have always been done.
• Supporting learning from both everyday work and unexpected events, so we continue to improve how work gets done.
• Working closely with contractors and partners to ensure health and safety is practical, understood and embedded into the way we operate.
• Contributing health and safety expertise into North Island development and construction projects as required.

Success in this role isn't measured by paperwork or reporting alone. It's seen in stronger conversations, better decisions, growing capability and the confidence our people have to raise concerns, learn from one another and make work safer every day.

Ko wai koe | About You   

You're the kind of person who builds trust quickly because you're genuine, approachable and prepared to roll up your sleeves.

You know health and safety is ultimately about people. While you're comfortable navigating legislation, systems and risk frameworks, your real strength is helping others understand what matters and bringing them on the journey.

You'll likely bring:

• Significant experience leading health and safety within a complex operational environment.
• Experience leading and developing people, creating clarity, capability and confidence within teams.
• Strong relationship-building skills and the ability to influence a broad range of stakeholders, from frontline teams through to senior leaders.
• Sound understanding of New Zealand health and safety legislation and how to apply it in practical ways.
• The confidence to challenge constructively while maintaining strong relationships.
• Excellent communication skills and an ability to make complex ideas easy to understand.
• Curiosity, resilience and a genuine interest in understanding how work gets done.
• A commitment to cultural safety and building meaningful relationships with iwi, hapū and local communities.

It would be a bonus if you've worked in energy, infrastructure, construction or another high-hazard environment, but it's not essential.

Most importantly, you'll bring a learning mindset, care deeply about people and believe that the best outcomes come from working alongside teams rather than directing from a distance.

And if you're reading this thinking,"I don't tick every box, but this sounds like me", we'd still love to hear from you. Sometimes the best people bring experiences we weren't expecting.

We support flexible working where it works for the individual, the team and the business. Our main hubs for this role are in Taupo, Tauranga, Wellington and Auckland, and this role is best suited to someone who can work flexibly from one of these locations to enable strong in person connection and collaboration. While we do have smaller sites across other centres of Aotearoa, proximity to a main hub is important for this role.

Contact is not a place you’ll stagnate. We’re growing, evolving, and investing in our people. We also offer a bunch of other perks like free health insurance cover, boosted KiwiSaver, access to Contact Shares, a ‘Good to be Home’ annual payment toward your home set up & wellbeing, a trail-blazing parental leave policy, twice yearly payments towards our products if you’re a Contact customer, and more!

Applications close on Monday 7th September. But just like peak demand, great talent surges early, so if this role sparks your interest, power up your application now!

Here at Contact Energy (Te Mata Hiko), we know our strength lies in developing a sense of belonging - one that helps us attract and retain people with a broad range of perspectives and experiences.

We’re committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels valued, respected, and empowered to bring their whole selves to work. Our goal is to reflect the diversity of our customers and communities to help build a better Aotearoa New Zealand.

We have a rich community of talented people that we support to thrive at Contact.

Our inclusive hiring process is designed to embrace the diversity of Aotearoa New Zealand, ensuring a wide range of perspectives are included in our decision-making and helping reduce bias along the way.

The wellbeing of our kaimahi is super important to us.

We use employee insights to offer a range of initiatives and resources to support physical, mental, financial and emotional wellbeing – including flexible working arrangements, employee network groups and a market-leading parental leave policy.

At Te Mata Hiko, we want everyone to thrive. We welcome applicants far and wide - of every age, stage, background, and pride. Join us and be part of a team that values your passion and attitude just as much as your experience and skills.

Please note, only candidates with the right to live and work in New Zealand will be considered for this role.

Research shows that while men apply to jobs where they meet 60% of the criteria, women and those in underrepresented groups tend to only apply if they tick every box. We're not about box ticking, so if you think you have what it takes but don't meet everything stated above, please still get in touch. We'd love to kōrero.

Te Mata Hiko (Contact Energy) does not accept any CVs received from recruitment agencies where a formal engagement has not been confirmed and agreed to with our Talent team. In the event that unsolicited CVs are submitted by recruitment agencies, Te Mata Hiko (Contact Energy) reserves the right to contact these candidates directly and consider them for current/future vacancies without any financial obligation to the recruitment agency in question. This will also apply to any CVs sent directly to line managers.