Manager – Three Waters Assets

Help shape Invercargill’s future Three Waters infrastructure
Step into significant senior leadership
Build, influence and grow your career

About the organisation

Decipher Group is delighted to be partnering with Invercargill City Council in their search for a Manager – Three Waters Assets. Invercargill City Council is entering an important period for Water Services. With a well-performing asset base, a highly experienced leadership team and significant investment planned, the Council is well positioned to respond to the changing Three Waters environment and continue delivering resilient, affordable services for its community.

This newly created role within their new in-house Water Services business unit represents an investment in the future capability and succession of the Water Services team and provides a rare opportunity for an experienced infrastructure professional to influence how Three Waters assets are identified, planned, prioritised and managed for decades to come.

Is growing your professional expertise, and career, in a progressive and proactive environment important to you?

About the opportunity

Reporting to the General Manager – Water Services, the Manager – Three Waters Assets will take ownership of the strategic direction and long-term planning of Council’s Three Waters asset portfolio in accordance with our legislative reporting obligations.

As a senior member of the Water Services leadership team, you’ll work closely alongside the GM providing trusted advice and taking a broad leadership role across strategic asset management. With significant visibility across the organisation, this position also offers genuine scope to continue developing your leadership career.

You’ll join at a point where you can make your mark. ICC is currently busy developing a new strategic asset management framework, creating the opportunity to shape the approach rather than inherit an established model.

A key focus will be to:

Set strategic direction for Three Waters assets
Continue building the strategic asset management framework
Lead long-term investment and affordability planning
Prioritise renewal and infrastructure investment
Strengthen asset intelligence and data governance
Balance risk, service, compliance and affordability
Provide trusted advice to executives and Council stakeholders
Lead and develop asset management capability
Build strong regulatory and stakeholder relationships
Lead, manage and motivate a small dedicated team of Asset Management professionals

About you

You’re a highly experienced infrastructure or asset management leader who can combine strong technical knowledge with strategic thinking, sound judgement and exceptional communication.

You understand complex infrastructure assets and can translate technical information into clear investment choices, priorities and advice. Equally important, you have the credibility to engage across operational teams, senior executives, elected members, regulators and external partners.

You'll also bring:

Significant infrastructure or asset management experience
Strong Three Waters knowledge and experience under new national operating framework(s)
Strategic asset and lifecycle planning expertise
Strong people leadership and capability development
Confidence advising executives, boards or elected members
Sound commercial, financial and risk judgement
Strong procurement experience
Strong water Industry knowledge and know how
A relevant tertiary qualification in ideally Civil Engineering, Law or Science related disciplines

You’ll be a collaborative and forward-thinking leader who enjoys taking ownership, building capability and creating clarity around complex decisions. This is more than an opportunity to lead asset management. It is a newly created senior role with the scope to influence the wider Water Services functions, work closely with an experienced GM and build toward broader leadership opportunities over time.

Add to that the Southland lifestyle – affordable living, minimal commuting and exceptional outdoor experiences within easy reach – and this is an opportunity to combine a genuinely interesting professional challenge with an enjoyable way of living.

Relocation support is available for the right candidate.