Associate Director Application Engineering

Job Description:

Ratonga Matihiko I Digital Services
Located in Ōtautahi | Christchurch, Aotearoa | New Zealand

• 12-month fixed term position, 37.5 hours per week
• Generous employer contribution to superannuation (up to 6.75%)

As Associate Director Application Engineering at the University of Canterbury (UC), you will combine technology leadership with genuine people leadership, helping shape how we design, develop and deliver digital products and services that make a difference to our staff, students and wider UC community. This 12-month fixed-term role will provide leadership continuity while we strengthen engineering delivery, capability, standards and ways of working across Application Engineering.

Āu Mahi | What You Will Do
You will lead the Application Engineering team, with approximately 5-10 direct reports and 10-15 indirect reports, working closely with Quality Engineering, Integration, Architecture and Product colleagues to deliver and sustainably operate UC’s digital products and services.

You will:

• Help shape and execute the strategic direction for Application Engineering, aligned with UC’s Software Engineering strategy, Digital Vision and University priorities.
• Lead high-performing, inclusive teams, building capability and a positive engineering culture.
• Mature the engineering practice, embedding consistent standards, tools and ways of working.
• Partner with digital leaders and stakeholders to deliver priorities, roadmaps and high-quality outcomes.
• Champion secure, accessible and scalable software, driving continuous improvement and innovation.
• Lead resource planning and capability development, ensuring teams have the capacity and skills to deliver agreed priorities.

At its heart, this role is about creating an engineering environment where great people, great technology and great outcomes come together.

Mōu | Who You Are
You are an accomplished software engineering leader with significant experience leading high-performing software engineering teams in complex organisations, who can move comfortably between strategy, technology, delivery and people.

You will be able to demonstrate:

• A strong track record of building and maturing software engineering practices.
• Experience working with SaaS environments and full-stack software development.
• A proven ability to drive scalable improvements across engineering teams, processes and ways of working.
• Excellent strategic thinking, problem-solving and analytical capability, with the ability to turn a vision into action.
• Strong stakeholder and relationship-management skills, particularly within complex organisations.
• The ability to communicate technical strategy and vision in a way that engages, inspires and brings diverse teams with you.
• A pragmatic, organised approach and a genuine “make life simple” mentality — finding elegant solutions without creating unnecessary complexity.
• A strong commitment to building inclusive, innovative and highly engaged teams.
• An alignment with our organisation's values and culture, promoting a positive and inclusive work environment.

Mahi Ngātahi | Who You Will Work With
At UC, technology is more than systems and software. It enables our people, supports our students and helps us deliver on our ambition as a leading university. You’ll join a collaborative Digital Services leadership environment where you can have a visible and lasting impact on the way technology is delivered across UC.

Ngā Painga o UC | Why UC
At UC, being part of our team means more than just a job. We are committed to supporting our kaimahi | staff’s career and wellbeing with benefits designed to help our kaimahi grow and feel connected, supported and valued.

• 4 weeks annual leave +5 days university holidays
• generous employer contribution to superannuation (up to 6.75%)
• flexible working arrangement
• professional development opportunities
• supportive working environment
• a wide range of retail discounts across shopping, entertainment and travel
• on-campus staff discounts
• living in revitalised Ōtautahi | Christchurch, Aotearoa New Zealand
• a unique working environment in a beautiful campus with access to UC facilities such as UC RecCentre and Staff Club at discounted rates plus onsite cafés and eateries, and more.

For more information, please visit us: https://www.canterbury.ac.nz/about-uc/work-at-uc/benefits-working-uc

For more information about Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha | University of Canterbury, please visit https://www.canterbury.ac.nz/

The closing date for this position is: 25 October 2026 (midnight, NZ time)
Please note, applications will be reviewed as they are received, and interviews may take place before the close date.

Pēhea te tono mai | How You Apply
Applications for this position must be submitted via our careers website and should include a cover letter and resume.

Please note, we do not accept applications by email, however we are happy to answer your queries in relation to the application process, please forward these to [email protected]

You must have Aotearoa New Zealand or Australian citizenship/permanent residency or hold a valid NZ work visa to be considered for this role.

Please note, this is an onsite position.