Seeing What’s Possible
Jobs with Arena
The Arena family of companies is growing and offers exceptional career opportunities within Arena firms and with our portfolio companies. See what's possible for you in the postings below.
Senior Operational Capability Engineer
Optic Security Group
Wellington Central, Wellington, New Zealand
Posted on Apr 21, 2026
Join our diverse and talented people and work at the heart of national security, providing essential intelligence to the NZ government to protect New Zealand and its people.
At the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service (NZSIS) | Te Pā Whakamarumaru, we are dedicated to our mission of keeping Aotearoa New Zealand and our people safe and secure. We collect and analyse intelligence and security concerns to protect New Zealand from threats such as foreign interference, espionage and terrorism.
About the role
The Intelligence Capability Unit may be small, but the impact of our work is huge. As a Senior Operational Capability Engineer, you will be the technical bridge that turns problems facing our missions into secure, maintainable solutions that keep New Zealand safe.
An Operational Capability Engineer is responsible for the selection, acquisition, development, and operational integration of new or enhanced technical capabilities used for intelligence collection and analysis. Working hand‑in‑hand with stakeholders across the Intelligence Directorate, you will translate strategic objectives into robust, secure solutions that our collection staff can then deploy into the field.
Who we are looking for
Your interpersonal skills will be key to your success as you will engage regularly with stakeholders across the NZIC, as well as domestic and international partners. You will need to be confident in understanding and conceptualising problems and providing explanations to a range of technical and non-technical stakeholders. Although you will have the support of a team, we are looking for you to have strong levels of judgement and be comfortable working autonomously and independently making decisions.
We need engineers who can turn mission problems into secure, maintainable technical solutions—no matter which discipline they specialise in. The following engineering backgrounds are of particular interest, but we remain open to other relevant expertise:
- Mechanical
- Mechatronics
- Electrical
- Electronic
- Radio‑Frequency (RF)
- Computer
- Software
If you have a proven track‑record in any one of the above (or a closely related field) and can apply that expertise to intelligence‑collection or analytical capability, we want to hear from you. Experience in an intelligence context would be beneficial but is not essential.
Why work for us?
Getting to work alongside our talented people, we also offer a range of comprehensive benefits which include:
- Medical Insurance and vision care packages
- Enhanced employer contributions to your Kiwisaver
- Generous leave benefits
- Childcare allowance for your pre-schoolers
- Opportunities for personal and professional growth and career pathways across the intelligence community
- Great work-life balance
Before you apply
Working within our unique environment means we have to ensure you're eligible for employment.
You must:
- Have been a New Zealand Citizen for at least 10 years
OR
Hold a current NZ Residency Class Visa and ideally have been a citizen of the UK, USA, Canada or Australia for at least 10 years
- Be eligible to obtain a Top Secret Special (TSS) security clearance
- Ordinarily, this means you'll have a 15 year checkable background in countries NZSIS Vetting can make meaningful and reliable checks.
- Ordinarily, this means you'll have a 15 year checkable background in countries NZSIS Vetting can make meaningful and reliable checks.
Still unsure? Use this online tool to self-check your eligibility for a TSS security clearance: http://www.protectivesecurity.govt.nz/eligibility-tool
The NZIC treats all applications for employment in the strictest confidence and we expect that you maintain a similar level of confidentiality during the recruitment process and throughout your career.
We'll provide you with information and tips throughout the recruitment process, but in the meantime check out our Myth Busting booklet: What to expect | Beyond Ordinary Careers
You can also learn more about our work and understand our areas of focus by reading New Zealand's Security Threat Environment | New Zealand Security Intelligence Service