Manager - Junior Talent Programme

Role overview

This position offers the chance to lead and evolve an established junior talent programme within a major technology business. The role is centred on improving what happens after hiring: creating a strong onboarding journey, meaningful development pathways, and long-term growth support for junior employees.

It is not a graduate hiring position. Recruitment for junior talent is already in place; the focus here is on shaping the programme experience, improving capability planning, and helping junior talent thrive from their first day onward.

You will work closely with leaders in Engineering, Product, and People to influence programme design, future workforce readiness, and the overall experience delivered to early-career talent.

Key responsibilities

• Redesign and keep refining the end-to-end programme journey.
• Create onboarding, team allocation, and development pathways for junior hires.
• Develop scalable structures that support junior talent from day one.
• Deliver a consistent, engaging experience across the programme.
• Assess future capability needs across engineering and product functions.
• Align junior talent development with upcoming workforce requirements.
• Build strong working relationships with leaders across Product and Technology.
• Guide leaders on integrating and developing junior employees effectively.
• Monitor programme outcomes and overall performance.
• Measure retention, engagement, and conversion results.
• Spot opportunities to improve and innovate the programme.
• Keep the programme connected to wider business priorities.

Candidate profile

The preferred background is in Early Careers, Graduate Programmes, Talent Development, Learning & Development, or People Experience. Experience in a technology, SaaS, or Product & Technology environment is important, especially where you have worked closely with Engineering and Product leaders to build and run talent initiatives.

You should understand how software engineering and product teams work, and be confident discussing capability development, learning pathways, and future talent requirements with technical leaders. Familiarity with the Software Development Lifecycle and how it shapes learning, expectations, and growth for junior technical talent is also important.

What you'll bring

• Experience leading or managing graduate, early careers, or junior talent programmes.
• Strong programme management and stakeholder engagement capability.
• Experience partnering with technical stakeholders and Product & Technology teams.
• Understanding of how technology organisations operate.
• Interest in future capability, AI, and workforce development.
• Ability to combine strategic thinking with practical delivery.

Benefits and rewards

• Competitive salary package plus an Employee Share Plan (ESP).
• Flexible hybrid working arrangement.
• Extra leave benefits.
• Strong wellbeing and health support.
• Inclusive employee communities and resource groups.
• High visibility with Product, Engineering, and People leadership.
• Chance to shape a strategically important programme with executive support.
• Opportunity to work alongside experienced Product & Technology leaders in a highly regarded technology organisation.

Additional information

This role gives you the autonomy to drive meaningful change while being supported by a respected technology brand. It suits someone who is passionate about early-career development and wants to influence the future workforce of a leading organisation.

Location: Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.

Employment type: Full-time, onsite.

Compensation: Competitive salary, with an Employee Share Plan and additional benefits. Exact pay amount was not specified.

The opening count was not stated.

Applications were invited via direct contact with the hiring representative; no application deadline was provided.