Reports to: Chief Executive
Day-to-day supervision by: Communications and Engagement Manager
Day-to-day supervision of: None
Remuneration: As per individual employment agreement
Hours of work: 20 hours per week
Location: Flexible within New Zealand
Length of contract: 22 months from starting date
Date: 18th February 2025

About the Disabled Persons Assembly NZ (DPA)

DPA is a not-for-profit, pan-impairment disabled people’s organisation, which is run by and for disabled people.

We work on systemic change for the equity of disabled people, driving change through:

  • leadership – reflecting the collective voice of disabled people, locally, nationally, and internationally
  • information and advice – informing and advising on policies impacting on the lives of disabled people
  • advocacy – supporting disabled people to have a voice, including a collective voice, in society
  • monitoring – monitoring and giving feedback on existing laws, policies, and practices about and relevant to disabled people.

Purpose of the position

The Disabled Women’s Network Coordinator is responsible for connecting with disabled women engaged on issues impacting disabled women to establish a Disabled Women’s Network. Disabled women include disabled women who are Māori, Pacifica, LGBTQIA+/takatāpui, migrants, rural, and other intersections.

The Coordinator will coordinate regular meetings of the Network and provide support to the Network to enable disabled women to identify, advocate and campaign on systemic issues impacting disabled women in Aotearoa New Zealand. 

The Coordinator will also provide policy and communications advice with a gender lens to the DPA policy and communications teams.  

Key functions

  • Respond to email inquiries and connect with disabled women via a range of communication channels to build up an active and engaged network of disabled women. 
  • Establish and coordinate accessible monthly online meetings of the network.
  • Work with the DPA Communications and Engagement team to produce and send out regular newsletter updates to the network 
  • Support the DPA policy and communications teams by providing a gender-based lens across DPA’s submissions, advocacy and communication channels.
  • Work with the DPA team to lead the coordination of an in-person two-day hui for disabled women to build relationships, upskill and identify priority areas for campaigning and advocacy. 
  • Develop a social media strategy for raising the profile of issues impacting disabled women. 

Requirements

  • Excellent interpersonal skills with a disability-rights and pan-impairment approach to communications.
  • A deep understanding of issues impacting disabled women, including for Māori, Pacifica, LGBTQIA+/takatāpui, migrants, rural, and other intersections.
  • Proven facilitation and communication skills, with the ability to bring people together from a diverse range of backgrounds and experience.
  • Experience in advocacy and/or developing and delivering successful campaigns an advantage.

Knowledge skills and experience

  • Knowledge and understanding of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).
  • Personal experience of disability and/or identifies as a disabled person.
  • Ability to coordinate across various stakeholders and manage multiple tasks effectively.

Competencies


Working with people

  • Can collaborate effectively and foster a supportive team spirit.
  • Has excellent interpersonal skills and adapts communication style to the audience. 
  • Demonstrates cultural awareness.
  • Demonstrates insight and an awareness of own strengths and weaknesses.

Building and maintaining relationships

  • Demonstrates relationship building and conflict resolution skills.
  • Demonstrates a mana enhancing approach in their interactions with disabled people.

Persuading and influencing

  • Expresses information and key points clearly.
  • Responds quickly to the needs of an audience and to their reactions and feedback.

Communications, reporting and analysing

  • Engages a wide range of resources in communication.
  • Avoids the unnecessary use of jargon or complicated language.
  • Structures information to meet the needs and understanding of the intended audience.
  • Makes rational judgements from the available information and analysis.
  • Produces workable solutions to a range of problems.
  • Understands how to effect systems change.

Delivering results and meeting stakeholder expectations

  • Focuses on stakeholder needs and satisfaction.
  • Sets high standards for delivery of their own work.
  • Demonstrates a high level of skill in initiating and delivering projects that involve diverse stakeholder groups.
  • Consistently achieves project delivery on time and in budget.

Planning and organising

  • Sets clearly defined objectives.
  • Plans activities and projects well in advance and takes account of possible changing circumstances.
  • Manages time effectively.
  • Identifies and organises resources needed to accomplish tasks.
  • Monitors performance against deadlines and milestones.