Project Director - Capital Projects

Position Overview

Join Fonterra Te Mātāpuna and be part of a global dairy cooperative that values diversity, collaboration, and making a positive impact. Owned by New Zealand dairy farmers, Fonterra is driven to build a better tomorrow and offers opportunities for career growth and meaningful change.

About Capital Projects

The Capital Projects team is at the heart of Fonterra's capital investment efforts, managing five distinct portfolios to deliver major investments across the manufacturing network. The team partners closely with Manufacturing and Supply Chain Operations to translate strategic, asset, operational, and growth priorities into actionable work plans ensuring factories remain safe, reliable, and future-ready. Key focuses include large-scale, complex investments aligned to Fonterra's Strategic Asset Roadmap, governance rigor, and long-term enterprise value creation.

Role Purpose

This senior leadership role directs significant capital projects within the Ingredients and Foodservice portfolio, overseeing their end-to-end delivery and influencing broader investment strategies. The Project Director leads integration across multiple projects, manages stakeholder relationships, enforces governance and risk management, and strives for delivery excellence to achieve sustainable business benefits.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage the full lifecycle delivery of multiple large-scale capital projects in ingredients and foodservice sectors ensuring successful outcomes.
• Develop and influence capital investment strategies to optimize resource allocation.
• Coordinate across project interdependencies and delivery partners to ensure seamless execution at scale.
• Establish robust governance practices, commercial discipline, and risk mitigation approaches.
• Contribute to major investment decisions by supporting business case development and participating in executive governance discussions.
• Champion improvements in project performance, embedding consistency and maximizing benefits realization throughout project lifecycles.
• Collaborate closely with senior leaders across Markets, Strategy, Operations, Asset Management, and Engineering.

Candidate Profile

Ideal candidates are experienced leaders in capital projects, proficient in managing complex, high-value programs (typically over 100 million NZD) within industrial environments. They combine commercial insight with strategic vision and practical delivery expertise, capable of influencing at the highest levels. Familiarity with Food and Dairy sectors, NZ3910/16 or FIDIC contracts, and strong governance framework knowledge are essential. Proven leadership in building high-performing teams and mentoring senior project managers is highly valued.

Location and Travel

This position is preferably based in Auckland, Hamilton, or Christchurch with a nationwide portfolio scope. The role requires regular travel and on-site presence as necessary to support project delivery.

Our Values and Commitment

At Fonterra, our culture embraces the values of Good Together, Better Every Day, and Every Drop Counts. We support wellbeing and development through fair pay, health programs, professional growth, career advancement, work-life balance initiatives, employee recognition, and community involvement.

Inclusion and Diversity

Fonterra strives for a diverse and inclusive workplace, encouraging applications from all backgrounds regardless of ethnicity, gender identity, orientation, age, ability, neurotype, culture, or religion. We believe diverse teams drive better innovation and decision-making. Candidates are urged to apply even if they do not meet every criterion. Accommodations for accessibility during recruitment are available on request.

Application Deadline

Applications close at midnight on Sunday 4 October 2026.