Chief of Staff - Product

About Auror

At Auror, we’re empowering the retail industry to tackle theft and Organised Retail Crime, a $150 Billion problem globally. It’s high volume crime that’s increasingly organised in nature and is putting people, retailers, and communities at risk every day.

Founded in New Zealand 11 years ago, we’re working with some of the best and largest retailers in the world across the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the UK.

Auror is connecting people and intelligence to reduce crime. We’re using technology for good. 

In partnership with our leading retail partners, we need people with the passion, determination, and innovation required to overcome one of the world's largest problems. If you’re looking to make a difference with and for the people dedicated to stopping crime, for good, then we want you on our team.

The Role

If you’re looking for a role where each day looks the same, this isn’t it. This is for someone who thrives on variety, embraces ambiguity, and gets excited by working at the intersection of strategy, product innovation, and change.

You’ll be teaming up with Auror’s Chief Product Officer, Tanya Johnson, to help drive forward our dynamic product squad. You’ll provide strategic support, guide cross-functional projects, and act as a key advisor. Your mission? Enable alignment and efficiency, ensuring our product strategy and innovation initiatives have everything they need to succeed.

This is a highly impactful position where you’ll be at the core of our product strategy, operations and execution, helping to shape the direction of Auror’s future. Every day will bring new challenges and opportunities to make a difference.

Practically, this will involve: 

• Strategic Planning & Innovation:
• Partnering closely with Tanya and the Product Leadership Team to shape, align, and execute our product strategy, always with Auror’s broader goals in mind.
• Facilitating strategic planning sessions, quarterly reviews, and roadmap development for maximum impact.
• Staying ahead of the curve by researching industry trends and analysing market insights to fuel product innovation.
• Operational Excellence:
• Leading special projects and initiatives end-to-end, ensuring they meet timelines and deliver value.
• Streamlining processes that boost team productivity and communication, always looking for ways to improve.
• Steering program management for cross-functional projects, tracking progress, and keeping milestones on course.
• Executive Communication & Support:
• Acting as Tanya’s strategic liaison across Auror, bridging communications and keeping priorities in line.
• Preparing board-ready presentations, summaries, and product performance reports.
• Facilitating seamless internal communications within the Product Squad and beyond.
• Data-Driven Decision Making:
• Diving into data and performance metrics to drive impactful product decisions..
• Providing key insights and recommendations to inform strategic product direction.
• Being a sounding board for Tanya on key issues and initiatives, offering fresh perspectives.

This role reports to Tanya Johnson, Chief Product Officer

Founder of Women in Tech NZ's Slack community and Meetup, I'm really motivated by doing work that makes a meaningful difference in the world, and with supporting people in all the different ways they need to work well. "Context, Collaboration, and Cake" pretty accurately sums up my approach not only to work but to life in general. I'm enthusiastic about Taekwondo (which teaches me how to fail repeatedly and still persevere), love reading sci-fi and fantasy, and consider baking a good form of meditation. I'm excited to work with people who are curious about how things work, enjoy solving problems, think strategically, and are good at digging into details.

About you

• You’re a strategic thinker with a passion for product innovation and experience in product, project management, or strategy, ideally within SaaS, tech, or consulting.
• Resourceful and proactive, you seek out information and ask the right questions to get things done.
• Analytical skills are second nature to you; you’re comfortable using data to guide decisions and drive results.
• You’re action-oriented, adept at prioritising and managing your time in a fast-paced environment.
• Skilled in stakeholder management, you can influence and persuade across all levels and functions.
• You’re direct and candid, sharing where you stand with a focus on helping Auror succeed.
• Known for delivering exceptional work with minimal context, you can handle complexity and ambiguity with ease.
• Your written and verbal communication is top-notch; you’re experienced in crafting executive-level content.
• Continuously driven to improve yourself and those around you, you’re always seeking ways to push boundaries.
• Does this sound like a role that fits your style? Then let’s make it happen! Hit the apply button and let’s get started.

We are looking for people who demonstrate a strong alignment to our Guiding Principles (you can find these on our Careers page).

Auror is committed to providing an inclusive and accessible application process to all candidates and we are actively working to improve diversity within the tech industry. We celebrate diversity and inclusiveness at Auror, regardless of (but not limited to) race, gender, sexual orientation, family status, religion, ethnicity, national origin, physical disability, veteran status, or age.

If you need adjustments to any part of our recruitment process because of accessibility reasons, please do not hesitate to let us know during the application process. We will work with you to identify adjustments that will allow you to perform at your best.

What our interview process looks like:

👋🏼 Initial chat [30 min]

Meet with our People Experience team to get a feel for what it would be like to work with Auror and ask any questions you may have about the company and role.

🧑‍💻 CPO 1:1 [30-45 min]

Time to chat with Tanya and get to know each other. You’ll be asked questions about your work experience, your communication style, and your goals. What makes you tick? I welcome any questions you may have for me!

🎉 Challenge (panel interview) [60 min]

You’ll be given a 2-part challenge that will help us learn more about how you facilitate sessions, work with groups of people, solve challenges, analyse data, and communicate to different audiences. You’ll meet cross-functional peers, get a good idea of what it’s like to work at Auror, and we should also have a great idea of what it would be like to have you on the team. We’ll ask a range of questions and encourage you to do the same.

• Competitive salary Range: Depending on level of experience of $197,500 - 215,500NZD (IC7)

• Employee share scheme: You’ll own part of a company making a real difference!
• Flexibility: We are hard-working and outcome focused, but recognise there is more to life than work. We promote a healthy work/life blend.
• Shorter work weeks (at full pay): Everyone gets Friday afternoons off, so you can start your weekend early, and do more of whatever it is that makes you happy.
• Focus on mental and physical health: We understand how vital our health is and have policies to support your wellness, including: Wellness Days,  and up to three expert sessions paid for every year.
• nib Health Care Plan: Auror covers 100% of the cost of your individual health insurance plan.
• Family-friendly: We offer comprehensive parental leave and benefits for primary and non-primary caregivers, including a baby bonus and meals delivered to your door.
• Personal growth: We support our team to participate in courses, conferences, or events that will help them develop their skills.
• Team love: We have regular team lunches and social events where most (if not all) activities are during work hours.

Next steps:

If you’re excited about our mission and you have the experience and a passion for this role, please hit “Apply”.

If you’re not sure that you tick all the boxes but feel you’re close to what we’re looking for, please apply anyway! We’re proud that Auror is a place where everyone can learn and grow so we’d love to hear from you.

You'll be asked to submit a cover letter as part of your application. While this is optional we do encourage it, as we find cover letters can tell a story that resumes alone often cannot. Our hiring team love to understand what attracted you to this role and why you are excited about the opportunity to join Auror.

Once you apply, you’ll hear from us to acknowledge your application. If you have questions about any of the above, or if you have any accessibility requirements, we’ll be able to help you from there.