Location:
New Zealand based, Remote friendly, with site visits across the country
About Modal Architecture
We are a design led residential practice delivering thoughtful, well crafted homes and renovations across New Zealand. Our work focuses on real people, real budgets, and creative architectural solutions that deliver long term value without unnecessary excess. We care deeply about design quality, but we are equally serious about how work is delivered. We actively systemise, automate, and refine the non-creative parts of our process so that time and energy are spent where they matter most. This is a practice for people who genuinely love architecture, enjoy improving how things are done, and take pride in delivering excellent work efficiently.
The Role:
We are seeking an experienced architectural professional to take ownership of project delivery from site measure and as built documentation through to developed design and building consent. You are comfortable owning projects through to consent with minimal supervision. This role is central to the smooth running of the practice and is suited to someone who enjoys responsibility, structure, and continuous improvement. You will work closely with the Director, who will focus on client relationships, business development, and design oversight, while you lead technical delivery and help evolve how the practice operates day to day. This is not a role for someone who simply completes tasks. It is for someone who thinks critically about their work, actively looks for better ways to do things, and takes pride in delivering quality within clear commercial boundaries.
What You Will Be Responsible For:
• Leading accurate site measures and producing high quality as built documentation for renovation projects
• Driving developed design and building consent documentation to a consistently high standard
• Coordinating consultants and responding confidently to technical and compliance queries
• Managing your time rigorously and tracking it accurately against agreed scopes and budgets
• Maintaining clean, reliable models and documentation with minimal errors
• Improving templates, workflows, and internal systems where inefficiencies exist
• Identifying opportunities to streamline, automate, or remove repetitive and non design focused tasks
• Supporting design review and quality control across projects
How Success Is Measured:
Success in this role is defined by clarity, reliability, and efficiency. Projects move through delivery smoothly, information is accurate, risks are identified early, and work is completed within internal budgets. You are trusted to manage your workload, flag issues early, and continuously refine how delivery happens. Efficiency is valued. Delivering high quality work in less time than allocated is encouraged and rewarded, provided quality and risk management are never compromised.
Who This Role Is For:
This role will suit someone who:
• Has proven experience delivering residential projects through to building consent
• Is confident undertaking site measures and understanding existing buildings
• Is diligent, analytical, and disciplined with time tracking
• Takes personal pride in delivering quality work efficiently
• Is a natural self starter who fills their time productively
• Enjoys technology, automation, and improving systems
• Cares deeply about delivering value to clients, not just producing drawings
• Sees architecture as more than a job and genuinely enjoys the craft and outcomes of creating homes and spaces for other people
You do not need to be a registered architect, but you must be competent, reliable, and comfortable owning your work.
Role Boundaries and Growth:
This role carries meaningful responsibility and autonomy within delivery and systems. Client relationships, business development, and strategic direction remain director led. Over the first twelve months, responsibilities will be reviewed deliberately and consciously. Any expansion of scope beyond delivery, systems, and project coordination will only occur through mutual agreement, ensuring the role remains clear, and aligned for both parties.
What We Offer:
• A role with genuine ownership and influence over how work is delivered
• Direct access to the Director and involvement in shaping the practice
• A culture that values clarity, initiative, and innovation
• Trust, flexibility, and autonomy rather than micromanagement
• Competitive remuneration may be in the range of $90,000 to $100,000, plus devices and plans, with the potential for performance based rewards tied to meeting efficiency, quality, and process improvement KPI's
• The opportunity to grow alongside a small but ambitious practice without the instability of unclear expectations
How to Apply:
Please send your CV along with a short note outlining:
• Your experience with site measures and consent delivery
• An example of a process, template, or workflow you have improved
• Why this role and Modal Architecture resonate with you
