J Floyd
[FYI request #22571 email]
6 June
Dear J Floyd
OIA 22-23-52: External Contracting Process: Storage of Contracts
Thank you for your email of 26 April 2023 to New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE),
making a request under the Official Information Act 1982 (the Act). On 25 May 2023, we
extended the time for response to 6 June 2023. You requested the following information:
What is the process for storing contracts with external parties?
Can the legal team at NZTE please confirm that all signed contracts for external recruiters
related to the NZTE Investment team have been stored and maintained.
Please undertake a spot check and confirm if contracts exist for the following people (if external
recruiters were used)
- Rangi Ririnui
- Alex Bunce
- Molly MacKenzie
- Laura Reitel
Answers to your questions are as follows:
1. Under the Fine Print (NZTE’s policy document), signed contracts are filed in the Signed
Contracts Register (subject to some exceptions). Exceptions include where those
contracts are highly confidential or they contain personal information about individuals
(for example, some recruitment contracts).
2. The Legal team is not responsible for storing or maintaining contracts. This is the
responsibility of the contract owner/hiring manager. Further, as noted above, contracts
for external recruiters wil not necessarily be stored or maintained in the Signed
Contracts Register, particularly where they contain confidential or personal information.
Instead, they may be stored with NZTE’s People and Korako team (HR) or with the
hiring manager. It is important to note that:
• Contracts for external recruiters may take a number of dif erent forms (including
emails or more formal signed agreements), depending on the circumstances;
and
• Some of the arrangements with recruiters are also historic such that any contract
or arrangement may pre-date the current contract management system.
3. NZTE does not release information about the recruitment details of NZTE people for
privacy reasons. We can confirm that NZTE uses different recruitment processes,
(including a range or recruiters), depending on the needs and specialty of the role being
recruited for. To answer your question would breach the privacy of the named
individuals and accordingly, we are withholding this information under section 9(2)(a) of
the Of icial Information Act.
T: +64 4 816 8100
F: +64 4 816 8101
W: nzte.govt.nz
W: newzealand.com/business
Level 15, The Majestic Centre, 100 Wil is Street, Wellington 6011, New Zealand, PO Box 2878, Wellington 6140, New Zealand
In reference to an earlier response to one of your OIA’s, 22-23-27, we noted that a relevant
hiring managing wil sign an agreement for each ‘case’ with Agency 6. To clarify, some
arrangements with Agency 6 take different forms and may be agreed via email and
therefore not have a physical signature.
You have the right under section 28(3) of the Act to seek an investigation and review by the
Ombudsman. Information about how to make a complaint is available at:
www.ombudsman.parliament.govt.nz or freephone: 0800 802 602.
Yours sincerely
Melissa Trochon
Director – Board & Ministerial