Head of Strategy and Partnerships - Contract Role

Location - London/Hybrid (with UK-wide travel)

Contract: Full-time

About the Role:

My client is looking for a strategic and entrepreneurial senior leader to shape and deliver their Strategy and Partnerships. As the Head of Strategy and Partnerships, you’ll play a pivotal role in driving forward an ambitious plan in engagement — curating a distinctive UK-wide portfolio of events, content, and networks that support our alumni’s growth journey beyond the course.

Key Responsibilities:

• Develop and implement a future-focused strategy.
• Lead the development of segmented engagement plans and research-driven support initiatives.
• Align with wider government SME strategy and write proposals for senior approval.
• Build and deepen partnerships with stakeholders, universities, and delivery partners across the UK.
• Collaborate with curriculum leads, advisory councils, and academic experts.
• Work closely with the Head of Marketing and Demand Generation to shape compelling outreach campaigns.
• Oversee segmentation and policy intervention delivery across alumni cohorts.
• Lead the production of a national alumni event programme, including 4 major UK events and a year-round webinar series.
• Line management of 2 staff.
• Ensure all communications and events maintain exceptional service standards, with high engagement and measurable outcomes.

What We’re Looking For:

Essential:

• Proven experience in engagement, knowledge exchange, or similar roles in higher education, trade associations, or commercial membership organisations.
• Ability to secure partnerships the business can develop to support in offerings for the alumni or support in delivering events.
• Demonstrated leadership in building and managing high-performing teams.
• Strong background in event production, programme development, and strategic delivery.
• Experience working closely with marketing and communications teams to generate compelling content and campaigns.
• Skilled at managing multiple stakeholders, with exceptional collaboration and influencing abilities.
• Ability to monetize.
• Commercially savvy, with budget and operations management experience.
• Excellent verbal and written communication, and confident in producing formal strategy papers and presentations.
• Strategic thinker with outstanding project and portfolio management skills.

Desirable:

• Experience in developing sponsorship or partnership packages.
• Familiarity with CRM systems and using data for engagement strategy development.
• Knowledge of SME challenges and policy frameworks supporting their growth.