Senior Business Partner (Business Management)

We have a great opportunity within our Business Management team for a Senior Business Partner.

The Business Management function is responsible for helping the business to define its strategy and to hold it accountable for delivering on it. This is a key role operating across all divisions of the FA to bring increased focus, efficiency and integration to the organisation through:

• Business Partnering
• Management of the Programme Management Office (PMO)
• Strategic Initiative Development and Rollout
• Cross Functional Project Delivery and Oversight

What will you be doing?

Business Partnering

• Act as a trusted business partner to members of the Senior Management Team and their divisions, providing strategic support and thoughtful challenge to drive business growth and operational effectiveness
• Build strong relationships across departments to ensure alignment on key initiatives, promoting a culture of accountability and collaboration

PMO Management

• Lead the Project Management Office (PMO), setting best practice throughout the project lifecycle, including project initiation, planning and business case development.
• Proactively identify and manage project risks, issues and dependencies, working to mitigate them and ensure alignment with organizational goals
• Monitor and report on key project milestones and trends, ensuring transparency and informed decision-making
• Track and analyse KPIs to ensure project accountability, identifying opportunities to optimize performance and deliver results
• Act as a champion for continuous improvement, refining our program framework, methodologies and project management tools to drive greater efficiency and integration across the organization

Strategic Initiative Development and Rollout

• Drive the annual business planning process, ensuring that departmental and organizational activities align with strategic objectives and set clear, actionable priorities
• Support prioritization across initiatives, aligning resources to the activities that deliver the greatest benefit
• Provide internal consulting services as needed to ensure teams are supported to successfully scope, plan and execute strategic initiatives

Cross Functional Project Delivery and Oversight

• Take ownership of cross-functional project delivery across a wide range of initiatives, from compliance (e.g., GDPR) to high-profile operational projects (e.g., major tournament support)
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to define project goals, timelines and resource requirements, ensuring every project is set up for success
• Maintain hands-on involvement throughout the project lifecycle, providing independent guidance, resolving issues and keeping projects on track to meet deadlines in alignment with business objectives

• Executes additional tasks as required in order to meet FA Group changing priorities.
• Comply with all company policies and procedures to ensure the highest standards of health, safety and wellbeing can be maintained.
• As part of The FA's commitment to ensuring a safe environment for everyone in football, every employee will be required to complete a DBS check. The level of the check required will be based on the activity of the specific job role and in line with legislation and government guidance.

What are we looking for?

Background and Education

• Qualified to degree level or equivalent
• A formal qualification in project management such as Prince II or similar, is an advantage but not a necessity

Performance Management

• Attention to detail and pride in the presentation of outputs
• Ability to write concise presentations and reports
• Strong analytical skills

Collaboration

• Proven skill in stakeholder management – both internal and external
• Ability to demonstrate flexibility and work with ambiguity across a range of parallel projects
• Capable communicator in both written and verbal form, with experience of dealing with sensitive and complex matters

Experience

• Previous PMO experience and first-hand experience of delivering high value, strategic projects is an advantage
• Experience of influencing people and outcomes, often without direct line management responsibility, is preferred
• Experience in a management consulting environment is beneficial, but not essential

Technology skills

• Experience in Microsoft Office applications, particularly Microsoft PowerPoint and Excel is a requirement. A working knowledge of Microsoft Project and Microsoft Visio is an advantage, but not a necessity

What's in it for you?

We are committed to ensuring everyone can flourish in their roles, to achieve this we have unique office spaces under the arch of the iconic Wembley National Stadium, which is the home of English Football. We are also delighted to offer a world-class, Elite Performance Centre, St. George's Park in Staffordshire which is an exceptional setting to develop and inspire high-performing England teams and leaders.

We pride ourselves in offering a competitive salary as well as great opportunities to develop and grow in your role. But that is not all; we also have a range of exciting benefits, some of which can be found below:

• Access to event day tickets at Wembley Stadium, alongside a host of regular internal events throughout the season encouraging you to connect and learn with your colleagues and look after your mental health and wellbeing.
• Free, nutritious lunches, at Wembley Stadium and St. George's Park.
• Free private medical cover.
• A contributory pension scheme.
• An additional Thank You days leave, volunteering days as well as 25 days annual leave.
• A hybrid working model offering greater flexibility.

For more information on what it is like to work at The FA, please visit our FA Careers page, https://www.thefa.com/about-football-association/careers

Our Organisation

The Football Association [The FA] is the not-for-profit governing body of football in England. It is responsible for promoting and developing every level of the game, from grassroots through to the professional game, and generates significant revenue to support investment into English football each year.

The FA oversees England international teams across men's, women's, youth and disability football, as well as running the National League System and FA Competitions including the Emirates FA Cup and Women's Adobe FA Cup, and the world-class facilities of Wembley Stadium and St. George's Park, all with a purpose to Unite the Game and Inspire the Nation.

We currently work within a hybrid working model whereby the expectation is to work from your contractual location for part of the week, and as and when required by the team. The remaining days can be worked remotely. We will continue to monitor this model and it may be adjusted in future if deemed necessary.

Your contract with The FA will specify a fixed location of Wembley Stadium or St. George's Park unless the role is advertised as a home-based contract. The contractual location of this role can be found at the top of this advert on our FA vacancy page.

The FA, For All, For You

Our equality, diversity and inclusion strategy forms an integral part of our long-term commitment to using our influence across English football to create a game free from discrimination.

https://www.thefa.com/-/media/thefacom-new/files/about-the-fa/2021/fa_a-game-for-all-strategy.ashx

A Game For All outlines three key strategic commitments – Lead the Change, Be the Change, and Inspire the Change – which will ensure tackling discrimination remains a core priority for English football for years to come.

We are a diverse workplace, aspiring to represent football across the country. The Football Association actively promotes inclusion and diversity, encouraging you to be the best version of yourself at work.

We welcome applications from everyone and are proud to be an equal opportunities employer. If you have any particular requirements in respect of the recruitment or interview process, please mention this during your application.

As part of The FA's commitment to ensuring a safe environment for everyone in football, every employee will be required to complete a DBS check. The level of the check required will be based on the activity of the specific job role and in line with legislation and government guidance.