Strategic Business Development Lead

Reporting to the Head of HR Shared and Traded Services, you will lead a small team developing and strengthening relationships with clients, partners and suppliers; identifying new business opportunities and expanding our reach as a HR and Payroll provider. You will work with our wider HR & OD team to develop and improve our offer, leading to increased income generation.

As the Strategic Business Development Lead, you will manage all Service Level Agreements with our partners, proactively monitoring our performance, ensuring value for money, and working with HR & OD colleagues to address issues and improve service delivery. You will work with our commissioning teams to procure services and effectively manage key HR contracts, and liaise with finance colleagues to ensure accurate forecasting and income collection, and carry out annual pricing reviews.

This role is pivotal in shaping the future of our commercial offer by identifying and capitalising on new opportunities, building strategic partnerships, and driving long-term growth.

We are looking for someone who is committed to providing good customer service to a range of internal and external clients. Your excellent interpersonal skills will enable you to develop strong working relationships with colleagues, your team, senior leaders and our partners, whilst your commercial acumen will help you develop and implement comprehensive business development strategies that align with our long-term objectives. While your primary focus will be on strategic leadership, you must be adaptable and willing to engage in operational tasks when necessary to ensure seamless service delivery.

You will bring extensive experience in managing commercially driven contracts and service level agreements with both internal and external clients, combined with a proven track record in areas such as pricing, benchmarking, keeping abreast of industry trends and what our competitors are doing, and finding new opportunities to maximise income. Your experience of working with key suppliers and stakeholders to enhance service delivery will be pivotal to success. If you are passionate about providing excellent customer services, are results oriented, and thrive in a challenging yet highly rewarding environment, then we would welcome an application from you.

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Kingston and Sutton councils have a number of shared services serving both authorities, with some teams and roles more focussed on one council than the other, but the majority are shared across both, meaning you get multiple opportunities to learn from a wider pool of activities and two different political bodies.

We work flexibly in both Kingston and Sutton offices, and support working at home or flexible working patterns that enable you to tailor your working and personal life. We provide the equipment and tools to enable you to work flexibly, and in return ask you to use that flexibility to be creative and ambitious in the services we deliver.

There are some really exciting things happening in both boroughs. In Sutton, we are developing the London Cancer Hub, a world leading cancer research and treatment hub that will bring together professionals from across different sectors to identify and test new treatments and therapies. Over in Kingston, we are undertaking the largest housing regeneration programme ever delivered in the borough, building new energy efficient housing that will transform some of our oldest Council owned housing. Both boroughs have publicly committed to doing what they can to tackle the climate emergency and are investing in new technologies and societal change that will help bring carbon emissions down and improve our climate impact.

You should choose Kingston and Sutton if you are looking for an opportunity that will challenge you to deliver more, support you to achieve personal ambitions, and expect you to put borough residents at the heart of what you do.

Kingston is a beautiful Royal borough with a historic setting on the banks of the Thames with excellent schools and a bustling retail centre, all surrounded by open green spaces such as Richmond Park and Bushey Park, former recreation grounds for Tudor Kings and Queens. The Council is controlled by a Liberal Democrat Administration and has a council plan "Greener, Fairer, Safer, Together", that sets out a vision to be a vibrant, diverse and inclusive borough where residents are active, empowered, engaged and able to remain independent and resilient. The Council engages with residents through a number of forums and events through the year, and like Sutton plays a leading role in developing the South West Region of London.

Sutton is a well connected attractive part of London that has a reputation for excellent schools, green and leafy open spaces, and a history that drives a thriving heritage and culture offer through our museums and libraries. The Council is controlled by a long established Liberal Democrat Administration and has high ambitions set out in its corporate plan "Ambitious for Sutton", that will ensure Sutton remains a great place to live, work and raise a family. The Council plays a leading role in a number of local partnerships and places great emphasis on engaging effectively with its residents, listening to local voices and making their message heard across London Government., This is an exciting opportunity to join a progressive, award winning HR and Organisational Development (OD) Shared Service. Our Business Development Team focuses on our customers' needs, providing HR & OD services to the Royal Borough of Kingston, the London Borough of Sutton, and a range of neighbouring partners and over 200 schools across four Boroughs.