Commercial Partnerships Lead

Want to be part of a team that inspires change?

In DHSC, we are proud of our purpose – to enable everyone to live more independent, healthier lives for longer. To achieve this, and create a great place to work, we have four values: we are inclusive, we constantly improve, we challenge, and we are agile. If this sounds like an environment you’d like to work in, we’d love to hear from you.

The Behavioural Programmes Unit at the Department of Health and Social Care is renowned for creating partnerships that drive population-wide behaviour change for better health.

We are looking for a Commercial Partnerships Lead to deliver some of our most high profile and exciting collaborations with commercial partners. The role will be to build lasting relationships with organisations from a wide range of industries and sectors, creating partnerships that inspire behaviour change at scale.

Under our NHS Better Health programme, you will have scope to create partnerships around of some of the nation’s biggest health challenges, including smoking, cardiovascular disease, early years/child development, and mental health. We are famous for our campaigns such as Stoptober, 10 Minute Shake Up with Disney, and Every Mind Matters.

The partnerships team is part of a team of behaviour change experts from a range of disciplines that combine strategy, media and campaign activation, partnerships, and a digital products team (creators of the NHS Couch to 5K and Food Scanner apps amongst others). We are part of the Secondary Prevention Directorate.

Our vision is to help improve the nation’s health and break the link between background and prospects for a healthy life. Our mission is to connect with people through trusted information, advanced digital tools, and real-world solutions that create behaviour change to improve health outcomes.

This is a rare and coveted role in Government, with an exciting remit to work with some of the nation’s biggest and best brands and organisations to affect change for better health.

You will play a key role in developing and delivering a strategy to create partnerships with purpose and impact. Working with and directing a partnerships agency, you will build on our renowned programme of partnerships that includes Disney, national supermarkets, tech platforms and other national organisations that share our vision.

Our strategy is to galvanize partners around our behaviour change goals – taking care of our mental health, stopping smoking and much more. Key industries you will need to engage include: food and retail; tech and digital/data partners; creative industries; healthcare & pharmacy.

Innovation, impact, and delivering visible partnerships with purpose will drive your strategy and partner mix.

You will work as part of a cross-disciplinary team made up of marketing strategists and evaluation experts, campaign managers, digital product managers, data specialists plus external marketing and communications agency staff in pursuit of big behavioural goals. At the same time you’ll play an important role in developing a new model for delivering great partnerships with a small, focused in-house team of specialists.

Role responsibilities

Partner Strategy

• Co-create and develop the partnerships strategy alongside the Head of Partnerships and the wider team and agency, with a particular focus on delivering impact, inc PR value
• Use your internal and external networks to translate complex policy objectives into real-world solutions, building ideas for partnerships around our programme of campaigns, digital tools, and wider objectives.
• Bring innovation to the fore in developing ideas, homing in on our objectives to tackle disparities and improve health for everyone.
• Provide expert advice to senior Departmental leaders and Ministers with regard to the role for partnerships on new core priorities and respond proactively to requests to build partner coalitions around these
• Deputise for the Head of Partnerships as required.

Relationship Management

• With the partnerships agency scan the horizon for and engage potential new partners, creating a “pipeline” of warm contacts who could be activated on a number of priority topic areas because our objectives align.
• Engage with existing and prospective partners energetically and professionally, maintaining strong relationships with key partners and sectors.
• Use your creative skills to see opportunities to create new and exciting ways to take health messages to our audiences through innovative partnership opportunities.
• Manage our partnerships agency to get the best possible outcomes from our collective efforts.

Programme Delivery & Reporting

• You will be required to manage multiple streams of work encompassing a range of objectives; this could be across several campaigns, and a range of partners and sectors to own and deliver against. This may include non-commercial entities as directed.
• Delivering impact is critical to demonstrate value and efficacy, so you will be required to report on outcomes from partnerships, working with our agency and partners to ensure that our activity is designed with this in mind.
• Budget allocation and management inc regular reporting to ensure value for money and accuracy of financial projections.

People management and compliance

• You will need to manage direct reports, as well as agency colleagues effectively and be able to get the best out of the team and best value for money from the agency.
• Work collaboratively as part of a tight management team for the Partnerships specialism to allocate people and financial resources.
• Contribute to building in-house capability to support the strategic direction of the partnership programme
• We must adhere to legal standards in a number of areas, including GDPR and being mindful of advertising restriction, and other protocol that establish governance around our work. Prior knowledge of the specifics is not necessary.
• Working with legal teams to establish contracts with partners where needed, requiring eye to detail and diligence.

The above is only an outline of the tasks, responsibilities and outcomes required of the role. You will carry out any other duties as may reasonably be required by the directorate. The job description and person specification will be reviewed on an ongoing basis in accordance with the changing needs of the organisation.

Key skills and experience required for this role

Essential

• Significant experience of partnership marketing or stakeholder management in a marketing context in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sector
• Significant experience or understanding of marketing planning techniques including insight generation, campaign strategy development, creative development, media planning and evaluation and how they can contribute to a partnership approach
• Experience of using negotiation and influencing skills across a range of sectors to ensure programme objectives are delivered
• Persuasive communicator, both orally and in writing. Confident presenting arguments and options to senior audiences and ability to stand their ground where appropriate when challenged.
• Must be able to provide and receive highly complex, sensitive, or contentious information, negotiate with senior stakeholders and partners on difficult and controversial issues, and present complex and sensitive information to large and influential groups.
• Experience of working to tight deadlines and managing uncertainty and complexity to deliver business objectives.
• An understanding of and commitment to equality of opportunity and good working relationships, both in terms of day-to-day working practices, but also in relation to management systems

Desirable

• Experience of line management and ideally management of remote teams
• Experience of budget responsibility including: budget setting, delivering value for money and working knowledge of financial processes
• Understanding of the public and wider health systems, political and local government environment and evidence-based approach to decision-making. The flexibility to work across other types of partnership eg with local government and NHS organisations as required, and to get up to speed with new areas of work at pace.

Working locations

Your normal place of work will be your contractual primary workplace, usually either London or Leeds. Within DHSC we offer non-contractual hybrid working. The expectation at present is a minimum of 60% of your working time spent in the office, enabling in person interaction and collaboration and enhancing team working, learning, and support.

You will be asked to express a location preference during the application process. Please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas and some travel may be required across the DHSC estate.

Opportunities for some working from home may be available; other flexible working options may be discussed with the hiring manager in line with individual circumstances and business need.

There are a limited number of DHSC colleagues who have existing agreed homeworking contracts resulting from Our Future Estate Programme 2023-2024. Colleagues covered by these arrangements are eligible to apply for this role whilst continuing their agreed existing home working arrangement. Occasional travel to DHSC offices or other locations may still be required according to business need. Travel and subsistence will be provided in line with the pre-agreed homeworker arrangements.

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Seeing the Big Picture
• Leadership
• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together

We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:

• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 27%

Job contact :

Name :
Karen Murrell
Email :
karen.murrell@dhsc.gov.uk

Recruitment team

Email :
dhscrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk