Head of Commercial & Strategic Partnerships

Join LGPS Central at a pivotal moment, where investment meets long-term impact.

The Head of Commercial and Strategic Partnerships will lead the company’s commercial strategy across supplier relationships, strategic partnerships and wider third party engagement. The role will ensure we secure high quality services and partnerships that meet operational, regulatory and value for money expectations, while supporting our longer-term strategic ambitions.

The postholder will build strong relationships across the organisation to understand business needs early, shape commercial options and support delivery. They will lead on assessing and managing strategic partnerships that strengthen capability, improve outcomes for Partner Funds and support the organisation’s future operating model. They will work closely with the Procurement Manager to ensure that procurement, contract management and third-party risk activity are joined up, well controlled and aligned to LGPS Central’s objectives.

This role will set the standard for how we manage our commercial relationships across the Company. It will shape a culture of commercial awareness, transparency and accountability, ensuring our approach remains robust, forward looking, focused on value for money and aligned to the expectations of Partner Funds, regulators, government and other key stakeholders.

What you’ll be doing:

Commercial strategy and partnership leadership

• Lead the commercial and strategic partnership strategy, aligned to business priorities.
• Identify and develop partnership models that strengthen capability and improve outcomes.
• Set governance for commercial decisions, including options appraisal, due diligence and decision records.

Strategic partnerships and external engagement

• Own key strategic relationships and ensure clear objectives, deliverables and success measures.
• Negotiate partnership terms, including governance, performance expectations and exit provisions.
• Monitor partnership health, risks and dependencies and drive continuous improvement.

Contracting and commercial management

• Oversee contract lifecycle activity including drafting, negotiation, renewals and change control.
• Maintain visibility of key dates, obligations and commercial risks.
• Support early resolution of commercial issues and disputes.

Supplier and partnership performance management

• Set standards for service management including KPIs, SLAs, reviews and improvement plans.
• Ensure contract owners manage performance consistently and address issues early.
• Maintain accurate performance and commercial governance records.

Vendor oversight, operational resilience and risk

• Ensure vendor oversight meets regulatory expectations and supports operational resilience.
• Oversee due diligence, ongoing monitoring and risk actions for key suppliers and partners.
• Work with Legal, Compliance, Risk, Finance and Technology on third party controls and reporting.

Leadership and team development

• Build strong relationships across the organisation and act as a trusted adviser on commercial decisions
• Encourage continuous improvement and drive consistent ways of working across commercial activity
• Promote a culture of transparency, accountability and proactive risk management

About Us

LGPS Central (LGPSC) Ltd is the FCA regulated asset manager for fourteen local authority pension funds across the Midlands. LGPSC is jointly owned on an equal shares basis by those Partner Fund, and it is responsible for managing £100bn+ of their assets. It is one of six Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) asset pools in the UK.

LGPS Central’s Partner Funds are:

• Cheshire Pension Fund
• Derbyshire Pension Fund
• Leicestershire Pension Fund
• Nottinghamshire Pension Fund
• Shropshire Pension Fund
• Staffordshire Pension Fund
• West Midlands Pension Fund
• Worcestershire Pension Fund
• Gloucestershire Pension Fund
• Hampshire Pension Fund
• Suffolk County Council
• Wiltshire Pension Fund
• Norfolk Pension Fund
• Oxfordshire Pension Fund

The Company is committed to responsible investment and has made responsible investment a core part of the investment process in every asset class.

LGPS Central offers a friendly and diverse, hybrid working environment with a range of employee benefits. The…