Manager, Practice

Forward Institute; Greater London; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Forward Institute in the United Kingdom seeks an ambitious partnerships lead to steward relationships with business, government, and civil society. You’ll author how the role grows, shape high-impact leadership interventions, and translate trusted connections into opportunities.

The role sits within the Practice and offers exposure to senior leaders, with opportunities to influence strategy and impact. You’ll work collaboratively, manage multiple priorities, and use CRM and AI tools to

Qualifications

• Experience in a client-facing partnerships or consulting role.
• Comfortable working with senior leaders and complex stakeholder environments.
• Familiarity with CRM tools and a willingness to use AI tools to accelerate work.

Responsibilities

• Own and develop a partner portfolio aligned to strategic priorities.
• Design and deliver leadership interventions with Principals, Directors and expert contributors.
• Drive pipeline growth by writing proposals and pitches, expanding the network with impact.
• Build trusted relationships across business, government and civil society to translate opportunities into impact.

Skills

Relational instincts

Stakeholder management

Consulting foundation

Leadership mindset

CRM tools

AI tools

Tools

CRM tools

AI tools

Job description

We're looking for an ambitious team member to play a central role in that sits at the heart of our ambition: stewarding partnerships with organisations and leaders who have the power to shape a better future. This is a genuine opportunity to author the role as you grow into it, at a moment of real growth and momentum for us as an organisation, with the exposure and opportunity that comes with it.

It is a relationships-focused role, working within the Institute's Practice. You'll be the point of contact for partners across business, government, and civil society. You will build on and translate trusted relationships into new opportunity as our thinking becomes real interventions for the leaders who need them most.

Core Responsibilities

We are looking for someone with strong relational instincts, an emerging consulting foundation, and a real belief in responsible leadership. You'll be comfortable in the room

with senior leaders, energised by ambiguity, and ready to work at the intersection of ideas, relationships and impact. These are the core responsibilities, but this isn't a fixed job

spec: we'll shape it with you, building your mastery and impact as you go.

Owning and developing a partner portfolio
Build the deep contextual understanding to keep our work aligned to what each partner is really navigating: their pressures, their strategic focus, the leadership challenges that matter most.
You'll be the champion for your partners inside FI, and actively manage partnership health, owning opportunities, spotting risk, and growing relationships in impact and value over time.

Designing and delivering leadership interventions
Coordinate the delivery of our bespoke offerings alongside Principals, Directors and expert contributors, supporting critical moments with executive teams, and learning how we shape the advice we give the country's most powerful leaders.
Over time, take on increasing ownership of design, developing how our ideas become tangible leadership interventions that help leaders think differently and shape their organisation's future.

Drive organisational growth
Build and manage a pipeline of new opportunities across your partners, writing proposals, preparing pitches, and expanding our network with ambition and impact.
Working closely with Directors, you'll convert trust into opportunity in a way that feels natural, not transactional, and help grow the impact of the Practice with the commercial discipline that lets us do more of the work that matters

Mindset

Ambitious and entrepreneurial , you spot opportunities, take initiative, and find creative routes through challenge

Motivated by purpose and drawn to organisations where impact and commerciality go hand in hand

Deeply curious about ideas of leadership and responsibility, and value learning from the perspectives of others

Collaborative, and you thrive in a dynamic environment

Capabilities

You build relationships with confidence and care, can adapt how you communicate

You can structure problems clearly, communicate with precision, and organise complex work without losing sight of what matters

strong executor who brings quality and attention to detail, taking ownership of how work is shaped, not just delivered

Organised and dependable, comfortable working across multiple priorities at pace

Experience

Experience in a client-facing, partnerships, or consulting role

Comfortable working with or around senior leaders and complex stakeholder environments

Familiarity with CRM tools and a willingness to use AI tools to work with greater pace and insight.

We are an equal opportunities employer and are committed to fair and inclusive recruitment practices. We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, identities, and lived experiences.

We want to make this process as inclusive and accessible as possible. If you have any access needs or specific requirements, please get in touch.

Role closes on Friday 21st August and we will be interviewing on a rolling basis.

You must have the right to work in the UK.