Partnership Executive

The Wise Group; Glasgow; Hybrid; GBP 23,000 - 28,000; Full time

Job summary

The Wise Group is seeking a Partnership Executive to work from home with regular travel across Jobs Guarantee delivery areas in Scotland (Glasgow, Renfrewshire, East Renfrewshire, Inverclyde, Argyll & Bute). The role is a 35-hour week, fixed term to November 2028, with a starting salary of £25,664 plus benefits.

You will build and sustain strategic partnerships with DWP, local authorities and community organisations to create meaningful outcomes for young people.

Qualifications

• Strong partnership, stakeholder or community relationship-management skills.
• The ability to build trust with a wide range of organisations and people.
• Credibility representing an organisation externally.
• Excellent communication and influencing skills.

Responsibilities

• Build trusted strategic partnerships with DWP, Jobcentres and local authorities.
• Map and understand local delivery areas and priorities.
• Connect colleagues and partners to share information and opportunities.
• Strengthen participant pathways with mentors and local organisations.
• Aggregate local intelligence and share insights with the Wise Group.
• Turn intelligence into collaborative opportunities across programmes.
• Coordinate across Jobs Guarantee to avoid duplication and maximise impact.

Skills

Partnership management

Stakeholder engagement

Communication skills

Networking

Job description

Position

Partnership Executive

Location

Flexible working- home based with regular travel across Jobs Guarantee delivery areas to meet colleagues, employers and partners (South & West Scotland)

Salary

£25,664 + excellent benefits

Hours

35 hours per week (flexible working)

Status

Fixed Term to November 2028

Closing date

11 October 2026

Please note: We are recruiting in anticipation of a decision on our Jobs Guarantee bid due to the short mobilisation period. Any appointment and confirmed start date will therefore be subject to successful contract award and mobilisation requirements.

Jobs Guarantee cannot succeed through operational delivery alone.

People live within communities and local systems. Around every young person there may be organisations, services, relationships and opportunities that can help them progress. Around every place there are organisations that understand what is happening locally, where the gaps are and where opportunities are emerging.

We are looking for a Partnership Executive who can help connect those things.

You’ll build a strong understanding of Glasgow City, Renfrewshire, East Renfrewshire, Inverclyde and Argyll & Bute – recognising that each place has its own priorities, systems, relationships and opportunities.

You’ll know who matters locally.

You’ll understand what relationships already exist.

You’ll listen to what partners are telling us.

You’ll identify gaps, opportunities and emerging priorities.

And you’ll make sure that intelligence is useful to the wider Wise Group.

This isn’t about building a large contact list or measuring success by how many meetings you attend.

It’s about turning relationships into insight, collaboration, pathways and opportunity.

Jobs Guarantee will also operate in places where Wise Group colleagues already hold important relationships.

Your role isn’t to take ownership of those relationships.

It is to connect them, make them visible where appropriate and help the organisation get greater collective value from what we know and who we know.

What you’ll do

1. Build trusted strategic partnerships

Develop and maintain strong relationships with DWP and Jobcentres, local authorities, community and voluntary organisations, education and skills providers, housing, health and other relevant local systems.

Understand what matters to partners, the communities they serve and where our work aligns.

Represent the Wise Group confidently.

Build relationships around shared purpose rather than transactional referrals.

Help partners understand Jobs Guarantee while also being able to describe the wider Wise Group and the impact we can bring.

2. Understand and map place

Maintain an active understanding of each Jobs Guarantee delivery area.

Know:

the important organisations and networks;

the key local decision makers;

what Wise Group relationships already exist;

local priorities and emerging changes;

where there are gaps in support;

what partners are telling us about people and communities;

where investment, commissioning or collaboration opportunities may be developing.

Make this intelligence visible and accessible rather than holding it personally.

Recognise that different places require different approaches.

3. Connect rather than own

Work closely with existing Wise Group leaders and relationship holders.

Before establishing a new relationship, understand whether one already exists and who is best placed to lead or join the conversation.

Bring colleagues together where one relationship has relevance across several parts of the Wise Group.

Share information openly.

Help avoid duplicate approaches from different parts of the organisation.

Support a culture where relationships belong to the Wise Group rather than an individual colleague or programme.

4. Strengthen participant pathways

Work closely with Mentors and Team Leads to understand where young people need additional support or opportunity.

Build relationships with organisations that can add meaningful value to the participant journey.

Create purposeful pathways rather than simply producing a directory of services.

Make it easier for frontline colleagues to know who can help, what they offer and how to access that support.

Where several organisations are involved around a young person, encourage joined-up working and warm connections.

5. Connect local intelligence

Bring together what frontline colleagues, participants, partners and local systems are telling us.

Identify recurring themes, gaps and opportunities.

Share useful intelligence with the Operations Manager and wider Wise Group colleagues.

Help distinguish between an isolated issue and something that may be telling us something bigger about a place.

Make sure the experience of local communities informs organisational thinking.

6. Turn intelligence into opportunity

Look beyond immediate programme delivery.

Where local intelligence, partner priorities and participant experience point towards a wider opportunity, connect the right colleagues across the Wise Group.

Help turn relationships into collaboration.

Help turn collaboration into stronger pathways, influence or future opportunity.

Contribute to the Wise Group's developing Community and Place approach by bringing grounded, local intelligence into the conversation.

7. Work collaboratively across Jobs Guarantee

Work closely with Employment Pathways colleagues so employer and wider partnership activity complement rather than duplicate one another.

Work with Quality Improvement & Innovation so partner feedback and local insight contribute to service learning.

Support the Operations Manager with key relationships and emerging issues.

Maintain accurate information about partnership activity, commitments and opportunities.

What you’ll bring

You’ll bring:

Strong partnership, stakeholder or community relationship-management skills.

The ability to build trust with a wide range of organisations and people.

Credibility representing an organisation externally.

Excellent communication and influencing skills.

Strong knowledge or established networks within one or more Jobs Guarantee areas would be particularly valuable.

Curiosity about how local systems work and where decisions are made.

The ability to understand different perspectives and find common ground.

The ability to turn individual conversations into useful organisational intelligence.

Strong collaboration skills and a willingness to share relationships.

The ability to work across organisational boundaries without becoming territorial about contacts.

Good judgement about when a relationship needs nurturing, challenging or escalating.

Strong organisation and follow-through.

The ability to spot opportunity and connect the right people around it.

Curiosity, resilience and a commitment to learning.

Please note, a full driving licence and daily access to a car are essential requirements for this role.

View the Role Profile for full details about this opportunity.

This role forms part of a bigger opportunity, click here to find out more about Jobs Guarantee and see all open roles.