Reward Manager

The Coventry Building Society; Coventry; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

28 days holiday

Discretionary bonus

Personal pension

Life assurance (6x salary)

Company car allowance £5,500

Private medical insurance

Job summary

The Coventry Building Society is seeking a Senior Reward Manager to lead a team of four Reward professionals and act as the Group’s SME on reward, benefits and remuneration governance. This is a high-profile role with exposure to senior leadership and Remuneration Committee activity, ensuring PRA/FCA compliance.

The role combines strategic and operational delivery, requiring analytical rigor, stakeholder credibility, and strong people leadership, with a team-based hybrid work approach in

Qualifications

• Experience leading Reward activity within a regulated financial services environment.
• Experience preparing and presenting papers for Remuneration Committees.
• Expertise across compensation and benefits, including executive remuneration.
• Knowledge of reward benchmarking and job evaluation methodologies.
• Experience managing pensions governance and employee benefits programmes.
• Previous people management experience leading Reward professionals.
• Excellent stakeholder management to influence senior leaders.
• Advanced Excel skills and high-quality reporting and MI.
• Experience configuring reward processes within HRIS (Workday).
• CIPD qualification and deep understanding of reward best practice.

Responsibilities

• Lead a team of four Reward professionals and act as SME on reward topics.
• Advise on reward governance, regulatory reporting and risk.
• Prepare Remuneration Committee papers and support executive remuneration activities.
• Drive continuous improvement of reward systems, data analytics and reporting.
• Manage external relationships with trustees, suppliers and governance committees.
• Provide insights from market data to inform decision-making.
• Partner with senior leaders across the Group to shape reward strategy.

Skills

Reward governance

PRA/FCA regulations

Executive remuneration

Stakeholder management

People leadership

Excel

Data analytics

HRIS Workday

Regulatory reporting

Reward benchmarking

Education

CIPD qualification

Bachelor's degree in HR/Finance

Tools

Workday

MS Excel

Job description

Reporting to the Head of Reward and People Services, the Senior Reward Manager will lead a team of four Reward professionals and act as the Group's subject matter expert across all aspects of reward, benefits and remuneration governance. This is a high-profile role with significant exposure to senior leadership, Executive Committee members and the Remuneration Committee, providing expert advice on complex reward matters within a highly regulated financial services environment. A key focus of the role is ensuring the Group's approach to reward remains compliant with PRA and FCA regulatory requirements. The role holder will lead the preparation of Remuneration Committee papers, support annual executive remuneration activities and provide expert guidance on reward governance, regulatory reporting and risk. Previous experience of operating within a regulated financial services environment and supporting Remuneration Committee activity will therefore be essential. The Senior Reward Manager will oversee the design, delivery and continuous improvement of the Group's compensation, benefits and pension arrangements, ensuring they remain competitive, cost-effective and aligned to business strategy. Pension governance, benefits management and supplier oversight will form a significant part of the role, alongside responsibility for managing key external relationships and supporting governance committees. In addition, the role holder will use reward systems, market data and analytics to generate insight, inform decision-making and drive improvements to the colleague experience. Significant stakeholder management will be required, with the successful candidate partnering with leaders across the Group to translate complex reward concepts into practical solutions. This is an exciting opportunity to join the organisation during a period of significant integration and transformation, helping to shape the future reward proposition, influence strategic decision-making and lead meaningful change across the business. We operate on a team led hybrid approach with at least 2-3 days a week in the Coventry office.

Our benefits include:

• 28 days holiday a year plus bank holidays and a holiday buy/sell scheme
• Annual discretionary bonus scheme
• Personal pension with matched contributions
• Life assurance (6 times annual salary)
• Company car allowance of £5,500
• Private Medical Insurance

You’ll be an experienced Reward leader with strong technical expertise across both compensation and benefits, gained within a dual regulated financial services environment. You’ll bring proven experience navigating PRA and FCA remuneration regulations, supporting Remuneration Committee activity and providing expert advice to senior leaders on complex reward matters. Pension governance and benefits management will be a significant part of your background, alongside a strong understanding of reward governance, market practice and executive remuneration.

You’ll be equally comfortable operating strategically and delivering operationally, using reward systems, data and insight to inform decision-making and drive continuous improvement. With exceptional analytical skills and meticulous attention to detail, you’ll be confident interpreting complex information and translating it into clear, practical recommendations. You’ll also be a credible stakeholder manager, able to build trusted relationships across all levels of the organisation, and an experienced people leader with a track record of developing high-performing teams.

For this role you’ll need to have:

• Proven experience leading Reward activity within a regulated financial services environment, with strong knowledge of PRA and FCA remuneration regulations.
• Experience preparing and presenting papers for Remuneration Committees and supporting senior executives on reward-related matters.
• Strong expertise across both compensation and benefits, including executive remuneration, market benchmarking, pay reviews and reward governance.
• Knowledge of reward benchmarking and job evaluation methodologies such as Willis Towers Watson.
• Significant experience managing pensions governance and employee benefits programmes, working closely with trustees, suppliers and governance committees.
• Previous people management experience, with the ability to lead, develop and motivate a team of Reward professionals.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills, with the confidence and credibility to influence senior business leaders and executives.
• Strong analytical capability, with the ability to interpret complex data and provide meaningful reward insights and recommendations.
• Advanced Excel skills and experience producing high-quality reporting, analytics and management information.
• Knowledge of executive incentive plans, deferred remuneration arrangements and regulatory reporting requirements, including Material Risk Takers, Directors Remuneration Report, Equal Pay Audit, Pillar 3 and High Earners Reporting.
• Experience configuring, maintaining or enhancing reward processes within a HRIS, ideally Workday.
• CIPD qualification and a deep understanding of reward best practice.

Experience in these areas would be helpful:

• Experience supporting organisational integration, transformation or large-scale change programmes.
• Experience managing supplier tender exercises and reviewing benefit arrangements to improve value, governance and colleague experience.

In 2025, Coventry Building Society purchased The Co-operative Bank. Bringing together our purpose-led building society with the UK’s original ethical bank was the start of an exciting journey.

Trusted by over four million people, we’re a mutually owned business free from shareholders, and with our combined experience of almost 300 years, our ethics and dedication will continue to guide us. Together, we have shared values and an ethical approach towards our members, customers and colleagues. We’re officially recognised as a 'Great Place to Work' and our benefits go beyond basic pay, with a discretionary bonus scheme, a culture of reward and recognition and comprehensive support for wellbeing. We’re serious about equality, of race, age, faith, disability, and sexual orientation and we celebrate diversity. By working together, we know you’ll build more than just a career with us.

Flexibility and why it matters