Senior Strategy and Corporate Development Manager| S4 | CFO | Unity Place - Milton Keynes | Internal

Santander; Milton Keynes; Hybrid; GBP 85,000 - 127,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive rewards

Wellbeing support and benefits

Enhanced family leave and childcare

Job summary

Santander UK plc is seeking a Senior Strategy and Corporate Development Manager to shape and evolve the long-term strategic plan for Milton Keynes operations in alignment with Group priorities.

You will lead strategic planning with senior leadership, track initiatives, perform market and macroeconomic analysis, and translate insights into actionable investments and transformation projects, with end-to-end ownership and clear communications to the Board and external stakeholders.

Qualifications

• Undergraduate degree in Finance, Business Administration or Economics, or substantial demonstrable work experience supported by professional training (Required)
• High-level strategic thinking, problem solving, and executive engagement with deep sector knowledge in financial services (Required)
• Strong influencing skills with experience shaping senior-level decisions (Preferred)
• Proficient in creating clear, executive-ready deliverables using PowerPoint, Excel, Word and Outlook (Required)
• Experience with data mining and data-driven insights (Preferred)

Responsibilities

• Shape and evolve Santander's long-term strategic plan in alignment with business and Group priorities.
• Lead strategic planning with senior leadership and drive initiative prioritisation and resource allocation.
• Track execution of strategic initiatives, flag risks and adapt plans to ensure value realisation.
• Conduct deep market and competitive analysis to identify growth opportunities in financial services.
• Translate insights into actionable strategies for investment, growth, and transformation.
• Own end-to-end delivery of strategic projects and prepare materials for senior management and the Board.

Skills

Strategic thinking

Problem solving

Executive engagement

Financial analysis

Influencing skills

Data mining

Education

Undergraduate degree in Finance, Business Administration or Economics

Tools

PowerPoint

Excel

Word

Outlook

Data mining tools

Job description

Senior Strategy and Corporate Development Manager| S4 | CFO | Unity Place - Milton Keynes | Internal Mobility

Country: United Kingdom

IT STARTS HERE

Santander (www.santander.com) is evolving from a global, high-impact brand into a technology-driven organisation, and our people are at the heart of this journey. Together, we are driving a customer-centric transformation that values bold thinking, innovation, and the courage to challenge what's possible.

This is more than a strategic shift. It's a chance for driven professionals to grow, learn, and make a real difference.

Our mission is to contribute to help more people and businesses prosper. We embrace a strong risk culture and all our professionals at all levels are expected to take a proactive and responsible approach toward risk management.

THE DIFFERENCE YOU MAKE

Shape and evolve Santander's long-term strategic plan in alignment with business and Group priorities. Facilitate strategic planning with senior leadership, driving initiative prioritisation and resource allocation. Track the execution of strategic initiatives, flagging risks and adapting plans to ensure delivery and value realisation. Conduct deep market and competitive analysis to uncover trends and growth opportunities. Lead analysis of macroeconomic trends, customer behaviours, and emerging technologies to anticipate market shifts and define future business models. Translate complex insights into actionable strategies that inform investment, growth, and transformation initiative. Take end-to-end ownership of strategic projects assigned to ensure on-time, in-full delivery. Evaluate corporate development opportunities. Prepare high-quality materials to facilitate discussions with the senior management, the Board and key external stakeholders. Play a central role in communicating the bank's strategy, ensuring clarity, alignment, and momentum across the organisation.

WHAT YOU'LL BRING

Our people are our greatest strength. Every individual contributes unique perspectives that make us stronger as a team and as an organisation. We're enabling teams to go beyond by valuing who they are and empowering what they bring.

The following requirements represent the knowledge, skills, and abilities essential for success in this role. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Professional Experience

• The ideal candidate should have prior experience from a top-tier strategy consulting firm, leading investment bank, or a strategy / corporate development team within a major financial institution. (Required)
• Possess expert-level capabilities in strategic thinking, problem solving financial analysis, and executive engagement, and demonstrate deep sector expertise in financial services-particularly UK Retail and Commercial Banking. (Required)
• Strong influencing skills with a track record of shaping senior-level decision-making in complex, matrixed environments (Preferred)

Education

• Undergraduate or equivalent related degree in Finance, Business Administration or Economics, or substantial demonstrable work experience supported by professional training (Required)

Hard Skills

• Deep understanding of the UK financial services landscape, including macroeconomic, regulatory, and market dynamics. (Required)
• Solid grasp of UK banking business models and the financial levers driving performance across customer segments and markets. (Required)
• High-level proficiency in PowerPoint, Excel, Word, and Outlook, with the ability to create clear, compelling, and executive-ready deliverables. (Required)
• Advanced analytical and quantitative skills, with proficiency in data mining, AI-enabled insight generation, and use of visualisation tools. (Preferred)

Soft Skills

• Hands-on experience in the end-to-end corporate development process-including deal evaluation, due diligence, and managing relationships with investment banks and advisors.

WE VALUE YOUR IMPACT

At Santander, your contribution matters. We recognise the difference you make every day, and we make sure you feel valued, supported and rewarded in return. Here, recognition goes beyond pay. It's about the pride you feel in your work, the impact you have on customers and communities, and the opportunities you have to grow and thrive - personally and professionally.

(Salary range will be completed by the recruitment team)

Salary Range:

£84,614.00 - £126,922.00 per annum (depending on experience)

This salary range represents the expected remuneration for the role. Annual salary is based on a standard 35-hour working week. Actual salary offered will depend on skills, experience, qualifications and location.

• Competitive rewards that reflect the real impact you make and the value you bring.
• Wellbeing that goes beyond work - we work with a range of wellbeing partners across our 4 pillars of wellbeing (physical, mental, social and financial) to give you access to a suite of apps, discounted gym and fitness access, weekly online classes, flexible healthcare and mental health support.
• Support for every life stage - from menopause and pregnancy to parenthood and beyond, with enhanced family leave, childcare options and tailored wellbeing support.
• Time to give back through volunteering opportunities that let you make a difference in the communities we serve.
• Global growth opportunities to shape your career, learn new skills and explore what's possible across our international network.

SECONDMENT OR FTC ROLES:

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR INTERNAL APPLICANTS:

• If you are currently employed by Santander UK plc on TSB Legacy terms and choose to apply for this Santander fixed term vacancy, please be aware that, if successful, you will move onto full Santander terms and conditions of employment and will no longer be part of the TSB Legacy population with effect from the start date of your new role. Please also note that if the role you accept is a secondment role, this change will also apply to your substantive/home role (i.e. the role to which you would normally return at the end of your secondment): you will no longer be TSB Legacy for either your secondment role or your substantive/home role with effect from the start date of the secondment role. If you have any questions about what this means, you should raise them during the application process or log a ticket with Ask HR.
• If you are currently employed by TSB and the role you accept is a secondment role (rather than a fixed term contract), this will not impact the terms and conditions of your substantive/home role (and you will remain employed by TSB on your current terms and conditions until your employment transfers to Santander under TUPE).

LOCAL COMPLIANCE

At Santander, we're proud to be an inclusive organisation that provides equal opportunities for everyone - regardless of age, gender, disability, civil status, race, religion or sexual orientation.

We're committed to creating a recruitment experience that's accessible, fair and welcoming for all candidates.

We want our people to thrive - at work and at home - while delivering the best outcomes for our customers and supporting each other to grow.

To make this possible, our roles are site-based with a hybrid working pattern, where colleagues are expected to attend the office at least 12 days per month (pro-rata for part-time roles).

When applying, please consider the travel distance, time and cost to your chosen office location(s).