Strategic Sourcing, Assessment & Succession Manager

AXA; Royal Tunbridge Wells; Hybrid; GBP 80,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

AXA, a global leader in insurance, is seeking a Strategic Sourcing, Assessment and Succession Manager to strengthen executive recruitment. You will lead end-to-end executive and senior leadership hiring, shaping briefs and market approaches from start to appointment decisions.

Based in Bristol or Tunbridge Wells, the role offers hybrid working with at least two days on-site and significant external market engagement.

Qualifications

• Proven experience delivering executive and senior leadership recruitment.
• Ability to map markets and identify senior, specialist leadership talent.
• Experience designing structured assessments with evidence-based decisions.
• Strong stakeholder management and credible brief development.
• Committed to inclusive hiring and high-quality candidate experience.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end executive and senior leadership hiring with clear search strategies.
• Shape briefs, advise on market realities, and maintain momentum in complex appointments.
• Design robust assessment and calibration processes with evidence-led decisions.
• Build diverse pipelines via direct search, talent mapping and external intel.
• Ensure discreet, high-quality candidate experience throughout the process.
• Coach sourcing colleagues and hiring managers in inclusive selection.

Skills

Executive recruitment

Senior leadership recruitment

Strategic sourcing

Market mapping

Structured assessment

Stakeholder management

Succession planning

Evidence-based hiring

Inclusive hiring

Collaborative leadership

Job description

About AXA

AXA is a global leader in insurance and financial services, dedicated to helping customers protect what matters most to them. As the sixth-largest insurance company in the world, we provide a wide range of services, including health, car, home and business insurance. We support millions of customers worldwide, helping them navigate life's uncertainties with confidence.

AXA UK Support Functions look after our three customer-facing business units, providing the infrastructure and expertise to make sure we can be there for our customers.

Job overview:

We're looking for a Strategic Sourcing, Assessment and Succession Manager, to strengthen how AXA identifies, assesses and appoints executive, critical and future leadership talent. Reporting to the Executive Hire and Strategic Sourcing Lead, you'll personally deliver high-profile executive and senior leadership appointments, from shaping the search brief and market approach through to assessment, calibration, shortlist and appointment decisions. You'll combine external market intelligence with succession evidence and work closely with senior leaders and colleagues across Talent Acquisition, Talent, Leadership, Strategic Workforce Planning and Reward to secure outstanding leadership talent through fair, rigorous and inclusive hiring.

Key responsibilities:

• Lead the end-to-end delivery of executive, senior leadership and critical-role hiring, translating business priorities into clear search strategies, success profiles and evidence requirements.
• Partner credibly with executive and senior stakeholders to shape briefs, challenge assumptions, advise on market realities and maintain momentum through complex appointment decisions.
• Design and lead robust assessment and calibration processes, including interview frameworks, candidate evaluation, shortlist discussions and evidence-led appointment recommendations.
• Run priority searches with sourcing colleagues, combining direct search, talent mapping and external intelligence to build strong, diverse pipelines for scarce leadership capability.
• Connect succession priorities with the external talent market, turning readiness gaps and capability risks into targeted search, mapping and pipeline activity.
• Produce decision-ready executive talent intelligence on leadership movements, market scarcity, competitor activity and implications for appointments and succession risk.
• Ensure an exceptional and discreet candidate experience for executive and senior leader candidates, with clear communication, respectful engagement and high-quality feedback throughout.
• Coach sourcing colleagues, hiring managers and interviewers in structured assessment, inclusive selection, evidence writing and consistent executive hiring practice.

Work arrangements:

At AXA we work smart, empowering our people to balance their time between home and the office in a way that works best for them, their team and our customers. You'll work at least two days a week (40%) away from home, moving to three days a week (60%) from December 2026. Away from home means attending the office, visiting clients or attending industry events. This role can be based in Bristol or Tunbridge Wells. We're also happy to consider flexible working arrangements, which you can discuss with Talent Acquisition.

We know that some candidates may be discouraged from applying if they don't meet every requirement. If you're excited by this job and the prospect of working at AXA but you're not sure you tick every box, we'd still encourage you to apply.

Your skills & experience:

• Proven experience delivering executive and senior leadership recruitment, with the credibility to advise and influence senior decision-makers throughout complex hiring processes.
• Strong strategic sourcing and market-mapping capability, including the ability to identify and engage senior, specialist and hard-to-reach leadership talent.
• Experience designing and leading structured assessment for senior appointments, using clear success criteria and evidence to support fair, robust decisions.
• Confident stakeholder management skills, with the judgement to challenge constructively, manage competing perspectives and keep high-profile searches moving.
• Ability to translate succession priorities, capability gaps and workforce risks into practical external talent strategies and pipelines.
• Strong analytical skills, with experience turning market, candidate and assessment information into concise, decision-ready insight.
• A strong commitment to inclusive hiring, consistent governance, confidentiality and an excellent candidate experience.
• Collaborative leadership style, with the ability to coach colleagues and build effective partnerships across Talent, Reward, Leadership and People teams.

As a precondition of employment for this role, you must be eligible and authorised to work in the United Kingdom.