Workforce & Talent Lead

UK Sport; Manchester; Hybrid; GBP 75,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading sports organization is seeking a Workforce & Talent Lead to build a premier recruitment advisory function in Manchester. You'll lead recruitment strategies for high-performance roles, manage team delivery, and ensure a great candidate experience. The ideal candidate should have expertise in strategic thinking and people management to help foster future leadership in British sport. This position offers a competitive salary and a permanent contract with regular remote work options.

Qualifications

• Experience in leading recruitment strategies for high-performance roles.
• Proficiency in managing talent tracking systems and succession planning.
• Ability to inspire and lead teams while ensuring an exceptional candidate experience.

Responsibilities

• Lead recruitment strategy for high-performance roles.
• Build and manage talent tracking systems.
• Inspire and lead a team of analysts and advisors.

Skills

Strategic thinking

People expertise

Team leadership

Inclusive recruitment methods

Stakeholder engagement

Job description

Organisation UK Sport Salary Grade 7 - £74,900 Location Loughborough, London or Manchester based, with regular remote working. Contract type Permanent (Full time) Closing date 6 January 2026 Job Description As Workforce & Talent Lead, you’ll shape the future of British high-performance sport by building a world-class recruitment advisory function. Your goal? Give the UK a competitive edge by attracting, developing, and retaining the best people, and making tough calls when needed.

You’ll provide expertise to enable best in class recruitment to critical roles across the high performance system : Chairs, CEOs, Performance Directors, Head of Performance Services, key practitioners, and performance coaches. You’ll also manage the Talent Team, setting them up for success and ensuring they deliver an exceptional contribution to the high performance system.

This is a role for a strategic thinker and a people expert — an individual who can identify and test for potential, challenge the status quo, and create pathways for future leaders.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead recruitment strategy for high-performance roles, using modern, inclusive methods to find high potential talent and high performers.
• Build and manage talent tracking systems, creating dashboards and reports to support succession planning and workforce diversity.
• Inspire and lead a team of analysts and advisors, ensuring collaboration and a great end to end candidate experience.
• Map career pathways and work with learning and development teams to deliver tailored growth opportunities.
• Drive succession planning, identifying future potential and shaping development plans.
• Champion culture, partnering with the Culture Lead to embed values in recruitment.
• Engage stakeholders across the system to align recruitment, development, and cultural initiatives.

A full role overview is available in the Job Description.