Head of Defence Sector Development

About You

You will be a strategic and collaborative leader with a strong understanding of the factors that drive sector growth, investment, and innovation. Comfortable working with senior stakeholders and decision-makers, you will be skilled at spotting opportunities, building consensus, and turning ambitious ideas into deliverable outcomes.

Whether your background is in defence, advanced manufacturing, economic development, investment, government, or a related sector, you will bring a commercial mindset and a genuine passion for helping businesses and places succeed. You'll enjoy working across organisational boundaries, influencing diverse stakeholders, and creating opportunities that deliver long-term benefits for South Yorkshire's economy and communities.

We're Looking For Someone Who Can Demonstrate

• Significant experience of developing and delivering sector growth strategies, economic development initiatives, or major partnership programmes.
• Strong knowledge of the Defence sector and the opportunities and challenges shaping its future.
• A proven ability to build productive relationships across business, academia, government, and investment communities.
• Experience of securing investment, attracting funding, or developing compelling growth and investment propositions.
• Excellent communication and influencing skills, with the confidence to engage and advise senior leaders and stakeholders.
• Strong leadership and programme management skills, with a track record of delivering successful outcomes in complex environments.

If you're excited by the opportunity to shape the future of South Yorkshire's Defence sector and help deliver investment, innovation, and economic growth for the region, we'd love to hear from you.

Benefits

All colleagues have access to a Local Government Pension Scheme and the chance to be part of an organisation where you can really make a difference. Located in Sheffield City Centre, we are well-placed for transport links and encourage employees to take advantage of the active travel facilities. Work/life balance is extremely important to us here at SYMCA, with our recognised family/friendly policies, genuine work flexibility, recognition, and shared success.

In addition to the above, some of our benefits include -

• Holiday Entitlement – From 28 to 36 days annual leave entitlement (depending on length of service) plus bank holidays. Pro-rata for part-time colleagues.
• Annual Leave Purchase Scheme – The ability to purchase up to a further 15 days per year in addition to your normal annual leave
• Hybrid working – Our offices are a space where we come together and collaborate. Most of our roles are offered on a hybrid basis with the exception of some support roles being onsite full time. Please note, unless specified within the job advert, we cannot accommodate remote working contracts.
• Flexible Hours Scheme – Most roles within SYMCA work under the Flexi-Scheme which allows office-based employees' flexibility and discretion over their working hours. Under the scheme employees can accrue a defined amount of credit or debit of working hours, and take time-off in the form of Flexi-Leave or banked Annual Leave.
• Rewarding You – Reducing everyday expenses through discounts, benefits, financial advice, wellbeing solutions, and more with Reward Gateway and Cycle-to-Work schemes.
• Training on the job – Support with upskilling skills through on-the-job training and qualifications
• Professional Membership Fees – Where membership to Professional bodies is applicable to your role, SYMCA will reimburse your membership fees where applicable and following approval by Line Management.

Diversity at South Yorkshire Combined Mayoral Authority

Our workforce is made up of a diverse community, where we all belong and feel part of something bigger. We are committed to equality of opportunity and welcome applications from individuals, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, socio-economic background, religion, and/or belief.

All employees are eligible to request Flexible Working arrangements from day one of employment, as such all requests will be considered subject to operational requirements.

Where candidates share disabilities within the application process, if they demonstrate that they meet all essential criteria from the Role Profile within their application, they will automatically be invited to interview.

If you require any reasonable adjustments throughout the process, please contact recruitment@southyorkshire-ca.gov.uk or include within your application form detailing the adjustment and how it will assist in managing any barriers.