Centre for Finance, Innovation and Technology (CFIT)
Manager Strategic Partnerships
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About the Centre for Finance, Innovation and Technology (CFIT)
The Centre for Finance, Innovation and Technology (CFIT) is an independent not-for-profit organisation established to accelerate innovation across UK financial services.
We work with regulators, government, industry and academia to address systemic challenges to scaling financial innovation. Our mission is to turn ambitious ideas into practical solutions that industry can adopt. Operating at the intersection of financial services and technology, CFIT is a neutral, trusted convener with proven capability to support our partners through every stage of the innovation lifecycle—from discovery to implementation—by building coalitions and co-creating policy, market and technology solutions.
Our goal is to strengthen financial innovation's contribution to the UK's inclusive and sustainable growth and international competitiveness.
CFIT has led national coalitions on Open Finance, Digital Company ID, SME Access to Finance and Open Property—the UK's first Smart Data initiative beyond financial services—and is now developing the next generation of market-wide innovation programmes.
CFIT's Coalition Model
A CFIT coalition is a dynamic, purpose-driven and strategic convening point for the most relevant stakeholders across financial services and adjacent sectors. Our coalitions bring together financial institutions, fintech firms, technology providers, regulators, government departments, academics, trade associations and consumer representatives to address complex industry challenges through collaboration.
Operating on a time-limited basis, each coalition combines industry expertise, research and practical experimentation to develop solutions that can be adopted at scale. By convening diverse perspectives and building consensus across the ecosystem, CFIT helps transform innovative ideas into practical outcomes that strengthen UK financial services.
Role Overview
CFIT is seeking a highly motivated, commercially minded and relationship-focused Strategic Partnerships Manager to support the growth of CFIT's coalition portfolio and long-term sustainability.
Working closely with the CEO and senior leadership team, the Strategic Partnerships Manager will play a central role in developing and managing strategic relationships across government, industry, academia and the wider innovation ecosystem. The role will help convert emerging opportunities into funded partnerships and collaborative programmes that support CFIT's long-term growth.
The successful candidate will identify partnership opportunities, develop compelling funding and sponsorship propositions, and help secure support for new and existing coalition activities. They will work closely with colleagues across CFIT to build collaborative partnerships that accelerate innovation and enable the delivery of market-wide initiatives.
The role offers a unique opportunity to work at the intersection of financial services, innovation, regulation and public policy, helping shape collaborative programmes that address systemic challenges and strengthen the UK's position as a global leader in financial innovation.
Key Responsibilities
As Strategic Partnerships Manager, you will be responsible for:
Strategic Partnership Development
- Develop and manage CFIT's strategic partnership pipeline across industry, government, academia and the wider innovation ecosystem.
- Build trusted relationships with senior stakeholders across financial services, technology, government departments, regulators, universities, research organisations and industry bodies.
- Identify new opportunities for collaboration that support CFIT's strategic priorities and long-term sustainability.
- Act as a relationship manager for key partners throughout the lifecycle of engagement.
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Business Development and Funding
- Develop compelling partnership propositions, sponsorship packages and funding proposals.
- Identify opportunities for government funding, innovation grants, philanthropic funding and corporate sponsorship.
- Lead or support the preparation of grant applications, partnership proposals and funding submissions.
- Work with colleagues to develop business cases and value propositions for new coalition activities.
- Support the development and negotiation of partnership agreements.
Coalition Development
- Work closely with the Coalition Co-Heads to:
- design and mobilisation of future coalition activities by identifying prospective partners and building early engagement;
- develop stakeholder engagement strategies to support coalition launch and delivery;
- translate emerging opportunities into practical partnership initiatives that align with CFIT's mission, and work closely with coalition leads to ensure strategic partners remain engaged throughout programme delivery.
Stakeholder Engagement
- Represent CFIT at meetings, conferences, industry roundtables and external events.
- Build and maintain strong relationships across the wider innovation ecosystem.
- Support the development of CFIT's Strategic Advisory Board and broader partner network.
- Work collaboratively with policymakers, regulators, industry leaders and innovators to identify opportunities for collective action.
Strategic Insight
- Monitor developments across financial services, technology, innovation and public policy.
- Produce briefing papers, partnership materials and strategic insight to support external engagement.
- Identify emerging trends that may create future partnership or funding opportunities for CFIT.
General Responsibilities
- Contribute to wider organisational priorities and support additional activities as agreed with the CEO and senior leadership team.
- Act as an ambassador for CFIT's mission and values.
What Success Looks Like
Within your first 12 months you will have:
- Established a structured pipeline of prospective strategic partners.
- Secured several new strategic partnerships across industry, government, academia and the wider innovation ecosystem.
- Successfully supported multiple grant, sponsorship or collaborative funding proposals.
- Played a leading role in mobilising at least one new coalition or strategic initiative.
- Strengthened CFIT's profile and relationships across the UK financial innovation ecosystem.
Candidate Profile
This role requires an individual with excellent partnership development and stakeholder engagement skills, combined with experience building collaborative relationships across financial services, government, academia or the wider innovation ecosystem.
The successful candidate will have experience developing strategic partnerships and preparing compelling proposals for funding, sponsorship or collaborative initiatives. They will be comfortable engaging senior decision-makers and working across organisational boundaries to bring together diverse stakeholders around shared objectives.
Experience developing multi-party partnerships involving government, industry and academia, with an ability to align diverse stakeholder interests around shared objectives, would be particularly valuable.
Experience working within financial services, fintech, government, innovation programmes, research organisations, public policy, universities or industry bodies would be highly advantageous.
The ideal candidate will be entrepreneurial, collaborative and comfortable operating across a fast-moving and evolving innovation landscape.
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Key Capabilities
- Strategic Partnership Development - Proven ability to build trusted relationships with senior stakeholders across industry, government, academia and the wider innovation ecosystem.
- Business Development - Experience identifying partnership opportunities and developing compelling partnership, sponsorship or commercial propositions.
- Funding and Grant Development - Experience preparing or contributing to grant applications, sponsorship proposals or collaborative funding bids involving public and private sector organisations.
- Stakeholder Engagement - Excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to influence, convene and collaborate across multiple organisations and sectors.
- Communication - Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to produce high-quality proposals, presentations and briefing materials.
- Strategic Thinking - Ability to identify emerging opportunities and translate them into practical partnership initiatives aligned with organisational strategy.
- Collaboration - Ability to work effectively across multidisciplinary teams and with a broad range of external partners.
- Organisation and Delivery - Strong organisational and project management skills, with the ability to manage multiple partnership opportunities simultaneously and deliver high-quality work to tight deadlines.
Reporting to
Chief Operating Officer
Salary
£70,000–£80,000 depending on experience
To Apply
Please send your CV and a cover letter detailing how you meet the selection criteria to:
recruitment@cfit.org.uk
Diversity is important to us
CFIT is a safe, inclusive workplace with a strong focus on creating a supportive environment where everyone can bring their whole self to their role.
We strongly encourage applications from candidates from underrepresented backgrounds, as we believe that diversity of thought, experience and perspective is essential to delivering meaningful innovation.
We are aware that you may see a lengthy list of requirements and decide that this role is not for you. We encourage you to apply anyway. You may have skills and experiences that we had not considered when developing this role, and we'd love to hear from you.
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