Partnership Project Manager

Department/Division: Human Resources

Duration: Permanent

Location: London (with responsibilities covering UK, Ireland and Middle East)

Reports to: Head of HR Projects, UKIME

Type of Role: Hybrid

Budget Responsibilities: Yes

Reference no: 10000

The Role

The Partnership Projects Manager leads the coordination, delivery and continuous improvement of key partnership processes. The role ensures that partner-related processes are well-governed, consistently applied, clearly communicated and delivered to a high professional standard. Working closely with HR, Governance, Finance, Reward and senior stakeholders (including ExCo and partnership committees), the role provides project management, operational oversight and governance support across partnership activities such as promotions, admissions and performance. The postholder acts as a central coordination point for complex partner processes, ensuring effective planning, stakeholder alignment, high-quality documentation and ongoing process improvement. The role also supports wider HR projects as required, contributing project management and delivery expertise across priority people initiatives. The role is based in London, but some travel may be required to our other offices.

Responsibilities / What you are responsible for

• Partnership Process Management: Lead end to end delivery of key partnership processes, ensuring clear governance, timescales and consistency. Develop and maintain project plans, guidance and communications. Coordinate cross-functional stakeholders to ensure aligned and efficient delivery. Monitor progress, risks and dependencies, proactively escalating issues where appropriate.
• Governance, Documentation & Reporting: Produce and oversee high‑quality committee and board papers and supporting documentation. Ensure all documentation meets governance, audit, confidentiality and retention standards. Support formal approvals, including voting processes where required.
• Stakeholder Engagement & Communications: Deliver clear, consistent and timely communications across partnership processes. Coordinate and, where appropriate, facilitate briefing sessions for partners, sponsors, committee members and senior leaders. Act as a trusted operational contact for stakeholders participating in partnership processes.
• Coordination of Assessments & Inputs: Coordinate structured feedback, assessment or consultation processes that support partnership decision-making (e.g. 360 feedback, soundings or similar). Ensure submissions, assessments and supporting materials are managed accurately, consistently and confidentially. Collate, quality‑check and prepare materials for governance review and decision‑making. Maintain appropriate controls and audit trails relating to process inputs and outcomes.
• Reward, Offers & Outcomes (Process Support): Support partnership‑related remuneration or financial processes where required. Manage queries relating to process outcomes with clarity and consistency. Manage stakeholder queries professionally, ensuring clarity and alignment with agreed processes and governance requirements.
• Continuous Improvement & Process Development: Lead process reviews and identify opportunities to enhance efficiency, governance and stakeholder experience. Develop and maintain templates, guidance materials and process documentation to support consistency and scalability. Collaborate with Systems and HR teams on technology or workflow improvements. Contribute ideas and recommendations that support continuous improvement across broader HR operations and projects.

Capability, Experience and Qualifications / What you bring

• Experience in project management, governance or complex process delivery, ideally within a professional services or partnership environment.
• Experience supporting senior stakeholders and committee‑based decision‑making processes.
• Produce high‑quality documentation for senior audiences.
• Strong organisational and project management skills, across multiple workstreams.
• Confident working with and influencing senior stakeholders.
• Ability to manage sensitive and confidential information with discretion.
• Ability to balance operational delivery with process improvement.
• Professional, credible and trusted by senior stakeholders.
• Calm and resilient under pressure.
• Proactive, solutions‑focused and improvement‑oriented.
• Collaborative and adaptable across teams.
• Comfortable flexing across priorities and contributing to a wider portfolio of HR projects alongside core partnership responsibilities.

Behavioural Expectations / How you do it

• Leading Self: Sets clear priorities across partnership processes to ensure timely, high‑quality delivery. Applies sound judgement in sensitive situations, balancing risk, confidentiality and business impact. Maintains effectiveness under pressure, adapting approach to ensure continuity of delivery. Takes ownership for outcomes, proactively identifying and resolving risks and issues.
• Expertise: Applies structured project management to deliver complex, multi‑stakeholder partnership processes. Uses data and insight to inform decisions and improve process effectiveness. Ensures documentation meets high standards of accuracy, governance and audit readiness. Drives continuous improvement by identifying and implementing process enhancements. Builds trusted relationships with senior stakeholders to support effective coordination and decision‑making. Communicates clearly and credibly, tailoring messages for senior and committee audiences. Aligns cross‑functional stakeholders to deliver consistent and integrated processes. Engages stakeholders to ensure clarity, alignment and timely input. Aligns partnership processes with firm priorities to support strategic and operational outcomes. Upholds strong governance standards to ensure compliance, consistency and risk management. Identifies opportunities to improve stakeholder experience and process efficiency. Contributes project expertise to wider HR and business initiatives.

Inclusion and Diversity

Dentons is committed to providing equal opportunities for all. We welcome applications from everyone including of any age, ethnicity, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, nationality, neurotype, disability, or with parental or caring responsibilities. We are also 'Happy to Talk Flexible Working' and welcome conversations about flexible working arrangements. Dentons is a Disability Confident employer. Candidates with a disability may choose to apply under the Disability Confident Scheme. We will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the role. Where application volumes are high, we may offer interviews to those who best meet the minimum criteria, consistent with our approach for all candidates. During the application process, all applicants have the opportunity to tell us about any adjustments or support they require so they are able to perform at their best. Any information you share with us during the application process is treated in confidence.