Strategic Projects Manager, Revenue

The RFU has launched its new five-year strategy, Plan 2030: More Than A Game, setting out plans to enrich lives and grow rugby for future generations. Central to this strategy is the commitment to invest £500m back into rugby over the next five years, requiring a sustained focus on maximising revenue generation.

The forthcoming season represents a major commercial inflection point for the organisation. With the busiest schedule of home fixtures in RFU history, there will be heightened demand across matchday income streams, hospitality, fan engagement, and partnership activation.

The Strategic Projects Manager will act as a project lead and project management specialist, driving the effective planning, governance, and execution of revenue-related projects. The postholder will support the organisation in delivering its strategic priorities, ensuring commercial divisions are positioned to maximise opportunities both in the near term and as part of the longer-term redevelopment of Allianz Stadium, with particular focus on:

• developing a comprehensive events strategy and ticketing plan for both the men’s and women’s game;
• delivering the debenture sales programme;
• developing the future membership product offering.

The postholder will coordinate cross-functional teams, support senior leaders, ensure use of project management best practice, and translate organisational priorities into actionable project plans.

Responsibilities:

• Lead end-to-end project management for priority projects across revenue-generating divisions.
• Develop and maintain project plans, timelines, risk registers, and project documentation.
• Champion and embed the RFU’s project management framework.
• Coordinate cross-functional project teams.
• Identify project risks, issues, and interdependencies.
• Drive problem solving, decision-making, and effective execution.

Strategy & Planning:

• Provide flexible, strategic thinking and analysis support across departments, acting as a bridge between the departments and the strategy team.
• Support divisional planning, translating organisational strategy into divisional plans.

Data & Insight:

• Work with the Data and Insights team to build consistency in the way data is managed and visualised across the department.
• Be a conduit between the Engagement & Business Growth, Venue and Data and Insights teams to align priorities and share best practice.
• Use relevant tooling to visualise data for the Engagement & Business Growth and Venue teams.

Other:

• Stay up-to-date with current thinking and best practice, proposing recommendations on improvements.
• Actively collaborate with colleagues to contribute to the development and delivery of the current strategic, business and operational plans.
• Act as an ambassador for, and promote the best interests of the RFU, including the promotion of our culture and core values – This Rose Means Everyone: Put The Team First, Shape The Future, Respect Each Other.
• Undertake other duties as may be required from time to time as are consistent with the responsibilities of the post and the needs of the organisation.

Qualifications, Skills & Experience:

The skills and attributes outlined in this description are not exhaustive and we welcome candidates who can bring different relevant experiences to the role.

Essential:

• Strong project management experience, with proven ability to lead complex, multi-stakeholder projects.
• Advanced MS Office proficiency, especially PowerPoint and Excel.
• Strong analytical skills and ability to interpret financial data.
• Experience working collaboratively with senior members of staff, influencing and shaping direction.
• Excellent organisational skills, able to work on several projects at once and communicate priorities.

Desirable:

• Degree-level education.
• Understanding of RFU and wider sports industry, with a specific focus on revenue generation.
• Experience with project management tools (e.g. Smartsheet).
• Experience with data visualization tools (e.g. Tableau).

Additional Information:

All role holders must maintain an appropriate standard of confidentiality. Any disclosures of confidential information (including personal information kept on computer or other media) made unlawfully outside the proper course of duty will be treated as a serious disciplinary offence. The role description, person specification, job level and job title may be subject to change at the discretion of the RFU and under business developments. Any changes will be communicated to the role holder as appropriate.