Systems Development Section Manager

Lead with vision, inspire change and shape the future of pension services as our System Developments Team Manager

Contract Type: Permanent

Salary: Grade I. Scale 35 - £47,665 to Scale 37 £49,817

Hours Per Week: 36

Base Location: Guardsman Tony Downes House, Droylsden

Assessment Date: 23rd to 25th November 2026

About GMPF

At Greater Manchester Pension Fund (GMPF), we are dedicated to securing the financial well-being of our 379,000 members. Every year, these members place their trust in us to safeguard the pension benefits they have earned, giving them confidence and security in retirement. We pay out over £880 million in benefits each year, fulfilling our promise to deliver financial security to our members.

We have almost 200 colleagues in pensions administration who collaborate with over 800 employers, including local authorities across Greater Manchester, the National Probation Service, academy schools, and housing associations. Together, we calculate and deliver pension benefits with precision and care.

The Opportunity

We are looking for a motivated and forward-thinking leader to join GMPF as System Developments Section Manager within our Developments & Technologies section. This is a key role leading system development and service transformation activity, exploring new technologies and ensuring improvements are delivered in a structured, controlled and effective way.

As System Developments Section Manager, you will:

• Lead and develop the System Developments team: Provide clear leadership and direction, set priorities, monitor performance and support colleagues to develop their skills and deliver a high-quality service.
• Drive system improvement and innovation: Identify, assess and implement system enhancements, new modules, and technologies that improve efficiency, strengthen data quality and support the continuous improvement of pension administration services.
• Deliver projects and new initiatives: Lead projects from initial scoping through to implementation. Produce business cases, project plans, risk logs and other supporting documentation, and consider the benefits, costs, resources, controls and wider service impact of your projects.
• Collaborate with stakeholders across GMPF: Build effective working relationships with colleagues, managers, partners, and external suppliers to ensure developments are designed, delivered, and communicated successfully.
• Support governance, risk and compliance: Ensure developments comply with legal, regulatory, data protection, information security and organisational policy requirements, with risks identified, monitored, and managed appropriately.
• Embed change into business as usual: Plan and coordinate implementation, training, communication and handover activities to ensure new systems, processes and improvements are understood, adopted, and successfully integrated into day-to-day operations.

This is an excellent opportunity for someone who enjoys leading change, solving problems and using technology to improve services. You will play an important role in helping GMPF respond to regulatory change, improve outcomes for members and employers, and continue to develop modern, efficient and resilient pension administration services.

Why Join GMPF?

At GMPF, we value our employees and are proud to offer:

• Flexible hybrid working arrangements work from home and in our modern, open-plan offices in Droylsden, which feature on-site parking, excellent public transport links, and proximity to the M60. Hybrid flexibility is available after you have completed your training and can demonstrate you can fully deliver the requirements of your role.
• Generous benefits package automatic enrolment into the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS), offering comprehensive benefits and life cover.
• Excellent leave entitlement starting at 28 days annual leave, plus bank holidays and flexible working hours (flexitime).
• Training and career development access to ongoing learning and progression opportunities.
• Employee rewards and perks discounts on gym memberships, a cycle-to-work scheme, a car leasing scheme, plus various health and wellbeing offers.

About Us

At Tameside, we are committed to ensuring all our Citizens lead long, fulfilling and healthy lives. We are committed to supporting economic growth, providing high quality health and care services, protecting our most vulnerable and creating strong and supportive, self-sufficient communities.

We recognise that our people drive our success and enable the organisation to deliver on its vision, purpose and priorities, and that our people are our most important resource and asset. Our values underpin our practice and behaviours, and are at the heart of everything that we do; and we understand that how we do things is just as important as what we do. We pride ourselves on living by our STRIVE values of Support, Trust, Respect, Integrity, Value Diversity and Engage. Our values underpin our practice and behaviours and are at the heart of everything that we do. How we do things are just as important as what we do.

Our employees’ skills, experience and knowledge are essential to our success along with their happiness, wellbeing, commitment, enthusiasm and motivation to be the best they can be.

Unfortunately, at this time we are not able to offer sponsorship.

We are committed to developing a culture which respects individuals, appreciates difference and allows everyone regardless of background to reach their full potential. We are proud to be an accredited disability confident employer. Reasonable Adjustments will be considered in accordance with the Equality Act 2010 in relation to the Job Role Criteria.

For an informal discussion about the role, please contact Nicola Cooney, Pensions Operations Manager Developments & Technologies on 0161 301 7272.

Supporting Documents

• Recruitment Guidance Notes
• Job Description & Person Specification

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