Strategic Supplier Relationship Manager
Salary: Up to £132,000 dependent on skills and experience
Permanent
Closing Date: Friday 3rd July 2025
Location: Birmingham, hybrid working: 1-2 days on-site per week
Benefits: Comprehensive package including pension, life insurance, and family-friendly policies
About Wesleyan
As a proud mutual since 1841, Wesleyan is committed to creating brighter financial futures for our customers and members. We specialise in providing financial services to some of the nation’s most trusted professions: GPs, hospital doctors, dentists, and teachers.
To find out more about what we do, visit our website: https://www.wesleyan.co.uk/about
We are proud supporters of the ABI Making Flexible Work campaign which means we are open to discuss flexible working, job shares and part time options.
Role Overview
As a Strategic Supplier Relationship Manager, you will be accountable for the oversight and governance of Wesleyan's Material Outsource/Strategic relationships. This includes ensuring optimized P&L, compliance with contractual obligations, laws, regulations, and Wesleyan standards. You will drive maximum value from partnerships, leading strong liaison between all SMEs internally and externally, and lead commercial interactions with Material Outsourcers to deliver desired outcomes for Wesleyan, our customers, and colleagues.
Key Responsibilities
1. Relationship Management: Build and maintain strategic partnerships with key suppliers to drive value, reduce costs, and enhance efficiency.
2. Strategic Alignment: Ensure suppliers understand and align with Wesleyan's business strategy.
3. Governance & Compliance: Oversee supplier compliance with contractual obligations and regulatory standards.
4. Financial Oversight: Collaborate with finance teams to manage P&L commitments and drive strong commercial management.
5. Issue Resolution: Act as the first line of formal escalation to resolve contractual, commercial, or financial issues.
6. Performance Management: Monitor and ensure supplier performance meets agreed-upon service levels and KPIs.
7. Continuous Improvement: Lead initiatives for continuous service improvement and innovation.
8. Risk Management: Identify and mitigate risks associated with supplier relationships.
Role Context
9. This is a standalone role reporting directly to the Chief Operating Officer and will be part of the senior leadership team.
10. You will provide inspiration, strong leadership, commercial focus, and motivation for all engaged in managing the Material Outsource relationship across the society.
11. You will be an expert in Material Outsource commercial and relationship management.
12. You will deliver strong and consistent outcomes leading the oversight and governance of the Material Outsourcer, ensuring the Supplier Management Framework and Health Check Processes are embedded in daily operational practices.
13. You will support financial management to ensure the P&L is fully aligned with the business case and financial outcomes are aligned with the Material Outsource Contract.
14. You will work collaboratively with the Procurement & Supplier Management team and engage with multiple stakeholders across COO, wider Group Executive, relevant committees, and boards.
15. You will work closely with stakeholders from across Wesleyan, including Finance, Data, Product, Customer, and IT colleagues, in the delivery of service oversight and governance.
Skills & Experience
16. Proven experience in managing material outsourcing relationships, including Business Process and IT Outsourcing.
17. Strong commercial acumen with the ability to negotiate and manage contracts effectively.
18. Excellent stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence at all levels.
19. Demonstrable experience in supplier performance management and continuous improvement.
20. Strong financial management skills, including budgeting, forecasting, and P&L management.
21. Experience in regulated businesses and understanding of the FCA & PRA regulatory landscape.
22. Ability to lead and motivate teams, driving performance and achieving outcomes
Benefits:
23. Annual Performance based Bonus – based on a mixture of company and personal performance
24. 28 days annual leave (plus 1 additional “culture day” & bank holidays) – increases to 30 days with 5 years’ service
25. Company pension scheme - matched plus 2% (up to 10%)
26. Free secure underground Birmingham city centre parking (available on weekends for personal use – subject to availability)
27. Cashback and discounts on major brands in retail, leisure, health, and wellbeing
28. Enhanced maternity & paternity pay
29. 2 volunteering days per year
30. PMI
To find out more about some of the great benefits Wesleyan offer, visit our careers page: https://careers.wesleyan.co.uk/applicantPortal/rewards
What to know before applying:
Equal Opportunities: Wesleyan are an equal opportunities employer. We know the best teams are made up of inclusive groups of diverse people where everyone’s contribution counts, and we believe everyone has the right to proudly be themselves. We’re building a culture where difference is actively encouraged and simply recruit the best people for the job irrespective of lifestyle, life history and life choices.
Reasonable Adjustments: We understand that there are a wide range of reasons that you may require reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process- please let us know in your application how we can best support you.
VISA Sponsorship: We are unable to provide VISA sponsorship, and therefore cannot employ anyone who does not have the legal right to live and work in the UK – within our recruitment process you will be asked to provide evidence of your Right to Work.
Advert Closing: We typically advertise for two weeks, though we reserve the right to close adverts early if we receive a high volume of applications; we would therefore recommend an early application if you’d like to be considered for our opportunities.
Regulatory Requirements: Please note this is role is subject to regulatory requirements. As a financial services organisation we are committed to adopting the highest standards and we do this by employing individuals with the appropriate skills, experience and integrity to protect the Wesleyan Group and our customers. Relevant checks and assessments will be carried out during the recruitment process. The nature of the checks will depend on whether the role is subject to the Senior Managers and Certification Regime (SMCR) or the Insurance Distribution Directive Please note a criminal record check and credit check will apply and this role is also subject to ongoing checks in line with the Group SMCR Framework (Fit & Proper Policy).