Innovation Ecosystem & Partnerships Lead

The Innovation Ecosystem & Partnership Lead who will play a pivotal role in developing our global innovation ecosystem and partnership strategy at Barclays to create a thriving ecosystem and to bring valuable insight and intelligence into our businesses, functions and global technology group.

The role identifies, nurtures, assesses, and delivers high-value partnerships across our global ecosystem. This role leads a dynamic team of industry scouts and partner engagement leads, ensuring that we foster valued partnerships that inform decision-making and accelerate our strategic objectives and innovation efforts.

Key accountabilities for this role include:

- Leading and developing a team of high-performing industry scouts and partnership engagement leads.

- Managing and nurturing relationships with our key innovation ecosystem partners, which span across technology, venture capital, academia, and government sectors.

- Monitoring market dynamics and insights from partners to provide strategic recommendations to our senior leadership.

- Works collaboratively with colleagues to identify, evaluate, and deliver partnerships and co-innovation opportunities that align with Barclays' strategy and goals.

- Leading efforts to scout and identify groundbreaking technology companies, with a particular focus on artificial intelligence and emerging technologies, as well as new business models and industry practices.

- Communicating insights, trends, and strategic recommendations to Barclays colleagues and external stakeholders.

- Has a passion for innovation, strong commercial acumen and a keen understanding of emerging technologies and trends.

Purpose of the role

To collaborate, nurture and drive group innovation with internal and external stakeholders to ensure the bank stays at the forefront of innovation and adapts to the rapidly changing landscape in financial services and increasing customer expectations. 

Accountabilities

• Collaboration with a range of stakeholders to develop a portfolio of open innovation and strategic initiatives through experimentation, co-creation, access to innovative technology capabilities, products and services and a global innovation ecosystem.
• Development and delivery of frameworks, ideation, training and tools to build a culture of innovation and knowledge sharing to enable new and creative ideas/solutions that deliver on the bank’s strategy.
• Provision of a global platform and curated ecosystem of partners to inform strategy, drive connectivity and new insights.
• Development of the strategic capabilities and programmes for the bank to deliver on its strategy, supporting the exploration, evaluation and execution of innovation and investment opportunities.
• Management and coordination between external stakeholders/partners and the bank, to successfully deliver joint projects and initiatives.
• Deliver thought leadership and insights to inform strategic decision making and organisational readiness, in conjunction with regular research, identifying emerging technologies and trends.  .
• Development and management of key metrics including key partnerships, innovation initiatives and impact through regular assessments to calculate the return on investment and identify any potential risks and issues.

Director Expectations

• To manage a business function, providing significant input to function wide strategic initiatives. Contribute to and influence policy and procedures for the function and plan, manage and consult on multiple complex and critical strategic projects, which may be business wide..
• They manage the direction of a large team or sub-function, leading other people managers and embedding a performance culture aligned to the values of the business. Or for an individual contributor, they lead organisation wide projects and act as deep technical expert and thought leader, identifying new ways of working and collaborating cross functionally. They will train, guide and coach less experienced specialists and provide information affecting long term profits, organisational risks and strategic decisions..
• Provide expert advice to senior functional management and committees to influence decisions made outside of own function, offering significant input to function wide strategic initiatives.
• Manage, coordinate and enable resourcing, budgeting and policy creation for a significant sub-function.
• Escalates breaches of policies / procedure appropriately.
• Foster and guide compliance, ensure regulations are observed that relevant processes in place to facilitate adherence.
• Focus on the external environment, regulators, or advocacy groups to both monitor and influence on behalf of Barclays, when appropriate.
• Demonstrate extensive knowledge of how the function integrates with the business division / Group to achieve the overall business objectives.
• Maintain broad and comprehensive knowledge of industry theories and practices within own discipline alongside up-to-date relevant sector / functional knowledge, and insight into external market developments / initiatives.
• Use interpretative thinking and advanced analytical skills to solve problems and design solutions in often complex/ sensitive situations.
• Exercise management authority to make significant decisions and certain strategic decisions or recommendations within own area.
• Negotiate with and influence stakeholders at a senior level both internally and externally.
• Act as principal contact point for key clients and counterparts in other functions/ businesses divisions.
• Mandated as a spokesperson for the function and business division.

All Senior Leaders are expected to demonstrate a clear set of leadership behaviours to create an environment for colleagues to thrive and deliver to a consistently excellent standard. The four LEAD behaviours are: L – Listen and be authentic, E – Energise and inspire, A – Align across the enterprise, D – Develop others.

All colleagues will be expected to demonstrate the Barclays Values of Respect, Integrity, Service, Excellence and Stewardship – our moral compass, helping us do what we believe is right. They will also be expected to demonstrate the Barclays Mindset – to Empower, Challenge and Drive – the operating manual for how we behave.