Manager, Group Strategy

The Department & Team

Strategy and Corporate Development is a small, high-profile team reporting to the Chief Strategy Officer and based across UK and US. This team works hand in hand to drive all group strategy, venture & investment, strategic partnership and M&A activity across the Pearson group. Within the department, our team – Group Strategy - is responsible for providing strategic thought leadership by working collaboratively with colleagues across all areas of the business to develop Pearson’s strategic direction and identify what Pearson needs to do to succeed. We collaborate closely with the M&A and Venture & Investments teams, as well as with Pearson’s business divisions, so your projects will provide you with many learning and networking opportunities. Our team has a significant amount of exposure to the Pearson CEO, CFO, Executive team and Board.

Purpose of this role

This is a new role with the opportunity for you to shape it as required to achieve the desired results. You are a self-starter, energetic and driven individual, who is comfortable operating outside the established org chart to deliver results. You are curious, a fast learner who will quickly understand how Pearson operates and identify the biggest partnership opportunities. You think like a business owner, you are action-oriented and turn plans into reality. You have relevant experience structuring different types of partnerships – most importantly channel and marketing partnerships - that delivered meaningful, measurable results. Ideally, you have a playbook of true and tested partnership models from your previous work experience, which you can leverage at Pearson.

• Support process by working across multiple business functions to ensure Pearson strategy is well-understood and driving long-term success
• Provide a clear view of Pearson’s competitive landscape and identify long-term material trends and positions which we can maximize to our advantage.
• Support mission-critical strategic projects with thorough, strategic and data-driven analysis
• Challenge our businesses to push beyond the status quo and manage stakeholders across our businesses to ensure we’re progressing the right initiatives to maximize the value of the Pearson portfolio
• Present recommendations to the Pearson Executive teams using clear verbal, written and visual communications to get buy-in for your ideas and drive the business direction
• Support the Group Strategy team in maintaining effective and efficient processes and documentation

Key Responsibilities

• Lead market research, analysis, and deliverable drafting for Group Strategy projects
• Planning, shaping and delivering multiple strategic projects. Working collaboratively and cross-functionally on the execution of the strategic initiatives in partnership with other members of the senior leadership team, which will also involve monitoring strategies from idea through to action, and execution; and identifying and monitoring capability gaps
• Work closely with the wider corporate development team across acquisitions, divestitures, investment partnerships and venture investments, ensuring progress across our various strategic themes
• Ensure that Group Strategy planning documents, trackers, and sites are kept up to date
• Support the definition of cross-divisional corporate and product strategy
• Work closely with a group-wide three-year planning process to translate the long-term strategy into short and medium-term financial plans
• Collaborate with cross-functional stakeholders to critically assess portfolio performance against strategic priorities
• Present findings to and influence Pearson’s executive team on a broad range of strategic questions; be a subject matter expert in one or more strategic areas, providing guidance to Pearson’s executive team
• Tracking a focused set of KPIs and supporting the external and internal communication narrative from a strategy perspective
• Supporting effective execution of the strategic plan against the agreed strategy, and the group’s strategic priorities

Qualifications and experience required for the role

This role requires a strategic thinker who can see the big picture but is equally able to focus on strategy execution and supporting the delivery of results to turn vision into reality. You have relevant experience gained working in strategy consulting, industry or private equity. Alternatively, you might have worked in the strategy or business development functions of a multinational corporate organization. You have experience working in/with multiple geographies. You are curious and a fast learner who enjoys working in environments that challenge you to think laterally and creatively and force you to stretch yourself.

You’ll have:

• Passion for Education with an ambition to make a difference in this key role.
• Experience in corporate strategy consulting is required.
• Structured problem solver that can think strategically and develop frameworks to decompose and simplify complex problems.
• Skills in financial analysis, business case development & interpretation with extensive experience managing strategic projects and key stakeholders.
• Excellent communicator and team player, with the ability and confidence to influence stakeholders, collaborate effectively and build strong relationships at all levels.
• The ability to create high-quality written deliverables suitable to multiple stakeholder groups
• Highly analytical and experienced in execution with diligent tracking and monitoring.

You also have/are:

• Undergraduate degree or equivalent qualification / experience, ideally in business, or finance. MBA is welcome but not required.
• Commercial mindset, ability to quickly understand key business drivers and strategies, and present these in simple and powerful ways.
• Intellectual imagination to embrace polarities, with the courage to act decisively even in the presence of imperfect information.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, particularly verbal, visual and written; together with excellent attention to detail and focus on execution and results.
• Analytical and structured problem-solving skills, with the ability to move from high-level strategy to numbers and to apply financial analysis to commercial issues.
• Ability and confidence to establish credibility and work with senior/executive management, to build strong networks and business relationships with influence across a complex, organization with competing priorities.
• Ability to draw upon an outside-in view in to make credible recommendations and provide effective support to business leaders in prioritizing their business strategies.
• A strong team player, but also confident working under your own initiative.
• Self-starter with a strong results-driven work ethic.
• Ability to work under pressure to time critical deadlines and changing priorities.
• Highly proficient in Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint.

As required by the Colorado Equal Pay Transparency Act, Pearson provides a reasonable range of minimum compensation for roles that may be hired in Colorado. Actual compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, and specific office location. For the state of Colorado only, the range of starting pay for this role is $120,000 - 140,000 per year. This position is eligible to participate in an annual incentive program, and information on benefits offered is here.

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Learning is the most powerful force for change in the world. More than 20,000 Pearson employees deliver our products and services in nearly 200 countries, all working towards a common purpose – to help everyone achieve their potential through learning. We do that by providing high quality, digital content and learning experiences, as well as assessments and qualifications that help people build their skills and grow with the world around them. We are the world’s leading learning company. Learn more at pearsonplc.com.

Pearson believes that wherever learning flourishes, so do people. We are committed to being an anti-racist company in everything we do. We value the power of an inclusive culture and a strong sense of belonging. We promote a culture where differences are embraced, opportunities are accessible, consideration and respect are the norm, and all individuals are supported in reaching their full potential. Through our talent, we believe that diversity, equity, and inclusion make us a more innovative and vibrant place to work. People are at the center, and we are committed to a sustainable environment and workplace where talent can learn, grow, and thrive.

To learn more about Pearson’s commitment to a diverse and inclusive workforce, please click here: http://www.pearson.com/careers/diversity-and-inclusion.html

Pearson is an Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employer and a member of E-Verify. We are committed to building a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills. The more inclusive we are, the better our work will be. All employment is decided based on qualifications, merit, and business need. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, or any other group protected by law.

Job: STRATEGY

Organization: Corporate Strategy & Technology

Schedule: FULL\_TIME

Req ID: 7475