Sport Advisor

Who are UK Sport?

We are the UK’s trusted high-performance experts, powering our greatest athletes, teams, sports and events to achieve positive success. Investing a combination of National Lottery and Government funds, we support our Olympic and Paralympic sports to realise their world-leading potential and help bring major sporting events to the UK. Our purpose is to lead high-performance sport to enable extraordinary moments that enrich lives.

We are on a mission to create the greatest decade of extraordinary sporting moments; reaching, inspiring and uniting the nation. That mission is underpinned by three ambitions for UK high-performance sport; to keep winning and win well, to grow a thriving sporting system and to harness those to inspire positive change. Working with the sports and events we fund, DCMS, and our partner organisations across the UK high-performance system, we are building on 25 years of ever-growing success to write the UK’s next chapter for Olympic and Paralympic sport.

About the role

The role of Sport Advisors is central to how UK Sport works with funded partners to deliver UK Sport’s mission and strategic ambitions.

The Sport Advisor leads UK Sport’s organisational health relationship with a portfolio of National Governing Bodies (NGBs), helping them to be well-run and resilient organisations through trusted relationships, high-quality advice, assurance and practical support. Working closely with colleagues, and particularly Performance Advisors who lead on UK Sport’s strategic investment in World Class Programmes, the Sport Advisor helps ensure UK Sport’s investment, assurance and support into NGBs and development sports are focused where it can add most value. The role uses insight, data and professional judgement to review progress, identify critical risks and opportunities, and support joined-up decisions to achieve shared high performance ambitions. 

Who will I be working with?

The role works directly with CEOs, Chairs and Board members, as well as wider corporate and performance leadership. This includes attending and engaging in Board and senior leadership team meetings and relevant committees that help build insight, strengthen UK Sport’s partnership with each NGB and support effective organisational health. Sports Advisors also support relevant international relations activity and may also attend selected performance camps and competitions and work with performance staff directly.

This role supports our hybrid working approach, with regular office attendance required in line with team and organisational expectations.

What you’ll bring

• A positive, generous and collaborative team approach, with the confidence, self-awareness and communication skills to build trust and work constructively with senior leaders.
• Experience working with senior leaders to understand, assure and improve how an organisation works, including but not limited to areas such as corporate governance, finance, EDI, leadership, culture, risk, sustainability, international relations.
• The skills to review a partner’s progress in organisational health in a clear, objective, fair and proportionate way, using experience, conversations and data to inform high-quality judgement, provide sound and supportive advice and challenge, prioritise work where it matters most and turn insight into action that has material, positive impact on the partner.
• A strong understanding of organisational health, with the ability to use judgement, evidence and relationships to support improvement across externally funded partners.
• A good understanding of the British Olympic and Paralympic sporting system, including how national sports organisations operate.
• The ability to work well with other specialist teams so partners receive clear, joined-up advice and support.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, facilitation and influencing skills, with the ability to work independently, take ownership and follow through.
• Experience working on projects that involve more than one team, organisation or part of the sporting system.
• A strong commitment to EDI, learning and personal development, with openness to new experiences and to helping create environments where people from different backgrounds can thrive.
• Ability to travel regularly within the UK and occasionally internationally.

It’s a bonus if you also have:

• Involvement in, or understanding of, organisational or system change programmes, for instance in relation to digital and data transformation
• Experience in international sporting relations, or practical frontline experience in international roles with clear parallels to the international sporting system.
• An understanding of sports marketing, commercial strategy development and/or corporate partnerships. 
• Experience of performance or pathway sport environments either as a staff member, practitioner, coach or athlete, with an understanding of what helps athletes, coaches and programmes develop and succeed.