Club Operations and Investment Manager

Working at the RFU means being part of the ‘bigger picture’ at England Rugby: to be rooted in our purpose, which is to enrich lives, introduce more people to rugby union and develop the sport for future generations. If our purpose resonates with you, and you recognise the value that sport can bring to people’s lives, we’d love to work with you. An opportunity has arisen for a Club Operations & Investment Manager (maternity cover) to join our Rugby Development team.

Job Title : Club Operations & Investment Manager (maternity cover)
Department : Rugby Development
Reports to : Club and Communities Operations Manager
Salary Banding : c. £47,000
Job Level : Guide
Location : This role is homebased with some travel to Allianz Stadium
Employment Type : Fixed-Term Contract (initial 6-month maternity cover from November 2026, with the possibility of extension up to 12 months)
Working Hours : Full Time role, covering 35 hrs per week

Application Information:

• Please submit an anonymised CV (i.e. please exclude personal details). You do not need to submit a cover letter. 
• The closing date for applications 10th November 2026 at 12:00PM
• Successful candidates will need to be available on W/C 16th November for a first round interview
• Please note that we reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive a high volume of applications. We encourage interested candidates to apply as soon as possible.

The Role:

The Club Operations & Investment Manager leads the development and delivery of club and CB-facing data, reporting and investment operations across the community game.

The role oversees day to day management and ongoing development of the Club Portal as a core organisational system and the primary data source underpinning club and CB insight. It ensures that data structures, reporting frameworks and governance standards support evidence-led decision-making, investment prioritisation and compliance across Rugby Development.

In addition, the role provides financial and operational oversight of investment funding streams, including loan programmes and CB funding, ensuring robust audit processes, risk management and outcome-based reporting.

Acting as a subject matter expert for club and CB data architecture, this role represents Clubs & Communities in the wider data and digital roadmap, working closely with Data & Insights colleagues to shape reporting outputs and long-term system development.

The Team:

The Clubs & Communities Operations Team is a small but mighty team of five sitting at the heart of Rugby Development. Our purpose is to design and improve processes and ensure clubs and members are at the heart of everything we do. We cover operations, events, digital, engagement, systems and community support. Most of us try to get into the office regularly — this role included — though we work flexibly around that.

Responsibilities:

Day-to-day responsibilities will include:

Systems & Insight Infrastructure

• Own and develop the Club Portal as the single source of truth for club and CB insight.
• Define and maintain data architecture, reporting frameworks and governance standards.
• Ensure alignment between club insight, programme delivery data and playing data.
• Shape and oversee reporting outputs in partnership with Data & Insights colleagues, including Tableau dashboards.
• Lead engagement and feedback mechanisms for clubs and volunteers, translating community insight into actionable improvements across the community game
• Represent Clubs & Communities in data and digital roadmap development.
• Provide authoritative guidance to programme owners on system design and data capture standards.

  Club & CB Investment Operations & Reporting  

• Lead financial governance and oversight of club and CB investment funding, including capital, revenue, grant and loan programmes.
• Oversee capital and venue funding processes from expression of interest through monitoring and evaluation, ensuring consistent governance.
• Coordinate legal and security processes associated with facility investment loans.
• Own reporting frameworks underpinning CB funding, including minimum operating standards, audits and outcome-based reporting.

Data Governance & Organisational Standards 

• Establish and maintain data quality standards across club-facing systems.
• Enable aggregation of club and CB data at regional and national level.
• Identify opportunities to streamline processes and reduce duplication across Rugby Development.
• Provide structured insight to senior leadership to inform strategic and investment decisions.
• Support adoption of data-led working practices across programmes and delivery teams.

 Cross-Functional Leadership & Expertise

• Act as the operational link between Facilities, Finance, Data & Insights and Delivery teams.
• Provide specialist technical guidance and system training where required.
• Support change management in embedding consistent systems and governance standards.

As an RFU employee, you will:

• Actively collaborate with colleagues to contribute to the development and delivery of the current strategic, business and operational plans.
• Act as an ambassador for, and promote the best interests of the RFU, including the promotion of our culture and core values – This Rose Means Everyone: Put the Team First, Shape the Future, Respect Each Other.
• Undertake other duties as may be required from time to time as are consistent with the responsibilities of the post and the needs of the organisation.

Qualifications, Skills & Experience:

The skills and attributes outlined in this description are not exhaustive and we welcome candidates who can bring different relevant experiences to the role.

Essential:

• Advanced Smartsheet expertise (system design, automation and reporting).
• Strong understanding of data governance and operational process design.
• Experience managing grant or investment processes end-to-end.
• Ability to translate complex delivery insight into structured reporting frameworks.
• Strong analytical capability and attention to detail.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills across multiple functions.
• Experience designing scalable operational systems.
• Deep understanding of the community rugby landscape.
• Committed to embodying the ethos of our culture by using our three core values – Put The Team First, Shape The Future, Respect Each Other – to guide your day-to-day decisions, actions and interactions.
• Committed to actively contributing to and building an inclusive culture in your role and day to day behaviours. 

Desirable: 

• Experience supporting capital investment or facilities programmes.
• Experience working with BI tools (e.g. Tableau).
• Experience operating in a PMO or governance environment.
• Understanding of audit and compliance processes.

Additional Information:

• All role holders must maintain an appropriate standard of confidentiality. Any disclosures of confidential information (including personal information kept on computer or other media) made unlawfully outside the proper course of duty will be treated as a serious disciplinary offence.
• We want you to have every opportunity to demonstrate your skills, ability and potential. If there is anything we could do to support you through your application or to provide the best environment for your interviews, including assistance or adjustment, please reach out to [email protected]. 
• During your application, we will ask questions about your identity. This information is considered highly confidential and will not be seen by hiring managers. You can find out more about why we ask these questions here.