Help make dementia impossible to ignore.
Dementia is the UK's biggest killer. Nearly one million people are living with the condition today, yet too many people still face delayed diagnoses, unequal access to support and significant challenges navigating health and care systems. Despite its devastating impact, the opportunity to improve outcomes for people affected by dementia has never been greater.
At Alzheimer's Society, we have a sharpened strategy, strong foundations, talented people and a growing platform for influence. Scientific progress is accelerating, understanding of dementia is evolving, and there is real momentum behind the changes needed to transform diagnosis, treatment, support and prevention. We are entering a new phase of strategic ambition, with a unique opportunity to influence the systems, policies and decisions that shape the lives of people affected by dementia. This is an exciting moment to join us.
We are looking for an exceptional strategic leader who can help shape our future direction, challenge our thinking and support the organisation to make confident, evidence-informed decisions that maximise our impact for people affected by dementia. This is a rare opportunity to help shape the future direction of one of the UK's most influential charities, working on one of the most urgent health and social challenges of our time.
The role
As our Associate Director of Strategy, you will play a pivotal role at the heart of Alzheimer's Society. Reporting to the Chief Policy & Research Officer and working closely with the Executive Leadership Team, Board of Trustees and senior leaders across the organisation, you will help ensure we make the right choices about where we focus our energy, investment and influence.
This is a highly collaborative role that combines insight, influential leadership and organisational impact. You will help develop options and recommendations for the Executive Leadership Team, CEO and Board. You will bring together evidence, data, external insight and lived experience, providing trusted advice to senior leaders. You will also strengthen strategic thinking across the organisation, supporting and constructively challenging leaders to develop robust strategies, navigate complexity and make confident, evidence-informed decisions.
Looking ahead, you will help us identify emerging opportunities, exploring bold new ideas and turning them into credible, evidence-informed propositions. You will help imagine what Alzheimer's Society could become and how we can deliver even greater impact.
You will lead and develop a high-performing Strategy function, bringing together expertise across strategy, impact and evaluation, while building organisational capability and fostering a culture of curiosity, collaboration and continuous improvement.
Success in this role will come from combining strategic insight, intellectual curiosity and sound judgement with exceptional interpersonal skills. You'll be confident in shaping Board-level discussions, coaching senior leaders and bringing people together behind a shared direction.
About you
You are a strategic thinker with strong analytical skills, intellectual curiosity and sound judgement. Comfortable operating in complex environments, you can see the bigger picture, spot emerging opportunities and turn insight into clear recommendations and practical action.
You may have developed strategy at corporate, directorate or business-unit level. Most importantly, strategy will have been a significant part of your career and something you are passionate about. You bring creativity and imagination, helping organisations think differently about the future and where they can have the greatest impact.
You are highly collaborative and skilled at influencing senior stakeholders, building relationships and bringing people together around shared goals. You are also an excellent communicator, able to translate complex information, evidence and data into compelling narratives, engaging presentations and high-quality papers that support effective decision-making.
You will bring experience of:
- Developing strategy within complex organisations.
- Using evidence, insight and analysis to inform decision-making.
- Influencing senior stakeholders and supporting executive-level discussions.
- Building organisational capability and improving ways of working.
- Leading and developing high-performing teams.
- Operating confidently in complex and evolving external environments.
We welcome applications from a range of sectors. While experience in health, social care, government or the voluntary sector may be beneficial, we are equally interested in candidates who can bring transferable strategic leadership experience, fresh perspectives and new ways of thinking. The ability to combine strategic rigour with pragmatism, adaptability and imagination will be key to success.
This role will be on a hybrid basis, with approximately 2 -3 days per week required at our London office or other Society Location.
Interviews will be held at our London Crutched Friars office on 21st August.
If you want to help shape the future of Alzheimer's Society and play a leading role in tackling one of the most significant challenges facing society today, we'd love to hear from you.
Dementia is the UK's biggest killer. One in three people born in the UK today will develop dementia in their lifetime.
At Alzheimer's Society, we're the UK's leading dementia charity and the only one to tackle all aspects of dementia by giving help and hope to people living with dementia today and in the future. We give vital support to people facing the most frightening times of their lives, while also funding groundbreaking research and campaigning to make dementia the priority it should be.
Together with our supporters, we're working towards a world where dementia no longer devastates lives.
Our values make sure that our focus is clear for the challenges and opportunities ahead and remind us of what we all stand for.
Our commitment to Equity, Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging
We need to ensure the voices around our table better reflect and understand the communities we exist to serve. We strongly encourage individuals to apply who have a disability, impairment or health condition or individuals who identify as Black, Asian or from another minority ethnic background, as these groups are currently under-represented at Alzheimer's Society.
We want everyone we work with, as a colleague, volunteer, supporter, or someone we support, to feel included and that they belong at Alzheimer's Society.
Our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy here along with our internal employee forum and Employee Lived Experience network groups help us promote inclusion and belonging, becoming an engaged and inclusive organisation for all our people.
Our hiring process
During your recruitment process we want to make sure that you bring your whole self and can be at your best. We are working hard to ensure our recruitment process is as inclusive as possible, so please do inform us of your experience and anything you think we could do better by completing our candidate survey when you apply. Please also contact Alzheimer's Society Talent Acquisition Team via [email protected] for application support or any adjustments you might need.
To ensure fairness and consistency to select the best candidate for this role, all our applications are anonymised up until an interview has been confirmed. We recognise the benefits of AI, but if you're considering using it to submit your application, we encourage you to reflect on the value it truly adds. AI tools often lack the personal touch and authenticity that set candidates apart. We want to hear your unique perspective, experiences, and skills, so we encourage you to showcase them in your own voice.
We try to avoid closing roles early where possible, however if we receive a high volume of applications, we may close earlier than the advertised closing date. Should this occur, we will aim to provide you with at least 48 hours' notice.
We are committed to safer recruitment and ensuring the welfare of those we work with, due to the nature of some of our roles, we might need to carry out a Criminal Record Check at the relevant level. You can read more information via our Website.
Giving back to you
Our employees work hard every day to make a true difference in people's lives. We are proud to support them with a range of benefits, recognition and many options for working agilely, all contributing to a strong work life balance. We also have various learning programmes to support you in your development and help you grow to realise your potential and shape a career with Alzheimer's Society.
You can also visit our Working for Us pages, which give you more information about what it's like to be an employee at the Society.
