Head of Payments Contracts and Agreements

Reporting into – Head of Customer Payments 
Contract – Full time, FTC, Up to 18 months (TBC), Permanency Possible
Location – Pier Walk / remote working (min. 50% office-based)

About Us

Transport for London (TfL) is committed to turning the Mayor’s Transport Strategy into a reality by being a strong, green heartbeat for London. We move London forward safely, inclusively, and sustainably. 

This is a unique opportunity to join TfL’s senior leadership team within the Customer & Strategy (C&S) function. You will play a pivotal role in setting strategic direction and supporting our mission to benefit customers, colleagues and our city.

Our Technology & Data (T&D) team underpins TfL’s operations, combining customer payments, project delivery, technology development, and service operations. Together, we deliver cost-effective, reliable, secure and innovative technology and data services.

In T&D’s Customer Payments team, our focus is on enabling millions of journeys across London’s transport network every day, ensuring that our customers pay the best price for their travel. Our innovation and ambition have revolutionised travel payments through our Oyster smartcard system and by being the first transport authority to launch contactless payment acceptance. We achieve by providing world-class, efficient payment solutions within an integrated revenue collection system, ensuring fares revenue is collected safely and reliably across all services (London Underground, Buses, River, Overground, Tramlink, TfL Rail, DLR, Train Operating Companies, and Cable Car).

About the Role

As a leader in the Customer Payments team, you will oversee the management of revenue collection services and key contracts that are responsible for collecting approximately £6 billion per annum in revenue for TfL and National Rail train operators and deliver the Mayor’s policies. These agreements underpin the Integrated Revenue Collection System (IRCS), which oversees nine million journeys daily. 

Reporting to the Head of Customer Payments, you will:

• Ensure TfL sustainably collects, allocates and protect fares revenue. 
• Be responsible for the delivery of critical service contracts, including TfL’s Revenue Collection Contract, revenue-sharing agreements with the UK national rail industry, concessionary scheme reimbursement agreements, Merchant Acquirer Contract and Concessions Fulfilment and Technology Contract (the ‘Payments Agreements’). 
• Lead the transition to the next generation Integrated Revenue Collection Contract (IRCC).

You will take ownership of the Payments Agreements Roadmap, aligning it with the Mayor’s Transport Strategy and TfL’s strategic priorities and will oversee the Revenue Collection system’s operating model to safeguard in-house capability to ensure the successful delivery of our Payments Agreements.

Key responsibilities include:

• Leading a matrix team to assess, negotiate, and manage holistic performance across all Payments Agreements, including contract entry/in-life/exit, escalations, dispute resolution and stakeholder engagement. 
• Managing relationships with internal and external stakeholders such as the T&D and TfL Heads of Department, London Councils, Department for Transport, Rail Delivery Group and the National Rail industry, to ensure the seamless delivery of services. 
• Driving end-to-end change across interlinked agreements and systems, balancing strategic priorities to make effective, long-term decisions for TfL and its customers.

About You 

We are seeking a leader who embodies TfL’s values: open, caring, and adaptable. 
You will be a source of inspiration for others, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and innovation, including cross-functional collaboration to deliver efficient end-to-end service delivery whilst managing risk effectively. 

You will bring:

• Strong strategic leadership skills and the ability to inspire high-performing teams, managing a team of around 21 employees, with around 3 direct reports (Essential)
• Proven contract management skills in managing large scale, complex and mission-critical contracts, including negotiating terms, handling disputes and ensuring delivery excellence (Essential)
• Proven financial acumen in managing multi-million-pound budgets and identifying cost reduction opportunities without compromising quality (Essential)
• Demonstrable confidence in managing end-to-end change across interdependent agreements and systems, balancing strategic priorities for long-term impact (Essential)
• Exceptional stakeholder management skills, with the ability to build trust and influence at all levels internally and externally, maintaining relationships with industry leaders and stakeholders to further TfL’s world-class reputation (Essential)
• Deep understanding of fare collection systems, revenue protection and payment technologies (Desirable)
• Knowledge of public transport operations, the UK rail network and government transport policies (Desirable)

If you are ready to shape the future of London’s transport payments and make a lasting impact on one of the world’s leading transport networks, we’d love to hear from you. 

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion

We are committed to equality, diversity, and inclusion. We want to have a workforce that is truly representative, at all levels, of the city we serve. We welcome applications from all people to ensure we have diversity in background, thought and experience. This will enable us to become a more innovative and efficient organisation and help us meet the needs of our customers. 
Our goal is to make our recruitment practices as bias-free and inclusive as possible. We are a disability confident employer who guarantee an interview to any disabled candidate who meets all of the essential criteria. 
We also use anonymising software that removes identifying information pertaining to your protected characteristics such as your name, gender, faith, ethnicity, disability status, age, sexual orientation, from CVs and cover letters to make the shortlisting process fair. When applying for this role, please make sure your application clearly outlines your relevant skills, knowledge, and experience, detailing in each previous job what you were responsible for, what you delivered and what your achievements are.  

Hybrid Working  

Hybrid working within this role enables a balance of 50 per cent of time split between the office and home over a 4-week period. Hybrid working arrangements can evolve subject to business requirements. 
 

Application Process

Please submit an up-to-date copy of your CV (maximum 2 A4 pages) and a cover letter (the letter should not be more than 1 A4 page, Arial size 12) outlining specifically your relevant experience for this role. Please submit your applications in a PDF format.  

For more information or the detailed Job Description, please contact James Hodder (jameshodder@tfl.gov.uk) in Executive Recruitment.

The closing date for applications is at 23:59 on Tuesday 18th March 2025.  

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

We are committed to equality, diversity and inclusion. We want to represent the city we serve, which will help us become a more innovative and efficient organisation. Our goal is to make our recruitment as inclusive as possible. We are a disability confident employer who guarantee an interview to any disabled candidate who meets all of the essential criteria.

Benefits 

In return for your commitment and expertise, you will enjoy excellent benefits and scope to grow.  Rewards vary according to the business area but mostly include:

• Final salary pension scheme 
• Free travel for you on the TfL network 
• Reimbursement of 75% of the cost of a standard class Ticket for National Rail travel from home or 75% reimbursement on a 28-day flexi ticket
• 30 days annual leave plus public and bank holidays 
• TfL is committed to work-life balance, operating a hybrid working approach where business and role requirements allow
• Private healthcare discounted scheme (optional) 
• Tax-efficient cycle-to-work programme
• Retail, health, leisure and travel offers 
• Discounted Eurostar travel

 
Hybrid Working 

Hybrid working within this role enables a balance of 50 per cent of time split between the office and home over a 4-week period. Hybrid working arrangements can evolve subject to business requirements.
 
Additional Information - Eligibility 
 
Probation:
In line with our Resourcing Policy (Feb 2014), internal employees are required to complete their probationary period before applying for internal TfL positions. Please ensure you have successfully completed your probation before submitting an application for this role, otherwise your application may be withdrawn.
 
Formal Warnings:
Internal employees with any current formal warnings are not eligible to apply for internal TfL vacancies until expiry of the warning. Ineligible applications may be withdrawn. 

Details of what is defined as a current formal warning can be found on Platform: https://transportforlondon.sharepoint.com/sites/Instructions-and-guidance-people-performance-and-rewards/SitePages/Applying-for-a-vacancy-with-a-formal-warning.aspx
 
NPL Applications:
Applications to internally advertised roles can only be accepted from temporary workers who are on PAYE terms via agency, or PAYE via Umbrella Companies. Temporary workers who are paid through their own limited companies are not covered by the Agency Worker Regulations and are ineligible to apply.
 
NPL members of staff are not eligible to apply to secondment opportunities.