Head of Wholesale Market Services

Every day, more than 16 million people rely on Thames Water, and we’re transforming how we serve customers now and for generations to come. This is a pivotal moment for us and the wider water industry. We’re building a better, more transparent, more resilient future. To do that, we need exceptional leaders who are passionate about impact, influence and delivering meaningful change.

That’s where you come in.

As our Head of Wholesale Market Services (WMS), you’ll lead the strategy, performance and evolution of our entire WMS function, ensuring retailers receive an outstanding service, market obligations are met, and our revenue and cash outcomes are delivered accurately, confidently and on time. This is a highly visible, business‑critical leadership role with substantial commercial, regulatory and operational impact.

What you’ll be doing as Head of Wholesale Market Services
You’ll shape the future of Wholesale Market Services at Thames Water. As Head of WMS, you’ll be responsible for:

• Defining and delivering the strategy for forecasting and recovering non‑household wholesale income, protecting and enhancing c.£800m annual revenue.
• Leading the transformation and delivery of *BRMEX performance, ensuring sustained improvement aligned to business commitments.
• Driving excellent service for our retail partners through effective service request management, complaint resolution, SLA delivery and continuous improvement.
• Building trusted, influential relationships with retailers, **MOSL, trading parties, and market groups, ensuring Thames Water’s voice shapes the future of the market.
• Leading large onshore and offshore operational teams, creating a high‑performance, collaborative, coaching‑focused culture.
• Ensuring compliance with changing market codes and system requirements, acting as a champion for digital, data and process modernisation.
• Driving business readiness for change, embedding improvements that reduce cost, improve service and strengthen operational resilience.

*BRMEX- (Business customer and retailer measure of experience)
**MOSL( Market Operator Services Limited)

Base location: Hybrid – CWC Reading-based, minimum 2 days in the office per week

Working pattern: Full‑time

What you should bring to the role
We’re looking for an inspiring, commercially astute, senior leader who brings:

• A strong track record of leading large, complex operational and commercial teams.
• Demonstrable experience of forecasting, revenue/cash performance and influencing senior stakeholders.
• Proven success in shaping and delivering significant organisational or customer‑focused change.
• Strong commercial judgement, with experience of P&L, budgeting or financial accountability.
• Excellent relationship‑building skills, with the ability to influence externally as well as internally.
• A passion for customer outcomes and the drive to improve service, data quality and efficiency.
• Leadership that motivates, empowers and grows high‑performing teams across multiple environments.
• A curious, resilient mindset — someone who embraces challenge, champions continuous improvement and brings people along with them.
• Knowledge of the non‑household water market is an advantage, but not essential.

What’s in it for you?
This is a rare opportunity to make a major impact at scale — influencing how retailers experience Thames Water and shaping the future of the wholesale market.

Culture: You’ll join a supportive leadership community, with opportunities to grow, lead transformation at pace and develop a function that is critical to our success.

Purpose: Your work directly affects how well retailers can serve customers, how we perform in a regulated market, and how we deliver a better experience across the industry.

Scale: Thames Water is the UK’s largest water and wastewater company — what you do here will influence today’s service and tomorrow’s resilience for millions.

All applications must include a covering letter with your application outlining how your experience demonstrates leadership in complex organisations, including transformation and cultural change, stakeholder management, cross‑functional collaboration, and leading diverse teams. Your covering letter should also highlight your leadership style, your ability to inspire and galvanise others, and how you have successfully delivered in challenging environments.

• Competitive salary from £92,220 to £128,000 per annum, dependent on experience 
• Annual Leave - 26 days holiday per year, increasing to 30 with the length of service (plus bank holidays)
• Car Allowance
• Annual Bonus
• Generous Pension Scheme through AON
• Private Medical Health Care
• Access to lots of benefits to help you take care of you and your family’s health and wellbeing, and your finances – from annual health MOTs and access to physiotherapy and counselling, to Cycle to Work schemes, shopping vouchers and life assurance.

Find out more about our benefits and perks

Who are we?
We’re the UK’s largest water and wastewater company, with more than 16 million customers relying on us every day to supply water for their taps and toilets. We want to build a better future for all, helping our customers, communities, people, and the planet to thrive. It’s a big job, and we’ve got a long way to go, so we need help from passionate and skilled people, committed to making a difference and getting us to where we want to be in the years and decades to come.

Learn more about our purpose and values

Working at Thames Water
Thames Water is a unique, rewarding, and diverse place to work, where every day you can make a difference, yet no day is the same. As part of our family, you’ll enjoy meaningful career opportunities, flexible working arrangements and excellent benefits.

If you’re looking for a sustainable and successful career where you can make a daily difference to millions of people’s lives while helping to protect the world of water for future generations, we’ll be here to support you every step of the way. Together, we can build a better future for our customers, our region, and our planet.

Real purpose, real support, real opportunities. Come and join the Thames Water family. Why choose us? Learn more.

We’re committed to being a great, diverse, and inclusive place to work. We welcome applications from everyone and want to ensure you feel supported throughout the recruitment process. If you need any adjustments, whether that’s extra time, accessible formats, or anything else, just let us know. We’re here to help and support.

When a crisis happens, we all rally around to support our customers. As part of Team Thames, you’ll have the opportunity to sign up to support our customers on the frontline as an ambassador. Full training will be given for what is undoubtedly an incredibly rewarding experience. It’s also a great opportunity to learn more about our business and meet colleagues.

Disclaimer: Due to the high volume of applications we receive, we may close the advert earlier than the advertised date, so we encourage you to apply as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.