Job summary
- Main area
- Strategy, Planning, Improvement and Transformation
- Grade
- NHS AfC: Band 9
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- Full time - 37.5 hours per week (37.5 hours per week)
- Job ref
- 216-AM-M7560634
- Employer
- University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- University Hospital Plymouth NHS Trust
- Town
- Plymouth
- Salary
- £109,179 - £125,637 £109,179 - £125,637 Per Annum
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 17/11/2025 23:59
Employer heading
Deputy Director of Strategy, Planning, Improvement and Transformation
NHS AfC: Band 9
Job overview
University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust (UHP) is seeking an outstanding senior leader to join our Strategy, Planning, Improvement and Transformation Team. This pivotal role supports the delivery of UHP’s ambition to be a high-quality, high-performing, patient-centred organisation providing timely, compassionate care and a great place to work and learn.
Working with the Director of Integrated Care, Partnerships, Strategy, you will support shaping , developing and delivering the Trust’s long-term strategy and lead the integrated business planning processes and transformation programmes for the organisation. You will lead and align our strategic planning, service development, and quality improvement functions, ensuring clear priorities, measurable outcomes and a culture of continuous improvement across the organisation.
We are looking for an experienced, inclusive and values-driven leader with a strong track record in strategy, planning and transformation within a complex healthcare or public sector environment. Whilst being a champion and proficient in improvement leadership and practice and experienced in leading a Quality Management System. You will combine analytical insight, with strategic thinking, have excellent influencing and communication skills, and bring energy, ambition, resilience and collaboration to a fast-moving, ambitious organisation.
Main duties of the job
The Deputy Director of Planning, Improvement and Transformation will provide a deep understanding of the implementation and delivery of large-scale change in the NHS.
The role leads on Strategy development, Strategy delivery and Annual Planning in UHP and will also lead this work externally, working with partners in our ICBs.
The post holder will deputise on a routine basis for the Director of Integrated Care, Partnerships and Strategy and form part of the senior leadership of the Trust, working in close relationship with the Trust Board, Executive Team, Extended Leadership Team, and senior leaders in our ICBs. This role operates within a rapidly evolving context, with the NHS operating models evolving rapidly at national and ICB levels. The post-holder will thus need to enjoy working in a changing environment both externally and internally and be able to creatively evolve their approach depending on changing circumstances.
The post holder will report to the Board Director of Integrated Care, Strategy and Partnerships and work closely with all members of the Executive Team and partners within the Health Community to enhance sustainability of service improvement, financial balance and redesign.
***Preference will be given to internal Trust staff, as well as ‘Priority’ and 'At Risk' status including NHS At Risk staff throughout Devon who are able to display recent relevant experience as dictated by the Person Specification.***
Working for our organisation
We are a people business – where every member of staff matters and can make a difference. Patients are at the heart of everything we do. Joining University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust means becoming part of a team of dedicated staff, who are committed to leading the way through innovation, clinical excellence and great customer care. The Trust has great opportunities for career development in a highly progressive working environment. We offer all of this in a vibrant, modern city with a historic reputation for adventure. PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL COMMUNICATION WILL BE ELECTRONIC, PLEASE CHECK YOUR EMAIL ACCOUNT REGULARLY. If you have any issues with applying online and need additional support including reasonable adjustments with the application process please contact the recruitment manager for this post who will put you in touch with the recruitment team. We recognise that work life balance is important for our colleagues and so we invite requests from applicants around less than full time/flexible working for our advertised roles. Please contact the recruiting manager to discuss this prior to your application submission. We commit to giving this full consideration in each case. We encourage people from diverse backgrounds to apply for our roles, as diversity strengthens our teams. It is sometimes necessary to close vacancies before the closing date. If you have not heard from us within 4 weeks of the closing date, please assume that you have not been shortlisted.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Strategic Leadership
· To be the most senior internal change agent, leading and facilitating culture and practice change across the Trust and potentially influencing system wide changes, advising leaders on methodologies and knowledge and testing new thinking.
· Lead and be accountable for all specific internal corporate policy, advising the Director as necessary.
· Function as a senior leader within the Integrated Care, Partnerships and Strategy Directorate, shaping the work programme of the team.
· Lead on the delivery of complex change projects within agreed timescales and measurement systems that may be strategic, corporate, or service specific in nature and maintain responsibility for all phases of project delivery and change of technical content.
· Commission and consider insight to shape the identification of service improvement and transformation opportunities for the organisation
· In conjunction with Divisions, Directorates and their management teams, drive and lead the system and process improvement and productivity agenda building a culture of effective resource efficiency and management.
· In conjunction with professional leads, ensure that learning and sustainable improvement is systematically implemented.
· Ensure each change project undertaken by the Trust is linked to evidence-based improvement methods and evaluation processes.
· Together with the Head of Improvement, design quality improvement interventions which support delivery of the organisational strategic and quality surveillance priorities.
· Develop long term strategies based on the changing needs of healthcare from the Annual Plan and other national and strategic initiatives.
· Manage the multiple internal operational pay and non-pay budgets within the Department on behalf of the Director via the Departmental Heads, working with management accountants and other senior leaders.
· Provide leadership in ensuring existing programme is completed within agreed budgets across the Trust.
· Identify and report on the resource implications of proposed and likely developments in the service.
For detailed information regarding the responsibilities, expectations, and requirements of this role, please refer to the full Job Description (JD). The JD provides a comprehensive overview of the key duties, reporting lines, qualifications, and skills necessary to succeed. It also outlines the organisational context, core objectives, and any specific competencies or experience sought. Reviewing the JD will give you a clear understanding of what the role entails, helping you assess alignment with your own skills and career aspirations.
Person specification
Knowledge & Experience
Essential criteria
- Senior level demonstrable experience managing teams and demonstrated experiences working with Boards and Executives.
- Significant demonstrable experience of leading complex, organisation wide or cross organisational boundary service redesign, quality and practical demonstrable experience of its implementation
- Demonstrable experience of managing financial and human resources within large organisations
- Proven ability and demonstrable experience of leading and managing major complex improvement programmes.
- Demonstrable experience running complex annual business planning processes, for NHS organisations either as a provider or a commissioner
- A proven track record of significant experience and successful outcomes at a senior level in managing and delivering improvement, operational excellence or programme & project management and associated performance management, including having designed and organised organisation wide improvement or change programme management and project management processes.
- Significant proven knowledge of and demonstrable experience in managing people, finance, information systems
- Proven evidenced experience of developing and delivering strategies in a complex NHS environment, involving staff, patients and partners
- Demonstrable experience of negotiations/ consultations within/across organisations (ideally involving staff, commissioners, the public and equality impact assessments).
- Good proven knowledge of NHS/ ICB infrastructure and framework
- Demonstrable experience of collation, analysis, and dissemination of information or data and information management systems
- Demonstrable political judgment and astuteness in understanding and working with complex policy and diverse interest groups
- A track record of policy and strategy formulation, coupled with translation of these strategies to tangible action and success on the ground
Desirable criteria
- Demonstrable experience of strategic partnership working in contributing to multi-partnership strategy development and delivery plans
- Management consulting demonstrable experience, Strategy management consulting demonstrable experience
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Educated to Masters’ Level or equivalent demonstrable experience, plus significant broad demonstrable experience as above across a range of disciplines (people, finance and information systems)
- Extensive specialist proven knowledge, expertise and demonstrable experience, acquired through advanced professional training put into practical effect over a significant period of time, programme management, project management or performance management (including or with a good working proven knowledge of Lean Improvement methodology, Managing Successful Programmes, PRINCE2 and Benefits Realisation).
Aptitude & Abilities
Essential criteria
- Excellent programme & project manager with proven pedigree delivery to time, agreed quality standards and budget
- Ability to innovate and generate innovation in others
- Ability to be intellectually flexible and to look beyond existing structures, ways of working, boundaries, and organisations to produce more effective and innovative service delivery and partnerships
- Able to co-ordinate and break down complex tasks into steps and milestones
- Organise and prioritise work of others
- Identify anticipated risks and change issues and develop strategies to deal
- Excellent communication skills
- Excellent presentation skills
- Able to concentrate intensely for prolonged periods when facilitating, attending Board meetings, presenting plans
- Standard keyboard skills
- Demonstrated capability to act upon incomplete information, using experience to make inferences and decision making.
- Able to give and receive professional challenge at all levels of the organisation, including frequent presentation of reports where progress is not yet as expected
- Resilience and an aptitude to adapt and work in complex and changing environment.
- Able to build positive working relationships and communicate at all levels and with different groups of NHS staff
- Ability to exercise discretion and maintain confidentiality
- Ability to build strategic relationships and work collaboratively in and across organisations
- Able to cope within a busy environment
Disposition / Attitude / Motivation
Essential criteria
- Highly developed excellent interpersonal skills
- Self-awareness in terms of emotional intelligence, biases and personal triggers with cultural sensitivity and awareness
- Commitment to create an inclusive, fair working environment
- Understand the value of networks and develop creative approaches
- Inspire knowledge and experience sharing to enable continuous learning and improvement
- Demonstrate adaptability and flexibility
- Proactive, takes own initiative
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Meghan Field
- Job title
- Programme
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 01752 432559
- Additional information
For an informal discussion, please contact Meghan Field, Programme Coordinator to arrange an informal call with Rachel O’Connor, Director of Integrated Care, Partnerships, Strategy
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