Job summary
We are excited to announce a fantastic opportunity for a Directorate Manager (Band 8C) within our GI & Renal Directorate.
This pivotal roles sit at the heart of our clinically-led triumvirate model, working alongside the Directorate Matron and Directorate Medical Director to shape and deliver high-quality, safe, and efficient care across urgent and elective pathways. Reporting to the Divisional Director of Operations, you'll provide visible operational leadership, drive strategic service development, and ensure performance aligns with Trust priorities and national standards.
We're looking for resilient and forward-thinking leaders who can:
- Lead complex operational services with clarity, compassion, and strategic vision
- Inspire teams and foster a culture of inclusion, accountability, and continuous improvement
- Deliver robust performance across access, quality, workforce, and financial metrics
- Champion transformation and innovation in response to evolving patient and system needs
- Collaborate effectively with clinical leaders, system partners, and corporate teams
Key responsibilities include:
- Overseeing daily operations and managing performance and budgets
- Coordinating service improvement projects
- Supporting workforce planning and engagement
- Contributing to broader strategic initiatives, including business continuity, governance, and transformation
Main duties of the job
University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust is committed to becoming a high-quality, high-performing, patient-centred organisation, delivering timely, compassionate care and offering a thriving environment for staff to work, learn, innovate and research.
The Directorate Manager plays a pivotal leadership role in directing and leading the delivery of high quality, high performing safe and efficient services across the Directorate. Reporting directly to the Divisional Director of Operations this role will work alongside the Directorate Matron and Directorate Medical Director as part of the triumvirate and will be accountable for operational performance and delivery, service development and productivity and delivery of care aligned with Trust priorities.
The postholder will provide visible leadership for the operational and managerial agenda, ensuring that services meet operational targets, quality standards, financial targets, workforce plans, and national and local performance expectations.
***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.***
About us
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.
Job description
Job responsibilities
1. Strategic & Business Planning
a) Developing and leading clear service visions and strategic plans for the Directorate in considering all relevant Departments and Services, which are set within the context of the wider Divisional plan and overall direction of the Trust.
b) Develop the annual Directorates Business Plan in conjunction with the Departments and Service level teams.
c) Ensuring that the Directorates Senior Management team focuses on the most critical areas; these include the development of key staff groups, processes to facilitate the ongoing achievement of access targets (including the RTT and cancer targets), and efficiency improvements to enable the Directorate to achieve its financial obligations.
2. Operational Management
a) Lead responsibility with the Directorate for the development of the Business Plan and monitoring progress.
b) Lead responsibility for Department/ Service level viability which will include the implementation of the Business Plan and progress monitoring.
c) Responsible for all aspects of the operational management of the Directorate.
d) Ensure the delivery of all performance targets contained in the Business Plan including waiting lists, finance and CQC standards, analysis of highly complex, multi- stranded data in order to shape interventions/ address shortfalls in performance.
e) Responsible for dealing with and responding to complaints, in line with local protocols.
f) Lead a range of service improvement projects across the Directorate to deliver improvements in the efficiency and effectiveness of services.
g) Ensure that clinical and support processes are mapped, bottlenecks are identified and solutions to these are implemented in order to maximise opportunities for service improvement.
h) Workforce plans in place that ensure the efficient and effective utilisation of staff
i) Take part in the senior managers on call rota.
For further information about the role and responsibilities of the Directorate Manager position, please refer to the job description.
Job description
Job responsibilities
1. Strategic & Business Planning
a) Developing and leading clear service visions and strategic plans for the Directorate in considering all relevant Departments and Services, which are set within the context of the wider Divisional plan and overall direction of the Trust.
b) Develop the annual Directorates Business Plan in conjunction with the Departments and Service level teams.
c) Ensuring that the Directorates Senior Management team focuses on the most critical areas; these include the development of key staff groups, processes to facilitate the ongoing achievement of access targets (including the RTT and cancer targets), and efficiency improvements to enable the Directorate to achieve its financial obligations.
2. Operational Management
a) Lead responsibility with the Directorate for the development of the Business Plan and monitoring progress.
b) Lead responsibility for Department/ Service level viability which will include the implementation of the Business Plan and progress monitoring.
c) Responsible for all aspects of the operational management of the Directorate.
d) Ensure the delivery of all performance targets contained in the Business Plan including waiting lists, finance and CQC standards, analysis of highly complex, multi- stranded data in order to shape interventions/ address shortfalls in performance.
e) Responsible for dealing with and responding to complaints, in line with local protocols.
f) Lead a range of service improvement projects across the Directorate to deliver improvements in the efficiency and effectiveness of services.
g) Ensure that clinical and support processes are mapped, bottlenecks are identified and solutions to these are implemented in order to maximise opportunities for service improvement.
h) Workforce plans in place that ensure the efficient and effective utilisation of staff
i) Take part in the senior managers on call rota.
For further information about the role and responsibilities of the Directorate Manager position, please refer to the job description.
Person Specification
Knowledge & Experience
Essential
- Demonstrable experience of successful operational management at a middle/senior management level within a complex organisation.
- Significant demonstrable managerial experience at a senior level within a health care environment.
- Proven track record of strategic planning.
- Financial and performance management skills; data literacy; pathway management.
- Proven management skills including effective team and people management demonstrable experience.
- Significant demonstrable experience of change management including service redesign techniques.
- Demonstrable track record of delivering targets and improving services. Able to develop and deliver business plans and cases.
- Demonstrates an ability to develop and utilise effective professional networks.
- Management of staff from a range of professional and occupational backgrounds.
- Proven knowledge of workforce planning principles and practice.
- Proven understanding of the NHS, its infrastructure and partner healthcare organisations.
- Proven understanding of NHS targets, and the processes through which they are delivered.
- Proven understanding of NHS funding arrangements, particularly NHS tariffs.
- Proven understanding of service delivery in a Healthcare setting.
- Proven understanding of information systems and processes required to support activity.
- Comprehensive proven knowledge and practical understanding of financial and commissioning frameworks.
- Proven understanding of Payment by Results and its impact.
- Capacity planning, managing waiting lists and developing business cases.
- Proven knowledge of performance management principles and practice.
- Demonstrable experience and proven ability to lead and manage a team of diverse function
Desirable
- Demonstrable experience working with clinical teams in redesign or transformation.
- Proven knowledge of digital health tools or command centre operations.
Qualifications
Essential
- Educated to first degree level or equivalent.
- Masters degree or equivalent demonstrable experience
- Proven evidence of continuing management/leadership development and proven evidence of commitment to continuing professional development.
Aptitude & Abilities
Essential
- Uses highly developed influencing and collaboration skills.
- Uses highly developed interpersonal and organisation skills.
- Effective interpersonal and communication skills are required to motivate, empathise with and reassure staff, patients and carers in these situations.
- Effective communication skill to manage and reconcile conflicting and opposing views.
- Excellent written communication skills: able to present extremely complicated information in a manner which is understandable to a wide audience.
- Excellent analytical skills, with the ability to distil key themes and trends from complex information.
- Good analytical and reasoning skills and ability to develop effective negotiation strategies.
- Project management demonstrable experience.
Desirable
- Confident in cross-divisional collaboration and matrix management.
Disposition / Attitude / Motivation
Essential
- Decisive, strategic thinker, inclusive leader, calm under pressure.
- Personal credibility, with the ability to quickly gain the confidence of others including clinicians, managers, staff and users of services.
- Inspires others and leads by example.
- Ability to work with lead and develop large teams in a diverse and highly demanding organisation.
- Strong negotiation and influencing skills.
- Able to work in a busy environment and to tight deadlines.
- Able to switch between tasks at short notice to meet operational priorities and unpredictable demand
- Self-motivated.
- Initiative & ability to work with minimum supervision.
- Exemplary personal standards of conduct and behaviour.
- Able to facilitate change and make things happen
- Good team player, capacity to work with clinicians and staff at all levels.
- Resilient - capable of giving and receiving appropriate professional challenge, and of presenting information where performance is not yet as expected
Desirable
- Contributor to ICS or system-level operational groups.
Person Specification
Knowledge & Experience
Essential
- Demonstrable experience of successful operational management at a middle/senior management level within a complex organisation.
- Significant demonstrable managerial experience at a senior level within a health care environment.
- Proven track record of strategic planning.
- Financial and performance management skills; data literacy; pathway management.
- Proven management skills including effective team and people management demonstrable experience.
- Significant demonstrable experience of change management including service redesign techniques.
- Demonstrable track record of delivering targets and improving services. Able to develop and deliver business plans and cases.
- Demonstrates an ability to develop and utilise effective professional networks.
- Management of staff from a range of professional and occupational backgrounds.
- Proven knowledge of workforce planning principles and practice.
- Proven understanding of the NHS, its infrastructure and partner healthcare organisations.
- Proven understanding of NHS targets, and the processes through which they are delivered.
- Proven understanding of NHS funding arrangements, particularly NHS tariffs.
- Proven understanding of service delivery in a Healthcare setting.
- Proven understanding of information systems and processes required to support activity.
- Comprehensive proven knowledge and practical understanding of financial and commissioning frameworks.
- Proven understanding of Payment by Results and its impact.
- Capacity planning, managing waiting lists and developing business cases.
- Proven knowledge of performance management principles and practice.
- Demonstrable experience and proven ability to lead and manage a team of diverse function
Desirable
- Demonstrable experience working with clinical teams in redesign or transformation.
- Proven knowledge of digital health tools or command centre operations.
Qualifications
Essential
- Educated to first degree level or equivalent.
- Masters degree or equivalent demonstrable experience
- Proven evidence of continuing management/leadership development and proven evidence of commitment to continuing professional development.
Aptitude & Abilities
Essential
- Uses highly developed influencing and collaboration skills.
- Uses highly developed interpersonal and organisation skills.
- Effective interpersonal and communication skills are required to motivate, empathise with and reassure staff, patients and carers in these situations.
- Effective communication skill to manage and reconcile conflicting and opposing views.
- Excellent written communication skills: able to present extremely complicated information in a manner which is understandable to a wide audience.
- Excellent analytical skills, with the ability to distil key themes and trends from complex information.
- Good analytical and reasoning skills and ability to develop effective negotiation strategies.
- Project management demonstrable experience.
Desirable
- Confident in cross-divisional collaboration and matrix management.
Disposition / Attitude / Motivation
Essential
- Decisive, strategic thinker, inclusive leader, calm under pressure.
- Personal credibility, with the ability to quickly gain the confidence of others including clinicians, managers, staff and users of services.
- Inspires others and leads by example.
- Ability to work with lead and develop large teams in a diverse and highly demanding organisation.
- Strong negotiation and influencing skills.
- Able to work in a busy environment and to tight deadlines.
- Able to switch between tasks at short notice to meet operational priorities and unpredictable demand
- Self-motivated.
- Initiative & ability to work with minimum supervision.
- Exemplary personal standards of conduct and behaviour.
- Able to facilitate change and make things happen
- Good team player, capacity to work with clinicians and staff at all levels.
- Resilient - capable of giving and receiving appropriate professional challenge, and of presenting information where performance is not yet as expected
Desirable
- Contributor to ICS or system-level operational groups.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
Additional information
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
