Job summary
South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust is seeking an outstanding candidate to cover six months of maternity leave cover for the Chief of Staff. The postholder will be a critical and diplomatically sensitive presence in supporting a successful Executive Leadership Team by leading the Office of the Chief Executive and Trust Chair. They will envision the culture that the Chief Executive and Chair want to create through a mix of emotional intelligence, judgment, discretion, and political acumen, which enables this role to interact with members of the Board with confidence and poise.
The postholder will ensure that the Chief Executive and Chair are briefed and able to implement the strategic objectives and priorities of the organisation in a way that is aligned to its culture and values.
Main duties of the job
The postholder will be responsible forproviding an efficient and effective service supporting the Chief Executive and Chairto discharge their responsibilities.In this role, you will work closely with the Board along with wider stakeholders to deliver meaningful change.
The postholder must be highly flexible, able to exercise good levels of judgement, and lead complex negotiation across senior stakeholders. They must have clearly demonstrable skills and expertise in stakeholder management, project delivery and strategic leadership.
The post has responsibility for key elements below:
- Support to the Chief Executive and Chair in their day-to-day activities.
- Building collaborative and productive relationships with the Executive Leadership Team, Non-Executive Directors, and senior management to help resolve issues and respond to challenges as they arise.
- Steering, co-ordinating and executing the delivery of projects where these relate to the priorities of the Chief Executive and Chair.
- Support to the Chief Executive and Chair in longer term planning and horizon scanning.
- Line management of the CEO and Chair's support teams.
About us
The postholder will work closely with the Chief Executive and Chair and will report to the Director of Corporate Affairs who has responsibility for the development and delivery of exceptional corporate governance, reflecting the strategic intent and direction of the Trust.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Office of the Chief Executive and Chair:
- Support the Chief Executive and Chair in ensuring the completion of day-to-day duties while maintaining strategic oversight of ongoing projects, initiatives and issues, and advising the Chief Executive and Chair on these items.
- Lead and manage the business of Executive Leadership Team meetings (weekly)
- Follow up on decisions and agreed meeting actions, monitoring progress and driving closure, completing actions on behalf of the Chief Executive and Chair.
- Working collaboratively with Chair and Chief Executives PAs to maintain systems and processes to ensure effective support to Chair and Chief Executive.
- Support the team PAs where required in managing and responding to internal and external queries sent to the Chief Executive and Chair, ensuring high quality communications, including from patients and relatives in relation to complaints, compliments, general and MP queries working with the Complaints and PALS
- Provide professional leadership to PAs across the executive leadership team
- Undertake research into current issues and provide timely briefing to ensure the Chief Executive and Chair are prepared to represent the Trust effectively at meetings with key stakeholders and staff.
- Support the Chief Executive and Chair with drafting of key reports and Board papers.
- Monitor and manage team budgets
Stakeholder Management
- Liaise extensively on behalf of the Chief Executive and Chair withDirectoratesand teams within the Trust, partners and with external stakeholders includingservice users, carers, families,thepublic and the voluntary sector.
- Build and proactively develop effective stakeholder relationships inthe trust and wider system, and actively develop productive relationships by diplomatically managing the competing priorities that may occur in some environments.
- Contribute to an inclusive environment where diversity is valued, everyone can contribute, and every day actions ensures we meet our duty to uphold and promote equality.
- To act as a champion for the interests of patients and localpeople andinvolve them intrustdevelopments and decision-making.
Projects, planningand cross-functional co-ordination
- Responsibility for steering, co-ordinating and executing specific projects on behalf of the Chief Executive, Chair and the wider Executive Leadership Team where appropriate.
- Work with members of the Chief Executives Office and other Directors and key personnel to ensure effective environment scanning for emerging issues which could have an impact on the Trust such as policy, legislative or regulatory changes and provide detailed briefing to the Chief Executive, Board or Executive Leadership Team as appropriate.
- Work with Directors and senior leadership tobuild awareness of all major programmes and identify potential interdependencies, gaps and duplication and convene colleagues to facilitate resolution of these.
- Support the monitoring and delivery of the trusts Strategic Priorities on behalf of the Chief Executive and Chair.
- Ensure alignment with other relevant local and national programmes of work and policy initiatives, workingthrough ambiguity and uncertainty.
Corporate Responsibility
- Provide line management to the team PAs including providing regular supervision and supporting their development.
- The postholder may be required to take responsibility for the management of a range of HR issues, includingdisciplinary and grievance matters, complaints,recruitment and appraisal.
- The postholder may be required to take on other responsibilities as may be assigned from time to time and which are in line with the normal level of duties of the post.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Office of the Chief Executive and Chair:
- Support the Chief Executive and Chair in ensuring the completion of day-to-day duties while maintaining strategic oversight of ongoing projects, initiatives and issues, and advising the Chief Executive and Chair on these items.
- Lead and manage the business of Executive Leadership Team meetings (weekly)
- Follow up on decisions and agreed meeting actions, monitoring progress and driving closure, completing actions on behalf of the Chief Executive and Chair.
- Working collaboratively with Chair and Chief Executives PAs to maintain systems and processes to ensure effective support to Chair and Chief Executive.
- Support the team PAs where required in managing and responding to internal and external queries sent to the Chief Executive and Chair, ensuring high quality communications, including from patients and relatives in relation to complaints, compliments, general and MP queries working with the Complaints and PALS
- Provide professional leadership to PAs across the executive leadership team
- Undertake research into current issues and provide timely briefing to ensure the Chief Executive and Chair are prepared to represent the Trust effectively at meetings with key stakeholders and staff.
- Support the Chief Executive and Chair with drafting of key reports and Board papers.
- Monitor and manage team budgets
Stakeholder Management
- Liaise extensively on behalf of the Chief Executive and Chair withDirectoratesand teams within the Trust, partners and with external stakeholders includingservice users, carers, families,thepublic and the voluntary sector.
- Build and proactively develop effective stakeholder relationships inthe trust and wider system, and actively develop productive relationships by diplomatically managing the competing priorities that may occur in some environments.
- Contribute to an inclusive environment where diversity is valued, everyone can contribute, and every day actions ensures we meet our duty to uphold and promote equality.
- To act as a champion for the interests of patients and localpeople andinvolve them intrustdevelopments and decision-making.
Projects, planningand cross-functional co-ordination
- Responsibility for steering, co-ordinating and executing specific projects on behalf of the Chief Executive, Chair and the wider Executive Leadership Team where appropriate.
- Work with members of the Chief Executives Office and other Directors and key personnel to ensure effective environment scanning for emerging issues which could have an impact on the Trust such as policy, legislative or regulatory changes and provide detailed briefing to the Chief Executive, Board or Executive Leadership Team as appropriate.
- Work with Directors and senior leadership tobuild awareness of all major programmes and identify potential interdependencies, gaps and duplication and convene colleagues to facilitate resolution of these.
- Support the monitoring and delivery of the trusts Strategic Priorities on behalf of the Chief Executive and Chair.
- Ensure alignment with other relevant local and national programmes of work and policy initiatives, workingthrough ambiguity and uncertainty.
Corporate Responsibility
- Provide line management to the team PAs including providing regular supervision and supporting their development.
- The postholder may be required to take responsibility for the management of a range of HR issues, includingdisciplinary and grievance matters, complaints,recruitment and appraisal.
- The postholder may be required to take on other responsibilities as may be assigned from time to time and which are in line with the normal level of duties of the post.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Degree in relevant subject or equivalent experience.
Experience
Essential
- Extensive experience of working at a senior level in a large and complex organisation.
- Experience of writing and developing presentations and briefings on a wide and varied range of subjects, often without prior knowledge.
- Understanding of the strategic context of the NHS and wider health and social care environment.
Skills
Essential
- A high level of leadership, communications (verbal and written) and interpersonal skills
- Strong analytical skills with the ability to make effective judgments involving highly complex and multi-stranded facts or situations which require the analysis, interpretation and comparison of a range of options.
- Ability to challenge stakeholders about delivery and to hold to account where project targets have not been met, including ability to manage difficult dynamics within teams e.g. resistance to change or hostility.
- The ability to work independently, prioritise and judge when issues should be escalated - both for own work and issues handled on behalf of the Chief Executive and Executive Leadership Team.
- Immediately credible to internal and external stakeholders and able to build productive working relationships with colleagues at all levels of SLaM and within partner organisations.
- Demonstrateresilience, confidence and self-belief with the pressures and level of accountability and associated responsibilities of a senior role.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Degree in relevant subject or equivalent experience.
Experience
Essential
- Extensive experience of working at a senior level in a large and complex organisation.
- Experience of writing and developing presentations and briefings on a wide and varied range of subjects, often without prior knowledge.
- Understanding of the strategic context of the NHS and wider health and social care environment.
Skills
Essential
- A high level of leadership, communications (verbal and written) and interpersonal skills
- Strong analytical skills with the ability to make effective judgments involving highly complex and multi-stranded facts or situations which require the analysis, interpretation and comparison of a range of options.
- Ability to challenge stakeholders about delivery and to hold to account where project targets have not been met, including ability to manage difficult dynamics within teams e.g. resistance to change or hostility.
- The ability to work independently, prioritise and judge when issues should be escalated - both for own work and issues handled on behalf of the Chief Executive and Executive Leadership Team.
- Immediately credible to internal and external stakeholders and able to build productive working relationships with colleagues at all levels of SLaM and within partner organisations.
- Demonstrateresilience, confidence and self-belief with the pressures and level of accountability and associated responsibilities of a senior role.
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).
