Head of Operations - Programme Delivery

Job description

Job responsibilities

For the full description of the role, please refer to the JD

Operational Accountable for developing and delivering project management expertise, promoting innovation and supporting operational excellence across the innovation pipeline. Lead on optimisation of programme delivery, influence and negotiate to deliver operational effectiveness. Work closely with Executive Management Team (EMT) business and to be responsible for developing the delivery strategy and implementation, being responsive and dealing with uncertainty and adapting plans as required. Co-ordinate delivery activities, responding to requirements from the Programme Directors, providing leadership on setting delivery priorities in line with operational needs and make schedule adjustments to meet timely delivery goals. Oversee programme delivery of standardised agile project management processes, methodologies, tools, and templates across the teams, ensuring best practice approaches. Utilisation of data, analytics, insights and intelligence, and interpretation of highly complex information to demonstrate impact or to identify improvement areas/options. Lead on analysing and troubleshooting programme and project issues and themes in a timely manner and manage escalations as required. Oversee day to day delivery activities and provide operational grip and oversight for the delivery team functions, providing direction and guidance. Responsible for management of programme tension across portfolio, presenting solutions in situations which could be highly contentious. To monitor, interpret and quality assure progress against deliverables. Quality assurance and progress of deliverables that often require complex adjustments specifically in relation to, strategic objectives and the business planning process. To develop detailed workflow and resource planning/deployment and provide expert strategic and policy advice and guidance on areas of the Pipeline portfolio aligned to the Programme Director requirements. Lead on ensuring that the Programme and Project Delivery function maintain high levels of competence and operational excellence aligned to the HInM governance and operating model. Accountable for the management of the programme delivery function to the portfolio of projects, evaluating their alignment with strategic goals, prioritising projects, and identifying potential risks in projects, assessing their impact, and developing risk mitigation strategies to minimise project disruptions in partnership with the Head of PMO- Assurance Conduct project reviews and audits to ensure that projects adhere to established standards and best practices, promoting a culture of continuousimprovement. Provide regular operational updates and status reports to stakeholders, executive management, and project teams, facilitating effective communication and decision-making. Ensure reporting covers financial and progress updates tailoring presentational style and focus depending on audience. Captures and shares lessons learned and best practices from completed projects, creating a knowledge repository to enhance future projects. Works collaboratively and constructively in highly complex environments with the defined Programme Senior Responsible Officer and Programme Directors, and broader stakeholders, managing differing perspectives to ensure the delivery of the project to benefits realisation. Develops plan for the delivery of the roles responsibilities including identifying interdependencies, managing risks, modelling the potential impacts on the wider organisation, determining resource requirements and building in contingency where required. Contributes to the planning process and delivery of priorities and manages consequential adjustments to activities. Active contributing member of the senior leadership team and deputise as appropriate for Director of Operations and Programme Directors within the operational delivery functions.

Human Resources and Organisational Development Drive the vision and values of the organisation, ensuring operational delivery. Contribution to the development of the Organisational Development Plan, undertaking regular research and development to provide insight to deliver operational excellence and growth. Build positive and productive working relationships with Programme Directors and Executives to support business growth. Provide leadership and direct line management to the Programme Delivery functions. Ensure that the Programme Delivery function provides guidance and support to all ongoing projects/ programmes. Lead training programme development and support to project managers and teams, enhancing their project management skills and knowledge. Ensures that stakeholders and user voice is understood and used to shape project design and delivery. Directs and motivates the project team, ensuring that all deliverables and quality criteria are met, and standards are complied with, in association with the APMO. Develops, updates, and maintains plans, deliverables lists and risks and issues logs, chasing outstanding actions. Reports on these as required aligned to Programme governance. Support an effective matrix management approach to achieve the business plan and strategic objectives. To manage, motivate, inspire and develop staff, championing a culture of collaboration and continuous improvement within the team to ensure that they can deliver the responsibilities of HInM strategy and delivery plans. Responsible for the recruitment and development of staff as appropriate, including undertaking appraisal, staff development and where appropriate progressing employee relation matters. Manage potentially contentious situations with staff and stakeholders for successful outcomes often dealing with complex and conflicting issues. Link with managers and members of other initiatives to address interdependencies and ensure alignment. Employ effective communication, negotiation and influencing skills to enable an effective delivery/change with stakeholders at all levels who may hold differing and contentious views. Effective stakeholder management across different departments and at all levels, maintaining relationships with key and high-profile stakeholders.

Finance and Physical Resources Allocate and optimise the use of resources (personnel, budget, etc) across projects to ensure the most efficient use of resources. Management of Programme Delivery functions budget and responsibility for budget setting and resource deployment, monitoring across a range of high-profile projects. Responsible and accountable for a range of commissions/ projects/ and or programmes and initiatives. Liaising with finance colleagues to ensure appropriate costing and ensure compliance with Standing Financial instructions and Standing Orders. Develop commissioning/ Programme Delivery service models that ensures value for money and promote excellence, working closely with Executive Management team (EMT) colleagues. Constantly strive for value for money and greater efficiency in the use of these budgets and to ensure that they operate in recurrent financial balance year on year.

Policy and Service Development Lead on Standard Operating policy and process development and implementation for delivery. Responsible for developing multiple operating plans and seize opportunities, mitigate threats and deliver strategic objectives, promoting the adoption of pipeline operating methodology, approach and techniques. Responsible for proposing and drafting service developments; changes, implementation and interpretation to policies and guidelines across the core commissions. Working across multiple organisations within different sectors. To identify and assess opportunities for new programmes and threats to existing programmes as HInM develops. Responsible for proposing and drafting changes, implementation and interpretation to policies, guidelines, and service level agreements (SLAs) which may impact service delivery. Maintain a good knowledge of emerging policies from government departments, to assist in the thinking and definition of strategy discussions.

Skills A key focus of the role requires the postholder to draw on experience, with strong influencing and negotiating skills, working across organisational boundaries to lead and deliver in a dynamic environment. The postholder requires strong leadership skills, experience of multi-agency deliverypartnerships, an ability to think strategically as well as being able to problem solve. Style flexibility, emotional intelligence, learning agility and excellent communication skills are essential and the postholder will need to demonstrate credibility with key senior stakeholders. Use of political judgement and astuteness in understanding and working with complex policy and diverse interest groups is a key aspect of the role

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• oEducated to Master's degree level or equivalent relevant senior management experience
• oAdvanced project management qualification such as PRINCE or the equivalent
• oTrained or experienced in service improvement methodologies with significant experience of application of learning in practice.
• oEvidence of CPD and appropriate career progression to- wards a senior corporate post.

Experience

Essential

• oRecent experience working within the NHS.
• oProven experience of leading and delivering complex change and programmes in a politically sensitive and complex environment and delivering priorities in a partnership environment to deliver benefits.
• oSignificant experience of leading the implementation of service improvement including complex change management programmes and projects.
• oExperience of organisational design and organisational development.

Skills/Knowledge

Essential

• oSignificant experience of industry standard programme management tools, including MS Project and Verto.
• oExperience of developing and manipulating excel spreadsheets containing financial and activity information, with advanced excel skills such as VLOOKUP, pivot table reporting, advanced charting and conditional formatting.
• oAbility to present complex and detailed data sets to set out key pieces of programme information that effectively communicate performance and assurance information to a range of stakeholders, including Executive Team.
• oSignificant experience of coordinating projects in challenging complex environments.

Desirable

• Expert, master user knowledge of MS Project

Specific Job Requirements

Essential

• oAbility to manage a very demanding workload, diligently and successfully delivering activities accurately, and on time.
• . oKnowledge of quality improvement tools and methodology.
• oStrong track record of multi-professional working and developing and fostering professional working relationships.

Other

Essential

• oProven ability to deliver to targets and deadlines.

Desirable

• Experience of encouraging diversity of thinking as a means to promote positive change.

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

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).

Employer details

Employer name

Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Health Innovation Manchester

Manchester

M13 9WL

Employer's website

https://mft.nhs.uk/careers/ (Opens in a new tab)