Director of Cancer Performance

Job overview

An opportunity has arisen to join the GM Cancer Alliance, to lead a programme of work to transform cancer performance in GM.   This role is to provide maternity leave cover for the existing postholder.

The successful candidate will by supported by the GM Cancer senior team, GM Chief Operating Officers and GM Cancer Managers. The post holder will be required to work across organisational boundaries as a system integrator, to lead and influence change across a significant team of clinical, managerial and specialist staff to deliver the performance strategy defined by NHS England and in accordance with the aims and ambitions of Greater Manchester Cancer. The post holder must have been working at a Senior level within Cancer services in GM, in order to be considered for this post.

The Programme Director will be required to consistently operate with a high level of political awareness, personal influence and skill, working effectively with providers, CCGs, NHS England, regulators and patients and carers; including at regional Board level. The post holder will be responsible for setting up, managing and developing specialist programme teams which will include working in a wide range of cancer services across GM.

The successful individual will be seconded from their GM provider for a period of one year and be supported to ensure delivery, sustainability and transformation of Cancer performance in GM.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will working collaboratively with regional and national stakeholders to lead transformation programmes across the GM system to support the delivery of national and local performance strategies.  They will leading the GM-wide multi-disciplinary performance network Boards’ programmes of work and project/programme managers and co-ordinate and contribute to the GM Cancer system-wide programmes of work, including developing and managing programme and project plans, reporting progress, and undertaking risk and issue management to ensure effective and timely delivery of the NHSE directives and the GM performance delivery plan.

We are looking for an autonomous individual with experience working at a system level who will drive transformation, liaising with key stakeholders across the system to improve experience and outcomes for patients and families in Greater Manchester and East Cheshire.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Main Duties and Responsibilities

Communication and reporting

Build and maintain high levels of support for Greater Manchester Cancer and Greater Manchester & East Cheshire Chief Operating Officer Committee and their performance programmes amongst all member organisations. This will require the establishment of effective and productive working relationships with a broad range of stakeholders, champions and advocates.

Present highly complex, sensitive and contentious information to large groups, teams and individuals at senior levels and also to patients, communities and the public, enabling clear decisions to be made.  The service changes are likely to be extensive, highly contentious, and routinely subject to external scrutiny from regulators and political representatives.

Influence, negotiate and motivate teams to enable performance delivery across Greater Manchester and each of the service providers, including co-ordination with other cancer and related service initiatives as well as managing interdependencies with the wider Health and Social Care partnership programmes of work.

Analytical and Judgement Skills

Lead the production of key strategic documents such as strategic plans, outline cases and business cases

Analyse and interpret a range of highly complex health, financial, performance and workforce data, along with other sources of information including patient experience and feedback from informal and statutory consultation. This will include data that is readily available from a range of NHS and non-NHS sources and also new datasets which will provide objective measurement of outcomes and benefits and which will influence change.

Collate, interpret and clarify highly complex data to inform decision-making. Base adjustments and revisions to the programme on detailed analysis of all available data, making clear recommendations for action where conclusions are not obvious and subject to scrutiny and challenge.

Interpret emerging policy to meet the performance delivery requirements. Lead the development and approval of new local policies, guidance and protocols to support effective programme delivery.

Demonstrate effective and transparent decision-making, basing decisions on full option appraisals with the ability to clearly articulate the relative benefits and dis-benefits of each option. Support recommendations with a clear and concise rationale

Planning and Organisational Skills

Deliver effective matrix working within Greater Manchester Cancer and Greater Manchester & Each Cheshire Chief Operating Officer Board, ensuring effective cross organisational working to drive quality initiatives

Deliver the recommendations of the National Cancer Strategy through the development and delivery of a programme of quality and outcomes improvement across the region.

Establish and deploy effective governance processes and policies to ensure clarity and accountability

Maintain a robust programme infrastructure comprising suitable levels of resource and capability in relation to project management, communications, finance, workforce management, and PMO functions.

Physical Skills

Regular use of IT systems including advanced skills in Microsoft Office applications

Responsibility for Patient and Client Care

Act as a champion for patients and their interests and involve the public and patients in the policy development and decision-making of Greater Manchester Cancer.

Embed patient and public involvement within Greater Manchester Cancer and at all levels of decision making.

Responsibility for Policy and Service Development

Ensure learning is shared across Greater Manchester and also regionally and nationally, to produce a lasting legacy for future transformation programmes.

Develop and implement a project and programme management methodology ensuring that workstreams are managed with clear accountabilities including PIDs, project plans, KPIs and risk registers.

Lead development of polices for Greater Manchester Cancer and nationally where applicable.

Responsibility for Financial and Physical Resources

This post is the budget holder for multiple service budgets associated with the delivery of cancer transformation across the locality

Lead the development and approval of funding bids and business cases including the establishment of a compelling case of need required to support the implementation of performance programmes. This will also include budget analysis, modelling and projection to ensure that the programmes continue to maximise all available external funding and revenue streams throughout their lifecycle.

Responsible for the effective prioritisation of projects to maximise programme impact and delivery, ensuring that there is measurable and sustainable progress.

Accountable for authorising expenditure, commissioning and procurement processes for the programmes in line with agreed delegated authorities/decision rights.

Ensure a comprehensive benefits realisation strategy is in place, including management of benefits beyond the lifecycle of the programmes to ensure that the programmes delivers the expected outcomes and improvements

Ensure changes necessary to delivery are safe, clinically robust, risk assessed and fully consulted upon in line with all statutory guidance and regulatory standards

Responsibility for Human Resources

Create an inclusive working environment where diversity is valued, everyone can contribute, and everyday action ensures we meet our duty to uphold and promote equality.

Model a collaborative and influencing style of working, negotiating with others to achieve the best outcomes, embedding this approach and using insight and evidence for improvement.  Responsible for OD functions related to performance delivery.

Be accountable for the development and review of all direct reports and those in wider teams of influence

Ensure programme/project teams have the right skill mix and resources to effectively deliver programmes.  This will include the development of new roles/job specifications, working with other partner organisations or commissioning additional specialist services

Manage the relationship with the staff from the key delivery partners by establishing effective and robust processes for partnership working, governance and performance management.

Responsibility for Information Resources

Ensure evidence and analytics are secured to support and inform performance activities and support insight in the use of these to drive quality improvement developing an excellent organisation.

Commission and contract for new information resources as required.  Develop local implementation plans and processes relating to the collection of all performance data.

Responsibility for Research and Development

Undertake audits of own work areas as required.

Commission and oversee benefits realisation activities relating to performance workstreams.

Freedom to Act

Significant autonomy in the role and high levels of professional judgement required.

Exercise own judgement to allocate resources within the team to different workstreams.

Monitor and review workstream activity and exercise judgement regarding issues and risks to the SRO for Cancer and other members of the Cancer Board.

Deputise for the SRO for Cancer during periods as a regular feature of the role, including attendance and delegated decision rights at Board meetings and regional improvement forums.

Other relevant responsibilities appropriate to the grading and designation of the role.

Physical Effort

The job is mostly desk based with regular use of VDU.

There is a need to drive across the Greater Manchester footprint to ensure face to face engagement.

Mental Effort

Concentration will be required over long periods of time to review and interpret documents and reports and to analyse complex information from a number of different sources.

Ability to react promptly according to urgency of various interruptions in accordance with service needs.

Emotional Effort

Takes ownership of frequently difficult management decisions in relation to prioritisation of programmes which will involve employee relations.

Manages significant emotional strain and pressure associated with a high workload volume as a regular feature of the role.

Works to tight, competing deadlines and manages numerous projects on a concurrent basis.

Ability to influence and negotiate for project resources and priority setting with senior managers both internally and externally.

Work portfolio is frequently unplanned and subject to dynamic change at short-notice.

Working Conditions

Job is mainly desk based with regular use of VDU.  Visits other sites across Greater Manchester and occasionally nationally as part of travel requirements within the role.

General

This job description is not intended to be an exhaustive list of duties, but it aims to highlight the typical main responsibilities of the post.  It may be reviewed from time to time to ensure that it relates to the job as then being performed, or to incorporate whatever changes are being proposed.  This procedure is conducted in consultation with the post holder.

NHS Behaviours

Our behaviours: leading by example:

We prioritise patients in every decision we take. We listen and learn. We are evidence-based. We are open and transparent. We are inclusive. We strive for improvement.

NHS Values

The values enshrined in the NHS Constitution underpin all that we do:

Respect and dignity. Commitment to the quality of care. Compassion. Improving lives. Working together for patients. Everyone counts.