Director of Operational Finance

Job overview

Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust (TSDFT) are excited to announce that we are looking for an experienced Director of Operational Finance to join our team.

This role reports into the Chief Finance Officer and will play a critical role in developing and strengthen all aspects of our finance and procurement processes.  They will also be heavily supporting the CFO in the delivery of key strategic priorities the Trust faces focused around the recovery the financial performance.

This is a busy but rewarding opportunity and the successful candidate must have a proven collaborative approach to relationships and be a credible, professionally qualified accountant with exemplary leadership skills, high standards and the ability to influence the board and executive teams.  You must have experience leading sizeable teams and be comfortable influencing stakeholders inside and outside of the organisation.  Your significant post-qualification experience will have been gained within a large, complex and public sector organisation, whether health, local government or beyond.

This is a critical appointment for the Trust and one which will provide a unique  opportunity to leave a  legacy on our organisation whilst also being able to influence the wider health system.

If you feel your skills meet the requirements for this post we would welcome your application for consideration.

Main duties of the job

• Lead and develop the finance directorate
• Assist the CFO to develop the strategic direction of the finance function so that it sets challenging objectives
• Deputise for the CFO in their absence
• Co-ordinate the preparation of the Trust’s Financial Plan and Annual Budget for presentation  to the Trust Board.
• Report the current financial position and prospects of the Trust to senior management and the Trust Board, ensuring that risks and opportunities are identified and validated.
• Interpret health and social care policy and strategy on an ongoing basis, ensuring that the Trust’s financial and service plans are executed in line with national and local guidance
• Review processes to assess function effectiveness. To ensure that financial systems are fit for purpose, consistent with best practice and lead in developing finance systems and processes across the whole Trust
• Promote an environment of strong financial control and continuous financial improvement.
• Ensure prompt accurate responses to requests for financial information from NHSE and the ICB, and manage the statutory completion of financial templates.
• Manage the working capital and cash resources of the Trust to ensure that statutory obligations are met
• Manage the resources for the Trust’s Capital Investment Programme
• Oversee the procurement function
• Promote high standards of professionalism within finance
• Recruit and develop staff to fulfil the function’s objectives

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Communication and working relationships

• Be able to communicate highly sensitive, complex and contentious information
• Work with internal colleagues and external stakeholders to ensure a high degree of correlation between SUS and SLAM systems, ensuring accurate data recording and the proper and timely submission of activity data
• Support the CFO in the development of a data quality strategy

Planning and organisation

• Advise the CFO on the formulation of financial strategy and continuously monitor it against performance
• Ensure there is realistic planning around likely resources and an appropriate assessment of risk including detailed reviews of business cases.
• Coordinate the preparation of the Trust’s Annual Financial Plan and Revenue Budget and Capital Investment Programme
• Manage the highly complex task of ensuring capacity and workforce plans are triangulated into the revenue budgets of the Trust and that NHSE’s detailed requirements as outlined in planning guidance are fully complied with
• Communicate planning information and assumptions to the Executive Directors and senior managers and, where necessary, make challenging recommendations in order to meet the Trust’s financial targets.
• Maintain a sound system of working capital management and cashflow forecasting, identifying and reporting risks with a focus on solutions

Policy and service responsibility

• Develop a high-quality patient level costing function and service line reporting, ensuring that costing information is made available to operational managers and clinicians in a user-friendly way, and ensure they are engaged in its interpretation, development and use for planning and managing services and improving use of resources – alongside model hospital and GIRFT data
• Ensure the maintenance of internal financial control and demonstrate an expert working knowledge of IFRS and emerging policy changes and ensure that senior staff are up to date with such, while providing specialist technical support to other finance staff
• Demonstrate an up-to-date knowledge of UK taxation relating to Health Organisations and be expected to provide technical support to directors, senior managers and finance staff on taxation issues as they affect employees of the Trust and on VAT
• Ensure that robust policies and procedures are in place for the effective stewardship of the Trust’s assets and management of the Trust’s Capital Investment Programme within the Trust’s delegated limits
• Set and maintain effective credit control policies and ensure debtor levels and turnover do not exceed agreed limits
• Advise the CFO on procurement matters

Responsibility for finance, equipment and other resources

• Review and analyse highly complex business cases and recommend a course of action to the Trust Leadership Team. The review and analysis will include reference to VFM issues, Standing Orders and Standing Financial Instructions
• Ensure a high level of consistency and correlation between financial reporting and other data sources, including activity, performance and workforce
• Exercise your expert & professional judgement in the interpretation of the financial information and give advice to the Chief Finance Officer and Board committees based on that judgement
• Act as budget holder for the finance directorate including authorisation of expenditure and monitoring of budgets
• Ensure there are sufficient resources to finance the Capital Investment Programme, identify innovative sources of funding and, where necessary, apply for loan funding from the Department of Health, subject to the approval of the Trust Board
• Oversee the operation of bank accounts and the management of cash and investments (if relevant)

Responsibility for supervision, leadership and management

• Operate as a visible member of the Trust’s senior leadership team, establishing a collaborative working network and contributing to the delivery of corporate strategy and organisational objectives
• Provide advice and support to the CFO and to all those carrying management responsibilities within the Trust. Ensure technical information is explained in a style appropriate for the user
• Deputise for the CFO and represent the Trust as required to all levels including national bodies
• Contribute to the business planning activities of the Trust and to the implementation of new initiatives
• Through your senior team and via delivery of hands-on training, provide support to all those with budgetary responsibility, to ensure that they can effectively exercise control
• Development and training of staff to facilitate the best possible care within available resources, embedding a culture of continuous improvement
• You should ensure that a programme of training and support for budget managers and clinicians in in place, to enable them to deliver their budgetary responsibilities

Information technology and administrative duties

• Prepare reports to the Board and Trust’s managers to an agreed timetable on all key financial performance indicators, e.g. income and expenditure, activity, financial duties, balance sheet, capital, charitable funds, working capital and cash flow. Best professional practice should be used in presenting this information, making it clear, concise and action-oriented, supported by a suite of ‘lead indicators’ to give confidence in financial forecasts
• Develop Trust financial monitoring and reporting systems. Through leadership of the procurement directorate, ensure the timely and effective roll-out of digital stock management systems (Genesis) and ensure that these are embedded within day-to-day financial and operational working practices
• Review and maintain SFIs and internal financial control procedures to ensure these operate as designed and provide appropriate levels of assurance on accuracy, completeness, timeliness and counter-fraud measures. In conjunction with Internal Audit, conduct reviews to ensure that the financial control environment is operating effectively
• Ensure that strategic financial risks and opportunities are identified and properly validated and responded to
• Ensure the CFO, CEO and Trust Leadership Team receive reports on the budgetary performance of the organisation. Such reports should give actual expenditure compared to income and also compared with budget to date and a forecast for the year based on budget managers’ projections. Express your judgement and interpretation of the figures providing advice to senior management on action being taken to resolve issues and whether any further action is needed

Responsibility and accountability

• Ensure that good financial discipline is embedded in budget holders’ ways of working
• Ensure statutory accounts and accounting returns are properly produced from accounting records in accordance with DH Government Accounting Manual and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) in accordance with published timescales
• Work with the Trust’s external auditors and to ensure ‘clean’ audit opinions and the timely implementation of any audit recommendations
• Take responsibility for the provision of a strong financial accounting function to support the provision of accurate and timely financial information. Ensure financial accounting and financial services (Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Treasury) strongly support the provision of complete and accurate information
• Take responsibility for income and the income team across the Trust, including the responsibility for the development, implementation and maintenance of financial aspects of the Trust’s income strategy and reporting, including ICB/specialised commissioning income, Research and Development and Education and Training
• Agree commissioning contracts and participate in the evaluation and preparation of bids for new tenders in line with the Trust’s strategic objectives
• Be a leading member of the Trust’s Capital Investment Group and be responsible for the preparation and delivery of the Trust’s Capital Investment Programme and for ensuring that the plan reflects the level and type of investment needed in order to meet the Trust’s strategic and operational objectives and balance clinical priorities and risks against service improvement / development
• Take responsibility for ensuring there is sufficient cash to meet the needs of the Trust whilst achieving, insofar as possible, Public Sector Payment Policy requirements
• Ensure adequate arrangements are in place to monitor value for money and track the achievement of procurement savings
• Participate in the Trust’s negotiation of contracts and act as the liaison with the Trust’s lawyers on such matters
• Ensure that standards of reporting, financial control and auditing apply to Charitable Funds as to the main functions of the organisation. These need to be applied in an effective and efficient manner in order to maximise the benefits to patients of the donations received
• Exercise a duty of care on behalf of the Trustees to ensure any expenditure falls within the terms of the trust deed and that the requirements of the law, of the Charity Commission and the HM Revenue and Customs are met