Director of Operations and Performance/Deputy Chief Operating Officer
| Posting date: | 14 November 2025 |
|---|---|
| Salary: | Not specified |
| Additional salary information: | £109,179 - £125,637 Top of Band 9 plus £5,500 allowance pa |
| Hours: | Full time |
| Closing date: | 14 December 2025 |
| Location: | Stevenage, SG1 4AB |
| Company: | East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust |
| Job type: | Permanent |
| Job reference: | 7616969/361-7463418-A |
Summary
A Vacancy at East and North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS Trust.
We are inviting applications for the role of Director of Operations and Performance / Deputy Chief Operating Officer (DCOO) to join East and North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS Trust.
This is a fantastic opportunity for an energetic and visionary leader to make a significant impact by supporting the delivery of safe, effective, and high quality operational services throughout the Trust.
Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer (COO) and working closely with Lead Divisional Directors and other senior leaders, the DCOO will:
• Provide clear and visible leadership across operational services trust-wide
• Ensure delivery of operational standards and support transformational priorities
• Drive improvements in patient flow, accessibility, and overall patient experience
• Lead critical operational projects and service initiatives, such as the operational leadership for EPR implementation
• Maintain strong governance and performance management frameworks
We seek a candidate who can demonstrate:
• Proven senior operational management experience within complex NHS provider settings
• Strong leadership, communication, and influencing capabilities
• Ability to work effectively across divisions, clinical teams, and corporate departments
• A successful track record of implementing operational improvements in complex environments
• A firm commitment to our values and to enhancing patient outcomes
We offer the opportunity to work for a trust already in segment 2 of the national oversight framework, engaged in implementing a quality management system - the East & North Herts Production System - to drive continuous improvement. We will support your leadership development to be ready for an executive role.
The Director of Operations and Performance / Deputy Chief Operating Officer (DCOO) is a key role within the Trust’s senior leadership team. As the deputy to the Chief Operating Officer (COO), you will have specific responsibility for ensuring effective day-to-day operational management of the trust, working in collaboration with the site office, emergency department, divisions and system partners.
You will operate independently, taking responsibility for the daily senior management of operations, patient flow, emergency planning and response and the site’s performance including the delivery of performance standards, activity and productivity improvements. You’ll have delegated authority, on behalf of the COO, for ensuring that operational performance is optimised, and our services are engaged in continuous quality improvement, innovation and transformation.
A highly skilled and experienced individual, you’ll demonstrate a track record in the delivery of transforming UEC flows, cross organisational transformational change and operational delivery across both elective and urgent care. You’ll have the ability to push the boundaries of innovation and quality of care, working in partnership with colleagues across the Trust and in our partner organisations.
You will support the COO in providing leadership throughout the trust underpinning a caring, fair and open culture in line with our values that enables staff to perform at their best. You’ll demonstrate compassion and inspirational leadership and have a track record of accelerating inclusivity / allyship. You will be expected to promote a patient-centred approach to the delivery of patient care and to facilitate the reduction of health inequalities in our population.
You’ll work in an agile way across our sites, across organisational boundaries within the health and care system and will be able to deputise for the COO in executive, Board and system discussions.
East and North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS Trust is on a journey of transformation. It was formed in 2000 following the merger of two former NHS Trusts serving the east and north Hertfordshire areas. It operates across four sites; acute services are offered at the Lister Hospital; specialist cancer services at the Mount Vernon Cancer Centre (MVCC); and non-acute services at Queen Elizabeth II and Hertford County hospital. The Trust underwent an extensive £150m reconfiguration some years ago which centralised all inpatient and complex services at the Lister in Stevenage.
The Trust provides a wide range of acute inpatient, outpatient, diagnostic, ambulatory and urgent care services – including an emergency department and maternity care – as well as regional and sub-regional services in renal medicine, urology and plastic surgery.
Proudly, the Trust is ranked as the highest performing acute trust in the East of England and 19th nationally among all acute and specialist trusts, according to the latest NHS performance league tables. It is also shortlisted for the HSJ Trust of the Year Award.
The Trust has ambitious plans to become an outstanding, patient-led Trust with people-centred leadership. It is an organisation with a strong culture of positive values with an ambition to be trusted to provide consistently outstanding care and exemplary services to its community in all that it does, including patient experience, clinical outcomes, patient safety and financial sustainability.
Approximately 6,800 staff are employed by the Trust, dedicated staff to providing high- quality, compassionate care to our patients. We also have an active volunteer network of around 350 people. The Trust’s annual turnover is approximately £610 million.
One of our key priorities is to create an environment where people can thrive and where everyone is able to contribute to the continuous improvement of the organisation. Over recent years, we have encountered increasing demand in a tighter financial climate, and we have needed to focus on our work to improve quality and patient experience. These are challenging times, and we continue to face a range of operational, financial and workforce pressures.
However, we have much to be proud of in terms of our current performance - we are currently one of the highest performing Trusts in the country for activity levels and cancer waits.
Please refer the attached applicant pack for further details including the Job Description and Personal specification for this post.
This advert closes on Sunday 14 Dec 2025
We are inviting applications for the role of Director of Operations and Performance / Deputy Chief Operating Officer (DCOO) to join East and North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS Trust.
This is a fantastic opportunity for an energetic and visionary leader to make a significant impact by supporting the delivery of safe, effective, and high quality operational services throughout the Trust.
Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer (COO) and working closely with Lead Divisional Directors and other senior leaders, the DCOO will:
• Provide clear and visible leadership across operational services trust-wide
• Ensure delivery of operational standards and support transformational priorities
• Drive improvements in patient flow, accessibility, and overall patient experience
• Lead critical operational projects and service initiatives, such as the operational leadership for EPR implementation
• Maintain strong governance and performance management frameworks
We seek a candidate who can demonstrate:
• Proven senior operational management experience within complex NHS provider settings
• Strong leadership, communication, and influencing capabilities
• Ability to work effectively across divisions, clinical teams, and corporate departments
• A successful track record of implementing operational improvements in complex environments
• A firm commitment to our values and to enhancing patient outcomes
We offer the opportunity to work for a trust already in segment 2 of the national oversight framework, engaged in implementing a quality management system - the East & North Herts Production System - to drive continuous improvement. We will support your leadership development to be ready for an executive role.
The Director of Operations and Performance / Deputy Chief Operating Officer (DCOO) is a key role within the Trust’s senior leadership team. As the deputy to the Chief Operating Officer (COO), you will have specific responsibility for ensuring effective day-to-day operational management of the trust, working in collaboration with the site office, emergency department, divisions and system partners.
You will operate independently, taking responsibility for the daily senior management of operations, patient flow, emergency planning and response and the site’s performance including the delivery of performance standards, activity and productivity improvements. You’ll have delegated authority, on behalf of the COO, for ensuring that operational performance is optimised, and our services are engaged in continuous quality improvement, innovation and transformation.
A highly skilled and experienced individual, you’ll demonstrate a track record in the delivery of transforming UEC flows, cross organisational transformational change and operational delivery across both elective and urgent care. You’ll have the ability to push the boundaries of innovation and quality of care, working in partnership with colleagues across the Trust and in our partner organisations.
You will support the COO in providing leadership throughout the trust underpinning a caring, fair and open culture in line with our values that enables staff to perform at their best. You’ll demonstrate compassion and inspirational leadership and have a track record of accelerating inclusivity / allyship. You will be expected to promote a patient-centred approach to the delivery of patient care and to facilitate the reduction of health inequalities in our population.
You’ll work in an agile way across our sites, across organisational boundaries within the health and care system and will be able to deputise for the COO in executive, Board and system discussions.
East and North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS Trust is on a journey of transformation. It was formed in 2000 following the merger of two former NHS Trusts serving the east and north Hertfordshire areas. It operates across four sites; acute services are offered at the Lister Hospital; specialist cancer services at the Mount Vernon Cancer Centre (MVCC); and non-acute services at Queen Elizabeth II and Hertford County hospital. The Trust underwent an extensive £150m reconfiguration some years ago which centralised all inpatient and complex services at the Lister in Stevenage.
The Trust provides a wide range of acute inpatient, outpatient, diagnostic, ambulatory and urgent care services – including an emergency department and maternity care – as well as regional and sub-regional services in renal medicine, urology and plastic surgery.
Proudly, the Trust is ranked as the highest performing acute trust in the East of England and 19th nationally among all acute and specialist trusts, according to the latest NHS performance league tables. It is also shortlisted for the HSJ Trust of the Year Award.
The Trust has ambitious plans to become an outstanding, patient-led Trust with people-centred leadership. It is an organisation with a strong culture of positive values with an ambition to be trusted to provide consistently outstanding care and exemplary services to its community in all that it does, including patient experience, clinical outcomes, patient safety and financial sustainability.
Approximately 6,800 staff are employed by the Trust, dedicated staff to providing high- quality, compassionate care to our patients. We also have an active volunteer network of around 350 people. The Trust’s annual turnover is approximately £610 million.
One of our key priorities is to create an environment where people can thrive and where everyone is able to contribute to the continuous improvement of the organisation. Over recent years, we have encountered increasing demand in a tighter financial climate, and we have needed to focus on our work to improve quality and patient experience. These are challenging times, and we continue to face a range of operational, financial and workforce pressures.
However, we have much to be proud of in terms of our current performance - we are currently one of the highest performing Trusts in the country for activity levels and cancer waits.
Please refer the attached applicant pack for further details including the Job Description and Personal specification for this post.
This advert closes on Sunday 14 Dec 2025