Assistant Director - Value Improvement | The Christie NHS Foundation Trust
| Posting date: | 13 March 2026 |
|---|---|
| Salary: | Not specified |
| Additional salary information: | £91,342 - £105,337 per annum, pro rata |
| Hours: | Full time |
| Closing date: | 12 April 2026 |
| Location: | Manchester, M20 4BX |
| Company: | The Christie NHS Foundation Trust |
| Job type: | Permanent |
| Job reference: | 7872208/413-104525-SNR |
Summary
The Assistant Director for the Value Improvement Programme will support the development of robust programmes across a range of areas, including the Trust's efficiency plans.
The NHS has a major focus on improving financial sustainability, including a need to ensure financial control, whilst balancing multiple complex and competing priorities across clinical demand, operational activity, workforce changes, and constrained funding.
The Assistant Director – Value Improvement Programme (AVP) will be a key strategic leadership role within the Trust, focused on delivering finance transformational change and financial assurance activities within the Christie NHS FT, by engaging with Divisional stakeholders, as well as with the wider partnership organisations across the Greater Manchester Integrated Care System.
The key areas of responsibility include:
• Championing PMO practices to ensure consistency in the development and design of programme governance.
• Internal leadership to drive the Trust's cost improvement programme, known as the 'Adding Value Programme.'
• Leadership and delivery of financial transformation and change programmes.
• External engagement in financial implications of major service change processes and related cost benefit analyses.
• Leading the development of innovative ways of working to support improving the financial position
The Christie is one of Europe’s leading cancer centres, treating over 60,000 patients a year. We are based in Manchester and serve a population of 3.2 million across Greater Manchester & Cheshire, but as a national specialist around 15% patients are referred to us from other parts of the country.
We provide radiotherapy through one of the largest radiotherapy departments in the world; chemotherapy on site and through 14 other hospitals; highly specialist surgery for complex and rare cancer; and a wide range of support and diagnostic services. We are also an international leader in research, with world first breakthroughs for over 100 years.
We run one of the largest early clinical trial units in Europe with over 300 trials every year. Cancer research in Manchester, most of which is undertaken on the Christie site, has been officially ranked the best in the UK.
Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, the Assistant Director - VIP is an instrumental role to support the drive and delivery of recurrent efficiency schemes within the context of the annual and longer-term financial plan.
The key areas of responsibility include:
• Championing PMO practices to ensure consistency in the development and design of programme governance.
• Internal leadership to drive the Trust’s cost improvement programme, known as the ‘Value Improvement Programme.’
• Leadership and delivery of financial transformation and change programmes.
• External engagement in financial implications of major service change processes and related cost benefit analyses.
• Leading the development of innovative ways of working to support improving the financial position.
The post holder will also have a key leadership role in the development of the following: programme design and project initiation documentation, financial plans (efficiency plans, work-streams), financial reports (efficiency delivery and assurance).
In fulfilling this role, the post holder will interpret highly complex NHS policy and its application within the Trust and establish goals and standards to be achieved from a corporate financial perspective, reflective of issued guidance.
The post holder will have a solid understanding of NHS provider issues, including operational planning and forecasting, with a good understanding of regulatory / legal requirements within which providers operate. The role will also require the post holder to work with system wide colleagues, requiring a good understanding of the dynamics within the overall health and care sector.
The post holder should provide knowledge and advice on several issues including:
• Programme management approaches
• Financial risk management
• Future operational finance issues
• Financial planning
• Financial assurance mechanisms
The post holder must be adaptable and flexible. Given the nature and role, there may be a requirement to react quickly to external influences and events and support others as directed.
The post holder will be expected to establish and develop policies and processes in support of the Trust efficiency programme and to work autonomously using own initiative, drawing on extensive specialist knowledge of operational management, finance and programme management.
The post holder will work closely with colleagues on the delivery of annual financial plans and will lead on the establishment of required CIP targets.
• Lead and develop the Trust’s Efficiency Programme as a centre of excellence for portfolio, programme, and project management.
• Co-ordinate, support and oversee the Trust’s Efficiency Programme and the key change portfolio across the organisation aligning it to priorities across the wider health and care system.
• Takes specific responsibility for overseeing and supporting the delivery of the Trust’s change portfolio alongside the wider transformation of services, on a short or long-term basis, working with internal and external partners.
• Ensure that robust and effective governance systems and processes are in place to provide assurance for the efficiency and benefits realisation aspects of the Trust’s portfolio, both at corporate and Divisional level, as well as Trust and systems level is effective and delivering.
• To ensure regular audits are carried out in order to ensure the Programme is on track and any shortfalls can be addressed
• Regular travel to various locations will be required in order to attend meetings and communicate with stakeholders
• Escalate to the Chief Operating Officer any significant areas of concern or risk that could compromise delivery of key efficiency / transformation programmes plans.
• Ensure that programme plans reflect the Trust’s short, medium, and long-term sustainability priorities, around all the key transformation programmes and to ensure that the Trust is benefiting from shared learning and opportunities to transform from across the health and care system.
• Utilise highly complex performance data to ensure the Trust Board are presented with reports and regular briefings that assures them the Trust’s efficiency portfolio is delivering.
• Provide specialist input into complex operational planning and transformation to ensure compliance with strategic objectives.
• To be a specialist resource to the Care Groups in supporting them to develop their capability regarding efficiency programme and project management, working within the Trust’s guidance and practices, to ensure alignment.
• Support and where relevant lead on the production of business cases that support service change, transformation, and development at a corporate and network locality level.
• Enable programmes and projects to deliver sustainable outcomes for patients that are based on sound business intelligence, advanced specialist knowledge, underpinned by theory and experience and robust planning within a rigorous programme and project management framework.
• Work with Business Intelligence and Performance teams, to ensure the programme and project plans are supported and underpinned by robust and reliable intelligence and data, using benchmarking tools and platforms where appropriate, to provide the necessary assurance around delivery.
• Use analytics and business intelligence to identify potential opportunities to improve operational efficiency, drive operational excellence and help clinical and service teams deliver transformation across a wide range of services.
• Use strong people skills to be able to communicate sensitive, complex, and contentious information in a diplomatic way to a range of internal stakeholders (including both clinical and non-clinical colleagues) interpretation and analysis of national guidance to propose and create a shared vision for the trust in an environment where views may strongly differ.
• To use insights from performance analysis and stakeholder discussions to troubleshoot operational issues and improve operational processes.
• Ensure the Trust’s corporate policies regarding operational, performance and programme management matters are aligned with the national policy requirements.
• Support the Chief Finance Officer by leading on the review and development of key policies within this remit.
• Line manage the Head of Performance and Emergency Planning Lead
• To undertake any other duties or project relevant to the role as directed by the Chief Operating Officer, which will include being part of the Trust on call.
This advert closes on Monday 30 Mar 2026
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