Associate Director- Healthcare Consulting in London

At Grant Thornton we do things differently – looking to the future, driving ambitious growth and pioneering positive change in our industry. Providing audit, tax and advisory services, we empower clients through strategic insight, curiosity, and genuine partnership. We empower our people with real opportunity, an inclusive culture and work‑life balance.

In Public Services Consulting, we have worked on some of the UK's largest and most high‑profile public sector clients, infrastructure projects and public policy programmes. These assignments focus on creating value across the UK (and internationally) by providing infrastructure and services that deliver economic and social benefits for present and future generations. Our purpose is to make a difference by working hand in hand with public and private sector clients on significant public sector projects and issues.

The team works both virtually and from seven Grant Thornton offices – London, Birmingham, Bristol, Edinburgh, Manchester and Leeds. The team is made up of the following sectors and disciplines:

• Local Government
• Central Government
• Healthcare (NHS and private healthcare)
• Defence
• Infrastructure

Our Public Services Consulting are part of a wider Public Services Advisory group that also covers:

• Transport
• Net zero
• Real Estate and Assets
• Financial modelling and analytics

As part of the firm’s wider consulting domain, the teams work closely with core consultancy functions across the firm, including business consulting and digital development. Within Public Sector Consulting, work across our core sectors is divided into three domains:

• Transformation & change – delivering improvement and transformation across the public sector, including financial improvement, finance function transformation and restructuring
• Economy and major programmes – supporting the delivery of multi‑million pound development programmes and procurements and providing support services to sectors
• Digital, data and insight – providing industry‑leading data analysis, platforms, improving data quality and implementing digital‑based solutions

Our consulting teams seek to develop long‑term partnerships with our clients to help them deliver key government policies, programmes and strategies on the ground. We work with clients across the public sector – as well as those looking to effectively engage with the public sector – to help them make effective strategic decisions, improve outcomes, optimise operating and delivery models, drive reform, balance short‑term financial challenges with medium‑term investment and ensure value for money.

What you can expect from a role within Public Services Consulting:

• Developing and implementing strategy for Public Services Consulting and for our sectors
• Ensuring technical excellence and quality across the team in accordance with firm guidelines
• Develop and implement plans to position the firm in the market – leading proposal development and client work delivery
• Build, grow and inspire a market‑leading team that embraces continuous learning and resilience
• Create a team culture based on inclusion and excellence, embracing difference and minimising unconscious bias
• Build your brand – be known for excellence and clarity in communication within Grant Thornton and with external stakeholders

We’re happy to discuss flexible working, reduced hours and job shares to support the work‑life balance.

Our healthcare services are growing and expanding. We are looking for healthcare professionals and leaders to support and drive the development of consulting services in the sector. Over the last two years we have established a market‑leading position supporting the financial improvement and sustainability of NHS, working with NHS England, NHS Wales, NHS Trusts, Welsh Health Boards and Integrated Care Boards daily to improve finances through efficiency programmes and strong governance.

Associate Director responsibilities:

• Support the development and implementation of strategy for your sector – healthcare
• Demonstrate high quality and professional behaviour in all work and challenge others to do the same
• Provide leadership to your team and inspire people to reach their potential
• Ensure technical excellence, especially in NHS finance and operations, and quality in delivery in line with firm guidelines
• Oversee your team to deliver high quality work and meet financial targets
• Support the partner and director group in leading complex projects, building relationships with clients, engaging relevant Grant Thornton resources and external partners, and delivering high quality client service
• Support the partner and director group on complex proposals through effective business development and winning bids
• Embed a learning culture in proposal development and demonstrate the ability to lead proposals with less support
• Embed a quality culture through coaching, praising good work and challenging poor work through everyday feedback
• Contribute to business development by building relationships with people and organisations in your sector to become future clients
• Work with partners and directors to build a more diverse PSA team
• Create an inclusive culture and call out non‑inclusive behaviours
• Build and maintain a network in your sector and across Grant Thornton, ensuring your expertise is known across the firm and capitalising on wider firm opportunities
• Contribute to and promote thought‑leadership pieces regularly, working with sector and industry groups
• Stay aware of relevant sector or industry developments that impact the team’s work
• Manage quality and risk in line with the firm’s policies and procedures
• Act with integrity and in line with our organisational values
• Embrace the firm’s core values in relation to diversity and inclusion, behaving inclusively at all times
• Achieve a ‘zone of affection’ rating in client satisfaction scores
• Do what is right, not what is easy

Knowing you’re right for us:

As an Associate Director, the minimum criteria you’ll need are a university qualification or relevant experience. A professional accountancy qualification (e.g. ACA, CIPFA, CIMA, ACCA) is essential due to its strong financial focus. You will have:

• Significant experience working with or within NHS finance and operations
• A deep knowledge of NHS finance, financial improvement and finance functions
• A track record of leading the identification and delivery of cost improvement, efficiency and transformation programmes within the NHS
• Strong analytical skills to analyse and triangulate finance, operational and workforce data
• Experience using benchmarking to target and identify improvement areas
• Working with, influencing and reporting to boards, executive, operational, workforce, medical, nursing and transformation/improvement teams
• Working with and reporting to regulators
• Establishing and supporting effective governance processes and reporting
• Line‑management/oversight responsibilities in team settings
• Evidence of taking ownership for setting and delivering team goals and monitoring programme targets
• Strong understanding of and experience with financial, operational and quality issues within the NHS
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with experience reporting and presenting to boards, senior leadership and wider stakeholders
• A commitment to diversity and inclusion
• Good project‑management skills and a record of delivering projects to time, quality and financial deadlines
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to build and develop networks internally and externally

It would be great if you had some of the following skills – we’ll help you develop along the way:

• Business case writing and development
• Delivering wholesale transformation of services
• Data analysis and digital process improvement
• Finance function consolidation and process change
• Board leadership and governance assessments
• Awareness of current policy and issues in the NHS
• Wider experience and knowledge of other public services

Knowing we’re right for you:

Embracing uniqueness, the culture at Grant Thornton thrives on the contributions of all our people. We never settle for what is easy; we look beyond to deliver the right thing, for everyone. Building an inclusive culture, where we value difference and respect our colleagues, helps our people perform at their best and realise their potential.

Life is more than work. The things you do, and the people you’re with outside of work matter – that’s why we’re happy to look at flexible working options for all our roles and will always strive to keep your work and life in balance.