Governance, Insight and Performance Manager

Reporting to the Head of Corporate Transformation, Insight and Performance, the Governance, Insight and Performance Manager is a senior management role with corporate accountability for the council's governance, performance management and insight arrangements. The post holder will lead and continuously improve the council-wide frameworks, standards and reporting that enable effective oversight of the Corporate Transformation programme and Local Government Reorganisation (LGR).

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the design of decision‑making, delivery assurance and escalation mechanisms that provide Members, Corporate Management Team and senior officers with clear visibility of delivery confidence, risk, dependencies, resources and benefits across both business‑as‑usual improvement and LGR design and transition activity.
• Embed a collaborative, data‑driven culture underpinned by effective governance, assurance and performance management across the Council and its partnerships.
• Lead the council's performance management approach so that strategic priorities (including the Corporate Plan and associated delivery planning) are translated into measurable outcomes, and ensure that material issues are identified early, objectively assessed and escalated through appropriate governance routes.
• Lead corporate reporting, performance improvement and data maturity agenda, setting expectations for data quality, assurance and continuous improvement across all corporate and statutory reporting requirements.
• Shape and improve the council's portfolio and programme management maturity, enabling robust prioritisation, value for money and productivity‑focused decision‑making.
• Plan and deliver complex work programmes, prioritise resources, and ensure corporate performance and insight capability are aligned to transformation ambitions and the successful delivery of Local Government Reorganisation.
• Use research, performance and insight‑based evidence to inform strategic decision‑making, investment choices and delivery planning across the council, Directorates, partnerships and the LGR programme.
• Own and maintain a corporate governance and assurance framework for projects and programmes, ensuring consistent application of standards, clear accountability, robust controls and high‑quality analysis.
• Provide authoritative reporting (including RAID logs, highlight reports and dashboard reporting) so that leaders have timely, accurate and actionable information for decisions and escalation.
• Develop and maintain an integrated, corporate view of programme and project activity, interdependencies and resourcing; identify capacity constraints, advise on prioritisation trade‑offs and trigger early escalation where delivery is at risk.
• Own the identification, analysis and escalation of delivery risks and issues across insight, performance and LGR activity, directing mitigations and ensuring timely decisions through the appropriate governance routes.
• Provide senior analytical input to business cases and options appraisals, ensuring that robust evidence, benefits, costs and risks are clearly articulated and that council data informs investment decisions, transformation priorities and LGR transition activity.
• Ensure statutory reporting and identified areas for improvement are delivered on time, maintaining data integrity during periods of organisational change associated with Local Government Reorganisation.
• Lead and coordinate multidisciplinary resources across the Service and wider organisation, aligning capacity to priorities and ensuring effective use of the role's budget responsibility.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree; HNC, HND, NVQ Level 4 or equivalent, including a professional qualification.
• A degree‑level qualification or equivalent ability as evidenced by experience of working at a high level of qualitative and quantitative analysis.
• Project and governance qualification or equivalent experience working at a high level within complex environments and programmes.
• Excellent governance and assurance management processes and techniques to ensure adherence to corporate and council regulations, as well as project and programme governance.

An offer of employment is conditional upon having the right to work in the UK. HDC does not hold a Sponsorship Licence and is unable to provide a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) or take over sponsorship for any role.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

Equality, diversity and inclusion are at the heart of our recruitment and along with our values we are committed to creating an inclusive working environment, where diversity is valued and there is equality of opportunity. We therefore welcome applications from all sections of the community and we offer a range of benefits, including flexitime, to encourage a work‑life balance.