Group Chief Medical Information Officer

Together UHL and UHN care for ~1.9 million residents across LLR and Northamptonshire, operating five acute hospitals and delivering care from 19 community sites with a workforce of ~30,000 colleagues and annual spend of ~£2.9bn. Our combined scale lets us standardise pathways, share learning and deliver innovation at pace and at population level. Our UHL-UHN Group Clinical Strategy (2025-2035) sets a clear vision--"Leading in healthcare, trusted in communities"--and commits us to six focus areas and five principles of care: personalised, seamless, proactive, equitable, and effective & efficient. We are delivering the national "three shifts": hospital->community, analogue->digital, and sickness->prevention.

The Group Chief Medical Information Officer (GCMIO) provides visible, authoritative clinical leadership for the digital transformation agenda across University Hospitals of Leicester and University Hospitals of Northamptonshire and any future partner sites. The GCMIO works collaboratively with the Group Chief Nursing Information Officer (CNIO), Group Chief X Information Officer (CXIO), and other digital leaders to ensure a unified, clinically-led approach to digital, data, and technology. The GCMIO is accountable for digital clinical safety, governance, and compliance with national standards, and leads the design, procurement, implementation, and optimisation of clinical systems.

Main duties of the job

You will be the most senior clinical leader within the group. This is a Group-level role, you will need to maintain dual professional accountability to both Trust Medical Directors, reinforcing its authority across clinical safety, quality, and digital transformation. You will report directly also to the Group Chief Digital Information Officer who holds executive responsibility for digital reporting to the Group Board. You will need to work with CMIOs in both UHL and UHN who will be your direct reports. You will need to develop a clear understanding of responsibilities with the CMIOs and other digital colleagues within both organisations. You will need strong, but compassionate leadership to deliver on this role, as well as work closely with external stakeholders and ensure the group maintains a collaborative relationship with all our digital suppliers.

Job responsibilities

This is a senior, high-impact leadership role shaping clinically led digital transformation across a multi-trust NHS Group. The post offers the chance to influence patient safety, quality and staff experience at scale, while driving EPR optimisation, innovation, and digital workforce development. It provides strong system‑level visibility, board‑level influence, and the opportunity to leave a lasting legacy in how digital care is designed and delivered across the Group.

About you

• An experienced NHS Clinician with full GMC registration, strong professional standing, and a track record of respected clinical leadership in a complex acute or teaching hospital environment.
• A proven clinical leader who has delivered large-scale change, particularly in quality, patient safety, and service transformation across organisational boundaries.
• Digitally fluent and safety-focused, with hands‑on experience of leading or sponsoring clinical digital transformation (e.g. EPRs, clinical systems), and a strong grasp of clinical safety standards, governance, and risk management.
• A system thinker and collaborator, able to work seamlessly with CNIOs, CXIOs, executives, ICBs, suppliers, and academic partners to deliver a unified, clinically led digital strategy.
• A people developer, committed to building the digital medical workforce through mentoring, succession planning, and creating new clinical digital roles and career pathways.
• An engaging, values‑driven leader, visible, approachable, and passionate about patient involvement, digital equity, and staff experience, with a leadership style that inspires trust and followership.
• Comfortable at board and system level, able to provide clear assurance, expert advice, and calm leadership during periods of change, risk, or digital downtime.

Your vision: Digital transformation is at the heart of our ambitions and Group Clinical Strategy. As the Group Chief Medical Information Officer you must articulate and lead a clear, compelling clinical digital vision that brings technology and care together. At its core, the vision should be to:

• Put patients and safety first ensuring digital systems measurably improve patient outcomes, safety, experience, and equity, with robust clinical safety governance at the heart of all technology decisions.
• Champion clinically led digital transformation positioning clinicians as codesigners and leaders of digital change, not passive users, and ensuring systems genuinely support how care is delivered.
• Create one coherent, group-wide digital ecosystem aligning Leicester, Northamptonshire, and future partners around shared standards, platforms, and ways of working, while respecting local clinical needs.
• Turn data into insight and improvement using high‑quality clinical data, analytics, and emerging technologies (including AI) to drive quality improvement, research, and better decision‑making.
• Build a sustainable digital medical workforce developing future CMIOs, clinical safety officers, and digital leaders through clear career pathways, education, and succession planning.
• Embed digital as a core enabler of strategy ensuring digital underpins clinical strategy, productivity, workforce wellbeing, and long‑term sustainability rather than being seen as a standalone IT programme.
• Lead with values and trust modelling openness, inclusion, and collaboration, engaging patients and staff meaningfully, and maintaining confidence at Board and system level during change and risk.

Person Specification

Commitment to Trust Values and Behaviours Must be able to demonstrate behaviours consistent with the Trust's Values and Behaviours.

Education, Training & Professional Development Up-to-date and valid job appraisal covering the last 12 months. No formal conduct or capability concerns/investigations within the last 24 months.

Equality and Diversity Able to demonstrate a commitment to and understanding of the importance of treating all individuals with dignity and respect appropriate to their individual needs.

Knowledge & Experience

• Demonstrable track record of successful clinical leadership in a complex healthcare organisation.
• Experience of overseeing and delivering Quality Improvement programmes within clinical services.
• Evidence of designing delivery plans with clear metrics/benefits and providing assurance to board level governance.
• Evidence of working across organisational boundaries at a service level to deliver transformational change.
• Experience of effective collaborative working across the professions, the healthcare system, and external stakeholders.
• Experience of leading service and/or transformational change.
• Experience of the management of complex projects.

Leadership & Management Style Has personal and professional credibility and commands the respect of fellow clinicians. Is supportive and approachable, inspiring confidence and encouraging potential. Able to make decisions and take charge of events through a performance management approach. Strong influencing skills with the ability to shape development across the health and social care system.

Disclosure and Barring Service Check This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust £104,401 to £150,569 a year pro rata.