Improvement Progamme Manager in Leicester

Go back University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust

Improvement Progamme Manager

The closing date is 06 August 2026

This is an exciting opportunity for the right person to bring their knowledge and expertise to support UHL and the wider system to continuously improve.

The post holder will lead the programme of multiple, complex, and interconnected projects and service redesign across our sites. You will take the lead role in planning, supporting, facilitating, and monitoring the performance and progress of this programme. You will manage a specific portfolio of projects, monitoring interdependencies and resources to ensure efficient delivery of the programme. You will be responsible for working closely with CMG triumvirates, Corporate Medical and Nursing, Capital Project Managers, Workforce and Finance Leads, and Strategy colleagues to ensure timely delivery of projects.

You will be an enthusiast for delivering improvement, with the vision to see how healthcare will be delivered in new and different ways in coming years, and the expertise to ensure efficiency opportunities can be realised as soon as possible.

You should be committed to improving and strengthening an inclusive culture within UHL, where colleagues can speak up and be involved in shared decision making, because this delivers safe care. As such, the ability to evidence inclusion, fairness and highly visible leadership are essential for this role.

Main duties of the job

As Improvement programme manager for Length of Stay and UEC Business Intelligence, responsibility for leading the delivery of the Improvement priorities related to the programme; engaging with workstream leads to deliver key objectives of the programme; and ensuring interdependencies between workstreams are clear and articulated; leading engagement with the clinical teams.

Supporting the Director of Emergency Care, Deputy Chief Operating Officer and Associate Director of Operations to ensure a robust scope and design brief is created for each project in the programme, supporting any process that is necessary.

About us

Our new strategy, developed with the support and feedback of colleagues, patients, and partners, is our compass for the next seven years (2023-2030).

We have four primary goals:

• high-quality care for all,
• being a great place to work,
• partnerships for impact,
• research and education excellence

And we will embed health equality in all we do - taking active steps to reduce the avoidable differences in healthcare that some people face, working in partnership with communities.

Our strategy is underpinned by new values and we will work to ensure they are an everyday reality for all:

• we are compassionate,
• we are proud,
• we are inclusive, and
• we are one team

This is an exciting moment as we look to the future with clarity on what we already do well and where we need to focus our energies to make an even bigger difference for the people we serve.

About the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust:

Job responsibilities

Interpreting national guidelines on behalf of UHL; developing short-, medium- and long-term strategic programme plans, including: service and performance improvement plans; complex and multifaceted business cases and business plans; individual project plans and stage plans that reflect national & local guidelines.

Supervising and analysing process mapping, benefits analysis and workload and performance audits within the programme to input into the business case process. Aclear project plan, with clear and realistic expectations in terms of deliverables and the benefits.

Managing project and programme links and connectivity; ensuring that no work is either overlooked from the programme, or duplicated; ensuring the management of total programme-related risks, particularly those associated with interdependencies and links between projects; ensuring that risks and dependencies are managed to a successful outcome and that the impact of any change is related back to its impact upon the operational area of implementation, the programme and each individual project - this will require robust management of exceptions, slippage, issues of priority, risk and resource allocation.

Managing and monitoring the programmes overall progress and use of resources. Ensuring that outputs and benefits defined within the project scope and objectives are delivered on time, within budget and to the required standard of quality. Ensuring that any adverse project or programme changes and their impact are reported through the project governance and that corrective action is taken where necessary. Escalating any issues that cannot be resolved at programme level.

Please see job description for further details

Person Specification

Training & Qualifications

• Qualifications & experience equivalent to master's degree level
• Qualified Prince 2 Practitioner / Prince 2 Agile and Managing Successful Programmes or equivalent experience of project delivery
• Can evidence an on-going self-led programme of Continuous Professional Development Business intelligence qualification or equivalent experience
• In depth knowledge of NHS project delivery or change programmes acquired through experience, formal study & self-study

Experience

• Experience at Senior Level in Complex NHS environment
• Demonstrable success in communicating complex concepts to a wide and varied audience
• Proven success in delivering service transformation
• Methods and techniques for reporting of progress against plan
• Managing multiple large projects
• Experience of procurement and contract management large, complex team management

Communication

• Communicating effectively verbally, including presentation skills in a group setting, or one to one briefing
• Excellent interpersonal skills in areas such as facilitation and negotiation
• Change management theory
• Problem solving capabilities of a high order as this role will have to deal with multiple project resource allocations and contentious influencing issues.
• Excellent interpersonal skills in areas such as facilitation and negotiation
• Ability to engage, build and maintain excellent relationships with third party service providers
• Demonstrated ability to work well with others and be respected as a leader

Analytical and Judgement skills

• Strategic planning principles, methods, techniques and tools for effective change management

Skills

• Principles, methods, techniques and tools for effective benefits management
• principles, methods, techniques and tools for effective communication strategies
• principles, methods, techniques and tools for effective project management
• cross functional & interdisciplinary awareness
• techniques associated with planning & control i.e., work breakdown structures, critical path analysis
• Communicates effectively in writing, including formal report writing, Full Business Case

Planning and organisation skills

• Confident in their abilities, can work under pressure to tight deadlines
• Understanding of the political climate of the enterprise, and how to respond to political challenges appropriately and in a manner that protects the trust's strategy and agenda.
• The ability to concentrate in a busy environment, decision making and facilitation skills of the highest orde
• Experience of organisational development and planning
• Understanding of NHS IM&T and other NHS national Policy and its impact on acute trusts

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

Address

CEO offices, Balmoral Level 3, Leicester Royal Infirmary

CEO offices, Balmoral Level 3, Leicester Royal Infirmary