Contract Manager (Covering N&E, S&IOS or Cornwall & Plymouth)

NHS Cornwall and Isles of Scilly and NHS Devon are responsible for planning, funding and improving NHS services for the people of Devon, Plymouth, Torbay, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. With an annual budget of around 5 billion, our purpose is to improve health, tackle inequalities and ensure services remain sustainable for future generations. Since 2025, our two organisations have been working together, with a shared board, leadership team and staffing structure. While both ICBs remain separate statutory organisations, we operate as a single team to address some of the biggest challenges facing health and care across the peninsula.

At the heart of our work is partnership. We work closely with NHS trusts, primary care, local authorities, universities, the voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sector, and many others to develop local services. We also involve people with lived experience to shape services around the needs of communities across Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. Through these partnerships, we support innovation, improve access to care and help create healthier places where people can thrive. Covering a diverse geography of cities, towns, rural communities and island populations, we stand together with a shared purpose: to improve the health and wellbeing of the people we serve.

The clinical contracting and procurement team provide a comprehensive contract management (including performance management) and procurement function on behalf of the ICB across Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly for all clinical service contracts. The team supports all clinical procurements and provides advice, including advising on risk, for areas in their scope. They proactively manage the procurement workplan and ensure necessary governance is in place and is effectively managed for all areas of their responsibility, negotiating (including finance) contract details.

As part of this role, there will be a requirement to work in a matrix and flexible way across multiple areas/teams to support business needs. The objectives of the role will be regularly reviewed to align to organisational priorities.

We're looking for people who share our commitment to improving health, reducing inequalities and making the best use of public resources. Whatever your role, you'll be working alongside colleagues, partners and communities to help shape how health and care services are planned and delivered. We offer the opportunity to work across a large and diverse geography, drawing on the expertise of colleagues from across the peninsula and collaborating with a wide range of NHS, local authority, voluntary sector and community partners. We are committed to creating an inclusive workplace where everyone feels respected, supported and able to contribute. We offer flexible and hybrid working arrangements, opportunities for personal and professional development, and access to a range of NHS employee benefits, wellbeing support and the NHS Pension Scheme.

Main duties of the job:

• Determine the strategic planning of contracting projects, identifying interdependencies across projects/functions, potential impacts on wider organisation, resource requirements and building in contingency and adjustments as necessary.
• Ensuring that contracts incentivise delivery of the ICBs strategic commissioning objectives, including delivery of national and local quality standards within available resources.
• Ensure that contracts deliver Constitutional standards, such as patient choice, and meet the requirements of the Provider Selection Regime and Public Contract Regulations as appropriate.
• The postholder will work closely with Commissioners, Finance, Patient Safety & Quality (PSQ), as part of a dynamic team, providing contract and procurement expertise and advice, which ensures the delivery and performance management of commissioned clinical service contracts.
• The post holder will define current processes, facilitate discussions and advise colleagues as to how best practice might be adopted in the definition of future contracting processes, document those processes as they are agreed and oversee their delivery.
• Provide line management and supervision to contract managers, assistant contract managers and support staff. Responsible for the day-to-day range of staff management matters, which will include responsibility for supporting appraisals, development of staff, recruitment and where necessary processes such as grievance and disciplinary matters.

Person Specification:

Qualifications and training:

• Educated to masters' level or equivalent level of experience of working at a senior level in specialist area.
• Evidence of continued professional development.

Knowledge and Skills:

• Extensive knowledge of specialist areas, acquired through a post graduate qualification or equivalent experience or training.
• Experience in navigating and interpreting procurement legislation.
• An understanding of the relationship between NHS organisations and wider system, regional and national organisations.
• Ability to oversee and be responsible for a budget for a department and/or service.
• Must be able to provide and receive complex, sensitive or contentious information, negotiate with senior stakeholders on difficult and controversial issues, and present complex and sensitive information to large and influential groups.
• Ability to prepare and produce concise yet insightful communications for dissemination to senior stakeholders and a broad range of stakeholders as required, to aid decision making.
• Skilled communicator with excellent writing, report writing and presentation skills; capable of constructing and delivering clear ideas and concepts concisely and accurately for diverse audiences.
• Skills for communication on complex matters and difficult situations, requiring persuasion and influence where there may be barriers to understanding.
• Skills for nurturing key relationships and maintaining networks.
• Ability to analyse very complex issues, facts and situations where material is conflicting and drawn from multiple sources and develop a range of options in response.
• Problem solving skills and ability to respond to sudden unexpected demands.
• Takes decisions on difficult and contentious issues where there may be a number of courses of action.

Experience:

• Significant experience of successfully operating in a politically sensitive environment.
• Experience of managing risks and reporting.
• Experience of developing briefing papers and correspondence at SLT or chief officer level.
• Experience of monitoring budgets and business planning processes.
• Evidence of success in efficient and effective project and programme management.
• Experience of identifying and interpreting National policy.
• Experience of researching best practice (globally, private and public sector), interpreting its relevance and processes/practices which could be implemented successfully to achieve improved performance (advising on policy implementation, where applicable).
• Demonstrated capability to act upon incomplete information, using experience to make inferences and decision making.
• Demonstrated capability to plan over short, medium and long-term timeframes and adjust plans and resource requirements accordingly.
• Comprehensive experience of project principles techniques and managing successful projects.
• Experience of managing and motivating a team and reviewing performance of the individuals.

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.

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications.