Assistant Director of Strategic Planning & Customer Engagement Band 8C in Belfast

Closing: Friday 3rd July

BSO Headquarters, Franklin Street, Belfast

Temporary (Until November 2026)

£39.36 per hour

37.5 hours per week

Target Start date: 1st August 2026

Main Purpose

The postholder will support the Director of Strategic Planning & Customer Engagement and BSO Executive Leadership Team (ELT) in enabling the Business Services Organisation (BSO) to deliver on its strategic goals and significant transformation agenda. S/he will be responsible for the strategic development and management of a portfolio of core Customer, Performance and Planning services delivered across the BSO as well as the operational management of the office of the Chair and Chief Executive, Complaints and Raising a Concern, and Sustainability.

The post holder will be directly responsible to the Director of Strategic Planning & Customer Engagement for the delivery of a range of services to customers within the HSC and within the Business Services Organisation (BSO). He/she will support the Director in acting as a champion for BSO's external customers and negotiating Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and creating appropriate corporate mechanisms for customer feedback.

In addition, he/she will be responsible through the Director for managing a number of corporate functions, including strategic and business planning processes, business development and growth, the performance management framework, corporate and service risk and assurance reporting, Board Governance (including Self-Assessment) and communications. He/she will also have lead responsibility for coordinating the organisational approach to quality excellence.

Main Roles and Responsibilities

• KEY RESULT AREAS
• STRATEGIC PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT
• As a key member of the senior Strategic Planning & Customer Engagement leadership team, play a significant role in establishing, maintaining and communicating a clear and compelling strategic direction for the Directorate.
• Contribute to the development of a strategic plan for the Directorate and lead on the development of the division-specific strategic plan specifically in respect of Governance, Customer Engagement, Performance and Planning.
• SERVICE DELIVERY
• Lead corporate planning processes within the BSO including strategic and operational planning processes and the development of the annual BSO Business Plan, Corporate Strategy for the provision of services, in partnership with key stakeholders, ensuring a co-production approach to the delivery of high quality, safe and effective health and social care services.
• Ensure appropriate planning systems and processes are in place to support continuous improvement and modernisation in all aspects of the BSO's business.
• DEVELOPMENT AND INNOVATION
• Develop a customer relationship strategy and plan for the BSO, clearly outlining the direction of travel for customer relationship and articulating a specific plan to support all parts of the BSO to deliver excellence in customer relationship.
• Establish an innovative programme of service improvement which addresses key performance gaps and generates innovative solutions to improve efficiency and effectiveness.
• COLLABORATIVE WORKING
• Build excellent relationships with all Assistant Directors to ensure that performance management and continuous improvement are delivered in a collaborative manner.
• Build strong rapport and value adding relationships with the main customers to ensure that trust is built so as to engender a continuous flow of performance information between customers and the BSO.
• FINANCE AND RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
• Manage the budgets and resources for the Customer Care, Planning & Performance Teams and Office of the Chief Executive ensuring the delivery of agreed financial and service activity that all expenditure incurred through the provision of the Service Level Agreements is within budget, taking corrective action when overspends occur.
• Lead in contract and service level negotiations with customer and clients.
• PEOPLE MANAGEMENT
• Manage the Office of the Chair and Chief Executive, Customer Engagement, Performance, Planning, and Risk Teams across the core corporate functions of Customer Engagement, Performance Management, Strategic and Business Planning, Governance and Risk Management, Communications, Sustainability and Complaints and Raising a Concern.
• To contribute as an effective member of the Strategic Planning & Customer Engagement senior management team.
• INFORMATION MANAGEMENT
• Responsible for the Management of the Customer Services electronic Performance management systems.
• Ensure the effective implementation of all BSO information management policies and procedures in the division.
• COLLECTIVE LEADERSHIP
• Develop and maintain working relationships with other Directorate colleagues to ensure achievement of BSO objectives.
• Attend meetings of the Senior Management Team & BSO Board and its committees, as required, to provide appropriate high-quality information.
• QUALITY
• Work with customers and internal directorates to develop customer expectations into Service Level Agreements (SLAs). Manage a process to assure that SLAs are accurate and correct.
• Manage a process of auditing and monitoring of SLAs to ensure that customer agreed quality standards are consistently met. Where not met, the post-holder will be responsible for addressing shortfalls in quality and productivity with the relevant Assistant Directors.
• EMERGENCY PLANNING & BUSINESS CONTINUITIES
• Lead on the directorate's development, testing and review of relevant emergency response and business continuity plans to ensure a state of emergency preparedness for the provision of a proportionate, effective response to emergency situations and business continuity issues.
• HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT RESPONSIBILITIES
• Establish and promote a supportive, fair and open culture that encourages and enables all parts of the team to have clearly aligned goals and objectives, to meet the required performance standards and to achieve continuous improvement in the services they deliver.
• Ensure access to skills and personal development through appropriate training and support.
• PERSONAL AND PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT RESPONSIBILITIES (PPI)
• Involve patients, clients, carers and the wider community where relevant, in developing, planning, delivering and evaluating our services in a meaningful and effective way, as part of the HSC ongoing commitment to Personal Public Involvement (PPI) and Co-Production.
• RAISING CONCERNS – RESPONSIBILITIES
• The post holder will promote and support effective team working, fostering a culture of openness and transparency.
• The post holder will ensure that they take all concerns raised with them seriously and act in accordance with the BSO's 'Your Right to Raise a Concern (Whistleblowing)' policy and their professional code of conduct, where applicable.

Essential Criteria:

• University Degree or relevant professional qualification and have worked for at least 3 years in a senior management role which demonstrates evidence of leading in at least 3 of the following functions: Customer Service, Service Improvement, Performance Management, Strategic Planning, Risk Management or Corporate Governance OR Have worked for at least 5 years in a senior management role which demonstrates evidence of leading in at least 3 of the following functions: Customer Service, Service Improvement, Performance Management, Strategic Planning, Risk Management or Corporate Governance.
• Demonstrate experience of team and people management.
• Demonstrate experience of finance management.
• Demonstrate evidence of successfully managing organisational change and leading service improvement.
• Have delivered against challenging Performance Management Programmes for a minimum of 3 years meeting a full range of key targets and making significant improvements.
• Have worked with a diverse range of stakeholders, both internal and external to an organisation, to achieve successful outcomes for a minimum of 3 years.
• Hold a current full driving license which is valid for use in the UK and have access to a car on appointment. This criterion will be waived in the case of applicants whose disability prohibits driving but who have access to a form of transport approved by The Organisation which will permit them to carry out the duties of the post.
• In-depth knowledge in a number of disciplines e.g. corporate governance, performance management, risk management, quality improvement, information system, finance, staff management, contract management acquired through training and experience over an extended period.
• Have an up to date, working knowledge of information communication technology as applied to health and social care in Northern Ireland.
• Clear knowledge of all issues relating to SLA / contract management and formal partnerships.
• Demonstrate evidence of personal responsibility for achieving measurable improvement, at an organisational level, across a range of management activities.
• Have excellent communication skills, both orally and in writing, including experience of writing reports, briefings for senior stakeholders and experience of giving presentations to a range of stakeholders.
• Ability to analyse a wide range of facts and information to include policy and legal information and be able to communicate this analysis to a range of key stakeholders to include DOH, Board and Senior Management Team.
• Ability to work autonomously using a high degree of initiative. Ability to plan projects and activities to ensure that monthly, quarterly and annual deadlines are met.

Platinum Recruitment NI Ltd is an equal opportunities employer and a Corporate Member of the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC). Platinum Recruitment NI Ltd adheres to all current employment legislation.

We reserve the right to close vacancies earlier than the specified date, should we receive sufficient applications. If interested, please send your CV as early as possible. Please note only those candidates shortlisted may be contacted.

Applicants must be authorised to work in the UK and Ireland. We are unable to sponsor or take over the sponsorship of an employment visa at this time. Successful candidates may need to apply for an Access NI Certificate with Platinum Recruitment NI Ltd regardless if you already have a valid certificate. It will be a cost of between £16 - £32 depending on clearance level.