General Manager, Women's and Children's in Watford

We are recruiting a Band 8b - General Manager to provide senior operational and strategic leadership within the Women’s and Children’s Division at West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. Working closely with the Deputy Director of Operations and Divisional leadership team, you will be accountable for the performance, delivery and continuous improvement of a complex portfolio of services. This role suits an experienced NHS operational leader with strong financial acumen, excellent stakeholder management skills and a collaborative, values‑driven leadership style. You will play a key role in shaping service strategy, improving patient experience, delivering national targets and supporting a positive, inclusive culture across multidisciplinary teams. We offer the opportunity to influence real change, work with committed clinical leaders and contribute to the Trust’s vision of excellent patient care.

Main duties of the job

• You will have overall responsibility for the operational, financial and workforce performance of your service portfolio.
• You will lead business planning, performance management and service improvement, working towards delivery of national and local targets, including RTT and waiting list standards.
• You will act as budget holder, develop cost improvement programmes and lead service development and business case approvals.
• Working in partnership with Clinical Directors, Matrons and senior managers, you will ensure high‑quality, patient‑centred services that meet governance and safety standards.
• You will provide visible leadership to management teams, support workforce planning and development, manage complex operational escalations and contribute to divisional and Trust‑wide objectives.

The post requires significant NHS management experience, strong analytical and financial skills, excellent communication abilities and the resilience to lead within a complex healthcare environment.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The post holder will be responsible for the day‑to‑day operational management, performance delivery and financial control of a defined portfolio within the Women’s & Children’s Division. Key responsibilities include service planning, performance management against national and local targets, budget management, workforce oversight and delivery of service improvement initiatives. The role works in close partnership with Clinical Directors, Matrons, Heads of Department and corporate teams including Finance, HR, Governance and Strategy. The General Manager will support effective governance, manage operational risks and escalations and contribute to Trust‑wide priorities and transformation programmes. The core working hours are Monday to Friday; however, flexibility is required to meet service needs. This may include occasional extended hours and attendance at meetings outside of normal working patterns. Full details will be discussed at interview.

Person specification

• Education to degree level or equivalent qualification.
• Studying for/plans to study management qualification.
• Evidence of continuing professional development including regular attendance on internal and external study programmes.

Knowledge

• Key issues and pace of change facing the NHS nationally and locally, assess and describe impact on services.
• Knowledge and understanding of governance arrangements and standards in the NHS and the wider health and social care economy.

Experience

• Operational management experience in an Acute NHS organisation.
• Experience of managing several complex NHS services, preferably within the Acute Sector.

The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.