Chief Digital and Infrastructure Officer: Sponsorship Available

Job summary

1st Stakeholder Event: 19/10/2026

2nd Stakeholder Event: 23/10/2026

Panel Interview Date: 27/10/2026

University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust is one of the largest acute provider organisations in the NHS, with an annual operating budget of around £1.7 billion. We employ almost 20,000 colleagues and deliver care to around 1.8 million people through seven hospitals across five main hospital sites, alongside community services and satellite locations across Sussex and beyond. We are now seeking an exceptional Chief Digital and Infrastructure Officer (CDIO) to join our Board and Executive Team at a pivotal point in our development.

This is a newly configured and strategically important executive portfolio, bringing together leadership of digital, technology, estates,facilitiesand infrastructure. The role reflects our recognition that the physical and digital environments in which healthcare is delivered are increasingly interdependent and must be planned,developedand transformed as a coherent whole.

Main duties of the job

There is a significant agenda ahead. We are implementing a new electronic patient record, accelerating our digital and AI ambitionsand continuing to improve and invest in a large,complexand varied multi-site estate. The CDIO will provide the executive leadership and strategic coherence needed to ensure these programmes support our clinical priorities and deliver tangible improvements for patients and staff.

You will have executive accountability for our digital and technology assets, including leadership and oversight of the EPR programme and our wider digital, data, AIand cyber agenda. Alongside this, you will provide Board-level leadership for our estate,facilitiesand capital programme, ensuring our physical infrastructure is safe, compliant, effectivelyutilisedand capable of supporting outstanding modern healthcare.

Reporting directly to the Chief Executive and working closely with clinical and executive colleagues, this is much more than a functional leadership position. As a full member of the Board, you will contribute to the overall leadership,performanceand future direction ofUHSussex, while providing clear accountability for a substantial enabling portfolio.

Person Specification

Essential qualifications and experience

Essential

• Educated to master’s degree level or equivalent, with substantial senior management experience at Board level.
• Active member of a relevant professional body.
• Significant senior management experience operating at or close to Executive Board level, gained in a comparably complex organisation in the public or private sector.
• Extensive experience of delivering effective digital and/or estates transformation programmes within a complex organisation, ideally within healthcare, public services, or a similarly regulated environment.
• Proven experience of leading large-scale technology or EPR implementations, with a track record of benefits realisation.
• Proven experience of setting, communicating, and translating strategic vision into deliverable operational plans.
• Extensive experience of working across organisational boundaries to successfully implement and manage change.
• A strong track record of collaboration and productive partnership working with internal and external stakeholders.
• Extensive experience of commissioning, contracting, and supplier management for major programmes.
• Experience of managing significant capital programmes within a complex, multi-site environment, ideally including a varied estate with a mix of building ages, conditions, and clinical functions.
• Proven experience of planning, policy development, and strategic prioritisation at senior level.
• Proven success in leading, inspiring, and developing high-performing, cross-functional technical teams, establishing clear performance frameworks and developing critical capabilities.

Knowledge and skills

Essential

• Knowledge and understanding of the political context, policy environment, and financial regime in which an NHS Foundation Trust operates.
• Highly developed knowledge of digital and/or infrastructure functions and their strategic management in complex organisations, including the challenges of managing a diverse estate.
• Understanding of the NHS digital landscape, including national programmes, frameworks, and regulatory expectations (DSPT, NHSE digital standards, cyber requirements).
• Working knowledge of emerging digital trends and technologies, including artificial intelligence, data analytics, and digital health innovations — including their regulatory and ethical dimensions.
• Understanding of the NHS capital regime and the governance requirements for estates and infrastructure investment.
• Strategic thinker with strong communication, interpersonal, negotiating, and influencing skills.
• Able to translate complex technical and infrastructure concepts into clear strategic choices for clinical and board audiences.
• Strong written and oral communication skills, including the ability to represent the organisation credibly at national and regional level.

Personal attributes and leadership style

Essential

• Brings absolute personal integrity and a commitment to openness, transparency and candour.
• Is resilient and calm under pressure, with the judgement to act decisively when representing the organisation at the highest level.
• Draws genuine satisfaction from organisational success and team performance rather than personal profile — bringing confidence and authority to their own portfolio while being equally at ease supporting and amplifying the work of the whole executive team.
• Has a collegiate leadership style that combines intellectual independence with the discipline to commit — someone who brings genuine challenge and diverse thinking to collective decisions, but who understands that high-performing teams align fully behind decisions once made and deliver without reservation or revisitation.
• Has the confidence to name uncomfortable truths — to challenge the Executive team, the Board and the Chief Executive where that is the right thing to do — and the judgement to do so constructively.
• Is deeply committed to equity, diversity and inclusion as core organisational values, not a separate programme.
• Holds a genuine passion for high-quality patient care and staff wellbeing as the purpose of everything the Trust does.
• Shows genuine curiosity and a commitment to continuous learning and improvement.

Closing Date: 5 October 2026