Job summary
Join CUH during at a unique moment in healthcare, healthtech and the digital transformation of our services, as we embrace artificial intelligence to improve the care we provide.
Our Innovation team is nascent but has grand aspirations. We work within a unique ecosystem on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, part of the largest centre for life science and medical research in Europe. Addenbrooke’s is one of the largest single-site hospitals in the country with a mature Epic EHR and plans afoot for new children’s, cancer research and acute hospitals. Our academic partner, Cambridge University, has a global reputation in healthtech, AI, engineering, manufacturing and life sciences. And our neighbours on campus include the recently rebuilt Royal Papworth Hospital and Astrazeneca’s global R&D facility, the Discovery Centre. We are collectively brought together through Cambridge University Healthcare Partners, which has been a driving force for the innovation and life sciences agenda nationally.
AI in the NHS too often stalls at proof of concept. At CUH, we are building the infrastructure for AI at scale — from first deployment through to long-term operational ownership. Surrounded by some of the world’s leading AI researchers, clinicians and life sciences companies, we are uniquely positioned to move from innovation to implementation faster than anywhere else in the NHS, embedding AI into the workflows that matter, safely and at pace.
Main duties of the job
As Senior AI Implementation Manager, you will lead the safe, effective and scalable implementation and operational oversight of multiple AI tools concurrently deployed across the Trust. You will provide senior, hands-on technical project leadership from readiness and testing through go-live, stabilisation and handover to BAU, ensuring AI-driven services are embedded into clinical and operational workflows and deliver measurable benefits. Once live, you will run routine monitoring using dashboards and operational data to identify issues early, escalate risk appropriately, and drive continuous improvement–translating AI performance metrics into clear operational actions and maintaining confidence among clinical, digital and operational stakeholders.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Post-gradudate degree in a relevant discipline (e.g., health informatics, data/analytics, computer science, engineering, healthcare service improvement or similar) OR equivalent senior-level experience delivering complex digital implementations.
- Evidence of ongoing CPD relevant to digital delivery, analytics, service improvement, healthcare technology
Desirable
- Project/programme qualification (e.g., PRINCE2, MSP, AgilePM, Scrum, Lean/Six Sigma)
- Training in AI systems evaluation, real-world evidence methods, clinical informatics or benefits realisation
Experience
Essential
- Demonstrable experience leading large-scale, complex digital or AI projects or programmes with Trust-wide impact, ideally in healthcare or a similarly complex environment
- Significant experience delivering digital/technology implementations end-to-end: requirements through testing/UAT, go-live/hypercare, stabilisation and BAU handover
Desirable
- Experience contributing to national digital/AI initiatives (e.g., NHS programmes, AHSN or similar) and/or participation in recognised leadership development programmes.
- Experience in software implementation and post-market surveillance activities, including vigilance reporting.
- Experience of implementing AI-enabled tools in a clinical or operational setting
- Experience with SLA/OLA concepts, service transition and operational support models
Knowledge
Essential
- In-depth knowledge of NHS digital strategy, AI governance and relevant regulatory frameworks (including information governance, clinical safety and cyber basics) sufficient to coordinate specialist functions
- Understanding of AI tool performance at an operational level — including concepts such as false positives/negatives, model drift, monitoring thresholds and data quality indicators
- Knowledge of service-wide policy development and implementation in a complex healthcare environment
- Knowledge of the UK regulatory landscape for AI in healthcare, including MHRA regulations as they apply to software as a medical device (SaMD)
- Understanding of responsible AI principles — transparency, explainability, bias and equity considerations — and how these apply in a clinical deployment context
- Sufficient understanding of clinical workflows and operational pressures in an acute NHS setting to credibly engage clinicians and identify implementation risks
- Knowledge of benefits realisation methodology and how to design and track measurable outcomes from AI deployments
Desirable
- Understanding of health economics principles sufficient to articulate a value case for AI tools
- Familiarity with NHS evaluation frameworks (e.g. NHS England Evaluation Framework, logic models, real-world evidence approaches)
- Understanding of interoperability standards and health data infrastructure sufficient to engage technical teams
- Familiarity with DTAC or equivalent assurance frameworks
Skills
Essential
- Strong practical programme and project management skills: planning, milestones and dependencies, RAID, action tracking, decision logging, RAG reporting, change control, go-live readiness and BAU transition
- Ability to interpret dashboards and operational metrics, form hypotheses, triage issues and translate findings into clear actions for clinical, digital and operational audiences
- Advanced stakeholder leadership and influence skills, including confidence operating with and presenting to senior clinicians, operational leaders, IT/digital teams, suppliers and — where required — at Board or executive level.
- Excellent written and verbal communication: produces concise, structured briefings and decision-oriented updates; able to translate technical information into clinically meaningful messaging.
- Highly organised with the ability to prioritise effectively, manage competing demands and maintain control across multiple concurrent workstreams
- Change management skills sufficient to embed new AI-enabled services into established clinical and operational workflows
Desirable
- Attention to detail in documentation and record-keeping.
- Ability to establish repeatable playbooks/templates for deployment at scale
- Hands-on experience with Power BI/Tableau; advanced Excel; SQL (read/query level)
- Good negotiation and stakeholder management skills
- Creative and innovative thinker
- Ability to manage a portfolio view and standardise reporting across projects
Additional Requirements
Essential
- Pragmatic, risk-aware approach suited to patient-facing environments; understands confidentiality, appropriate data handling and when to escalate to specialist functions
- Political awareness and the ability to operate effectively in a complex, multi-stakeholder NHS environment
- Flexibility to respond to shifting organisational priorities, including the ability to deputise for the Head of Innovation Adoption and Collaboration as required
- Willingness to work flexibly around critical implementation milestones (e.g. go-live and hypercare periods) and to travel across Trust sites as required
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.
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. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
Closing Date: 10 August 2026
