Senior Programme Manager

Job summary

We are seeking an experienced and highly motivated Senior Programme Manager to join the Chief Medical Officer’s Office at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

This is a rare opportunity to play a pivotal role at the heart of one of the NHS’s leading organisations, driving delivery across a complex portfolio of high-impact corporate programmes that are critical to quality, safety, governance, organisational performance and the medical workforce.

As CUH embarks on a significant programme of organisational transformation, this role offers the chance to influence change at executive level, champion innovation and deliver tangible improvements that enhance patient care and operational excellence across the Trust.

Main duties of the job

We are seeking an experienced and highly motivated Senior Programme Manager to provide coordinate, support and drive delivery across a complex portfolio of high impact corporate programmes and workstreams within the Chief Medical Officer’s Directorate.

The post holder will be a core member of the CMO Office team and will play a key role in coordinating delivery, monitoring progress, supporting governance and managing risks across a large portfolio of complex programmes.

This appointment comes at a key moment for transformation at CUH. The Trust has committed to significant organisational change and to delivering improvements at pace. This role requires a senior leader who can operate with high levels of autonomy, influence at executive level and manage delivery in a complex and politically sensitive environment.

In this pivotal role, you will deliver programmes working with executive directors, senior clinicians and divisional leaders. You will champion change across the organisation, embed sustainable improvements and ensure robust governance that enhance patient care and operational excellence.

You will provide programme and project management expertise across a range of complex, high-impact initiatives that support quality, safety, governance and the medical workforce. The role will also contribute to improving the effectiveness and delivery of the CMO office by providing robust planning, coordination, reporting and governance.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• -Educated to Masters level or equivalent experience in the field of programme management and improvement, such as Postgraduate Certificate in Management and/or Advanced Certificate in Corporate Governance and/or Managing Successful Programmes (MSP) Programme Management Qualification
• -Significant experience in project / programme management delivery with relevant qualifications such as PRINCE 2 Foundation & Practitioner qualifications

Experience

Essential

• -Demonstrable experience of leading complex, multi-strand programmes at a corporate or system level within a large complex organisation demonstrating measurable improvements in service delivery or patient outcomes
• -Experience of working with Executive Directors, Clinical Boards and external stakeholders providing assurance and influencing strategic decision making
• -Demonstrable experience working collaboratively with clinical and non-clinical stakeholders to design and shape solutions
• -Significant experience of programme and project management, including use of service improvement techniques
• -Proven track record of managing budgets, financial risk and benefits realisation
• -Proven experience developing business cases for service change, transformation, or investment, ideally within a public sector or NHS context
• -Experience of operating in high risk, ambiguous and sensitive environments
• -Demonstrable evidence of leadership experience / ability to lead and contribute to the wider team
• -Confident and experienced in policy drafting and development, including SOPs
• -Experience and knowledge of regulatory matters, compliance and corporate governance, gained in a variety of NHS or academic organisations
• -Working in Microsoft Office environment – excel, power point, word
• -Evidence of continuous personal and professional development

Desirable

• -Experience within an NHS Trust or equivalent complex public sector organisation
• -Experience working across organisational or system boundaries (e.g. ICS-level)
• -Experience supporting clinical leadership functions.

Knowledge

Essential

• -Sound knowledge of NHS organisational structures, including the relationship between trusts, integrated care boards, and national bodies such as NHS England
• -Knowledge of the role and function of the Chief Medical Officer’s office, including its relationship to clinical governance, quality, and patient safety
• -Specialist knowledge, practical application and experience in programme management, service redesign, facilitation and successful implementation of projects at a senior level
• -Knowledge of successful risk management within the NHS
• -Demonstrable knowledge of corporate governance including relevant legislation e.g. Freedom of Information Act
• -Strong understanding of healthcare outcomes data, including PROMs, clinical audits, and registries, with the ability to translate this into insights that inform quality improvement and drive measurable improvements in care

Skills

Essential

• -Ability to communicate highly complex and sensitive information with exceptional verbal and written communication skills to a wide range of audiences; meticulous attention to detail
• -Ability to analyse and present complex information in an accessible form
• -Strong analytical skills, including the ability to interpret data and translate findings into clear recommendations for senior stakeholders
• -Ability to build positive relationships, influence senior colleagues and other stakeholders, including on highly sensitive and complex matters; strong negotiation skills
• -Ability to represent CUH at local, regional and national forums
• -Achieves the commitment and support through the use of integrity and influence
• -Translates strategic direction into deliverable, measurable outcomes
• -Ability to manage and prioritise workload and to work under own initiative
• -Capable of critical and creative thinking with effective problem solving and decision-making skills
• -Ability to manage a multifaceted, complex project / programme to time
• -Significant skills in programme planning and capability to communicate operability across a variety of stakeholders
• -Ability to coach colleagues at all levels to improve organisational capability

Desirable

• -Evidence of formal Leadership training
• -Coaching qualification

Additional Requirements

Essential

• The ability to understand and behave at all times, towards patients, visitors and colleagues according to the Trust values of safe, kind, excellent.

Closing Date: 23 July 2026