Senior Service Delivery Manager

Job description

Job responsibilities

As part of the main duties, you will be expected to:

• Delivery Create and lead the service/business activity to deliver the agreed outcomes within time, cost and quality constraints.
• Service Management / Oversight Day to day management and effective leadership of the service/project and the team. Provide effective leadership and management controls. Set project controls. Design the structure and organisation appropriate to stage. Set appropriate delivery methodologies. Manage effective transition between lifecycle phases.
• Business Case Develop and draft the Business Case, with input from specialists as necessary. Budget Develop the budget and track delivery within budget.
• Resources Identify skill requirements; and deploy and develop resources. May manage a team.
• Benefits Realisation Ensure benefits are identified, understood, measured, tracked and owned. Deliver the agreed Business Case benefits and outcomes. Ensure appropriate Benefits Realisation Strategy is in place and monitor longer term delivery of benefits against the Business Case.
• Stakeholder Management Identify and manage and maintain stakeholder relationships and know when to seek senior level support. Manage internal and external relationships as appropriate.
• Risks & Issues Identify and monitor project risks and issues. Develop mitigating actions and escalate as appropriate. Identify and work with related projects to manage interdependencies.
• Governance Support effective governance and decision making. Provide reporting and engage in processes that hold you, as Senior Project Manager, to account for delivery.
• Assurance Engage with assurance reviews and support action on recommendations. Organise assurance processes such as gateway reviews, as required.
• Change Management Ensure effective Change Management processes are in place to agree and document changes to deliverables as agreed with stakeholders. Cascade vision and translate into delivery objectives for the team.
• Guidance & Support Provide support, guidance and coaching for the project team. Show commitment to personal development. Promote effective individual and team performance. Identify, share and promote best practices and lessons learned to create a culture of learning and good practice that supports continuous improvement to optimise project delivery.
• Project Performance & Controls Develop and maintain Project Plan using project principles. Identify and set appropriate Project Controls. Track and report delivery against milestones. Manage project performance and report progress to sponsors.
• Communication and Key Working Relationships - The post holder will develop effective working relationships and communicate regularly with a wide range of individuals, including internally: clinical and non-clinical staff, scientists, academics, corporate staff e.g. HR and Payroll, managers and Directors. External: NHS England (including NHSX and NHSD), Academic Institutions, other Civil Service Departments, public bodies, stakeholders and members of the public. This may include verbal face to face communication, including delivering presentations and by phone, email, correspondence, reports and briefings.
• Personal and Professional Development - Undergo a programme of on-going development and education, including the appraisal process, to build on existing knowledge and develop skills to meet the behaviours and competencies required to undertake the role.

Please note this is not an exhaustive list.

Essential Criteria

• Communication between Technical and Non-technical - Ensure delivery confidence across all levels with technical and non-technical audiences.
• Planning - Detailed knowledge and significant experience in defining the fundamental components of a service/business activity in terms of its scope, deliverables, dependencies, time scales, resource requirements and budget. Ability to estimate costs, prepare, develop, commission and update business cases.
• Maintain momentum - You actively identify and address risks and identify innovative ways to unblock issues, manage dependencies across teams, or departments, and ensure teams are working towards delivery commitments.
• Benefits Realisation - Working knowledge of identifying quantifying, mapping and tracking project benefits to justify investment in the project, and to provide assurance that the benefits identified can be realised.
• Embedding Change - Working knowledge and practical experience of integrating the project outputs into business as usual (BAU) ensuring that activities are planned and completed to enable the business to implement the change and realise the benefits
• Leadership - You are confident to lead a multi-disciplinary team and can effectively manage team dynamics to drive forward a shared goal.
• Provide clarity You ensure everyone clearly understands and owns their roles, responsibilities, and business priorities. Give honest, motivating, and enthusiastic messages about priorities, objectives, and expectations to get the best out of people.
• Engaging stakeholders - Significant experience and knowledge of systematically identifying, analysing, and communicating with stakeholders, capturing needs and requirements.
• Collaboration You create an open and collaborative environment to work in, are flexible, adaptable and have a willingness to learn. You consider different individual needs, views, and ideas, championing inclusion and equality of opportunity for all effectively managing conflict, misconduct, and non-inclusive behaviour, raising with senior managers where appropriate.
• Masters level of education / NVQ level 7 in Project Management; or equivalent qualification; or equivalent significant experience in a similar senior delivery management role
• Service management or digital/data project management qualifications (e.g., ITIL, Agile)

Desirable role criteria:

• Working knowledge of applying quality management processes to ensure the adherence to those standards throughout the project delivery lifecycle
• Ability to secure the resources required to deliver a project
• Understanding of digital tools and how to apply them to maximise efficiency, e.g. Jira, Confluence
• Strong experience of delivery with public health and / or a data solutions setting

Selection Criteria

This vacancy is using Success Profiles and will assess your behaviours.

Stage 1: Application & Sift

You will be required to complete an application form. You will be assessed on the listed essential criteria, and this will be in the form of:

• an application form (Employer/ Activity history section on the application)
• 1000 word supporting statement

This should outline how your skills, experience, and knowledge, provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with reference to the essential criteria.

Please note you will not be able to upload your CV. You must complete the application form in as much detail as possible. Please do not email us your CV.

The Application form and supporting statement will be marked together.

Longlisting: In the event of a large number of applications we will longlist into 3 piles of:

• Meets all essential criteria
• Meets some essential criteria
• Meets no essential criteria

Only those meeting all essential criteria will be taken through to shortlisting.Shortlisting: In the event of a large number of applications we will shortlist on:

• Communication between Technical and Non-technical - Ensure delivery confidence across all levels with technical and non-technical audiences.

Desirable criteria may be used in the event of a large number of applications / large amount of successful candidates.

If you are successful at this stage, you will progress to interview and assessment.

Please do not exceed 1000 words. We will not consider any words over and above this number.

Feedback will not be provided at this stage.

Stage 2: Interview (success profiles)

You will be invited to a remote interview.

Behaviours will be tested at interview.

The Behaviours tested during the interview stage will be:

• Seeing the Big Picture
• Changing and Improving
• Making effective decisions
• Working Together
• Managing a Quality Service

Interviews will be held week commencing 12th and/or 19th January 2026. Please note, these dates are subject to change.

Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Location

This role is being offered as hybrid working based at any of our Core HQs in either Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool or London.

We offer great flexible working opportunities at UKHSA and operate using a hybrid working model where business needs allow. This provides us with greater flexibility about how and where we work, to get the best from our workforce. As a hybrid worker, you will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of your contractual working hours (approximately 3 days a week pro rata, averaged over a month) onsite.

Our core HQ offices are modern and newly refurbished with excellent city centre transport link and benefit from benefit from co-location with other government departments such as the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC).

Eligibility Criteria

Open to all external applicants (anyone) from outside the Civil Service (including by definition internal applicants).

Security Clearance Level Requirement

Successful candidates must pass a disclosure and barring security check.

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is Basic Personnel Security Standard clearance.

Person Specification

Essential Criteria

• Questions on experience, knowledge and skills

Behaviours

• Seeing the big picture
• Changing and improving
• Making effective decisions
• Working together
• Managing a quality service

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

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.

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.

Employer details

Employer name

UK Health Security Agency

Address

Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool or London

Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool or London

E14 4PU

Employer's website

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/uk-health-security-agency