Head of Digital Strategy & Investment
Job summary
Join Bristol NHS Group to help shape and deliver digital transformation at scale within one of the UK's largest healthcare providers, serving over 1 million people and employing around 28,000 staff. Digital Services includes 550+ professionals across programmes, technology, clinical systems, informatics, and data & analytics.
This senior leadership role, reporting to the Associate Director of Digital Programmes, supports oversight of a major portfolio of digital initiatives. It combines strategic planning, portfolio management, investment governance and organisational leadership to ensure programmes align with priorities and deliver measurable benefits.
As the Group moves towards a single organisation, digital transformation is key to improving care, staff experience and efficiency. The role offers significant influence over transformation priorities, investment decisions and delivery of a multi-year digital strategy.
The Head of Digital Strategy & Investment leads strategy, prioritisation and investment planning, ensuring decisions are underpinned by robust business cases, clear benefits realisation and transparent processes. Working across multiple stakeholders, the role requires strong leadership to align digital investment with organisational goals in a complex, fast-paced environment.
Main duties of the job
The post holder will:
- Lead the development and quality assurance of digital business cases, ensuring alignment to strategic priorities and value for money
- Oversee the Digital Programme prioritisation process, ensuring it is transparent, consistent and evidence-based
- Maintain and develop the Digital Services Roadmap, reflecting organisational priorities, dependencies and capacity
- Establish and oversee the Benefits Register, ensuring benefits are clearly defined, tracked and realised
- Monitor delivery of Cost Improvement Plans (CIPs) linked to digital investment
- Provide strategic advice and assurance to senior leadership and governance forums
- Lead and develop a high-performing Strategy & Investment team, supporting delivery of core services
- Deputise for the Associate Director of Programmes where required.
This role plays a key part in ensuring that digital programmes are cohesive, prioritised effectively and deliver measurable outcomes aligned to the Group's ambitions.
About us
The Bristol NHS Foundation Trust will bring together North Bristol NHS Trust and University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust to enable closer collaboration and improved outcomes for patients across the region. Through a shared vision and joint clinical and digital strategies, the organisation is working towards more integrated,efficientandpatient-centredservices.
Digital transformation is a critical enabler of this ambition, supporting large-scale service change, clinical pathwayredesignand improved operational performance across the Group.You will work at the forefront of strategic decision-making and investment planning, ensuring that digital programmes deliver meaningful, measurable benefits for patients, staff and the wider health system.
This is an opportunity to play a leading role in shaping how digital transformation is delivered across a major NHS Trust.
Job description
Job responsibilities
For a more detailed job description and main responsibilities, please refer to the job description document attached to this vacancy.
Person Specification
Training, Knowledge and Experience
- Educated to Degree level or equivalent experience, preferably with a programme or strategy focus
- Masters level qualification or equivalent demonstrable experience at a senior level
- Relevant ICT qualifications (PRINCE2, MSP, ITIL practitioner, Managing Benefits or equivalent)
- Evidence of continuing professional development
- Expert knowledge of business case development and NHS business case standards, including Green Book methodology and benefits realisation frameworks
- Demonstrable expertise in benefits management, including developing and maintaining Benefits Registers and benefits realisation plans
- Experience of managing or contributing to Cost Improvement Programme (CIP) identification, tracking and reporting within an NHS or complex public sector setting
- Experience of developing and maintaining digital or technology roadmaps in a complex organisation
- Understanding the NHS modernisation agenda and the National Information and Digital Strategy
- Understanding of NHS Information Governance Toolkit, particularly in regard to Digital projects
- Expert understanding of mainstream Digital technologies with knowledge/experience of deployment within a large complex organisation
- Significant expertise in staff management, coaching, team building and change management
- Experience in programme and project management, including PRINCE2 and/or Agile methodologies
- Experience of working near Board level, with Executive Directors, Senior Management and Clinical/Corporate staff
- Strong background in digital investment and/or strategy delivery, built on a track record of career development through delivery
- Good understanding of deploying highly available mission critical systems
Communication Skills
- Excellent communications skills, with the ability to understand and interpret customer requirements and deliver the correct level of information dependent upon the audience
- Ability to translate complex analytical findings and strategic concepts into clear, accessible communications for a wide range of audiences including clinical staff, executives and finance colleagues
- Ability to present complex investment, benefits and strategic information to senior governance forums including Trust Board
- Negotiation skills and understanding of commercial agreements, contracts and frameworks
Analytical Skills
- Ability to think strategically and deliver practically
- Strong lateral thinker with the confidence and resilience to operate in a complex, high profile organisation
- Ability to interpret complex clinical, financial and operational data to inform investment decisions
- Expert ability to assess and quantify benefits, conduct option appraisals and model investment scenarios
- Ability to analyse financial performance, CIPs and capital plans
- Ability to evaluate programme metrics and produce assurance and benefits reports
- Ability to forecast trends for resources, workforce and capacity
- Ability to assess digital adoption and benefits realisation in practice
- Ability to present complex information as clear, actionable insights
Planning Skills
- Strong organisational and planning skills to successfully implement national policies and long term strategic plans
- Ability to plan and manage complex digital investment and strategy workstreams across multiple organisations
- Ability to prioritise competing demands within tight deadlines and resource constraints
- Ability to align programme delivery and investment decisions with the Joint Clinical/Digital Strategies and Group objectives
- Experience of coordinating capital planning, business cases and investment approvals
- Ability to implement standardised processes for governance, business case quality assurance and reporting
- Ability to manage interdependencies across portfolios and system partners
- Ability to adapt plans in response to emerging risks, issues and policy changes
Management Skills
- Departmental manager familiar with line managing staff and dealing with HR and performance issues
- A leader and motivator with a successful history of building, developing and motivating teams to perform at the highest level
- A persuasive and effective influencer with professional credibility
- Able to work as a team, influence and motivate others
- Contribute as a senior leader in the organisation
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
University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW)
Address
Digital HQ
40 Southwell Street
Bristol
BS2 8EJ
United Kingdom
Employer's website
https://www.uhbw.nhs.uk/