Job summary
- Main area
- Strategic Workforce Planning
- Grade
- Band 8a
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- Full time
- Flexible working
- Job ref
- 082-AC009-0326
- Employer
- Health Education and Improvement Wales
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Ty Dysgu
- Town
- Nantgarw
- Salary
- £56,514 - £63,623 per annum
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 06/04/2026 23:59
- Interview date
- 22/04/2026
Employer heading
Strategic Workforce Planning Manager - People Analyst
Band 8a
We are committed to promoting inclusion at HEIW and we welcome applications from everybody recognising the value that diversity brings to our workforce. To work in the UK, candidates who are not UK or Republic of Ireland (ROI) nationals require sponsorship via a Skilled Worker Visa, unless they have permission to work via another route. Please note that HEIW does not currently hold a licence to appoint skilled workers from overseas by sponsoring them to work in the UK. If successful, candidates from outside of the UK or ROI would be responsible for obtaining their own sponsorship or visa to enable them to work for HEIW - Work in the UK.
This vacancy may close early if it receives a high number of applications. Please complete and submit your application in good time to avoid disappointment.
The Agenda for Change Pay Award for 2026/27 is effective from 1st April 2026.
Please note successful applicants with a start date from 1st April onwards the salary will be as per the 2026/27 pay award. For further detail the pay circular is available via this link https://www.nhs.wales/files/pc-resources/afc-w-02-2026-pdf-pdf?ts=1773244958086
Job overview
Health Education and Improvement Wales (HEIW) is strengthening how we support strategic workforce planning across NHS Wales—bringing together workforce intelligence, scenario planning and workforce modelling to help leaders make decisions that will shape services for the next decade.
The Strategic Workforce Planning Manager - People Analyst is a new, national role contributing to shaping strategic workforce planning across HEIW and the wider NHS Wales system. The post holder will provide authoritative workforce planning insight, advice and leadership to support national priorities, shaping data insight led workforce planning and enabling senior leaders to understand workforce risk, opportunity and future supply and to take informed, sustainable decisions on workforce shape, skills and capacity.
Main duties of the job
Operating at a strategic level, the post holder will lead the application of advanced strategic workforce planning approaches, including scenario planning and horizon scanning to inform long-term system planning. This will include exploring a range of plausible future scenarios arising from service transformation, policy change, labour market conditions, population need and education pipeline developments, and translating these into clear strategic options and recommendations.
As Strategic Workforce Planning Manager - People Analyst, you will play a key role in the continued evolution of the Strategic Workforce Planning Team as HEIW’s strategic workforce intelligence function, providing leadership, professional credibility and thought leadership in workforce planning. You will lead the interpretation and application of advanced workforce planning insight – turning complex analysis into options, recommendations and compelling narratives. This will also include building workforce planning capability across the people profession and the wider system, championing evidence- based decision making, and strengthening NHS Wales’s ability to anticipate and respond to future workforce challenges at pace and scale.
Working for our organisation
Health Education and Improvement Wales (HEIW) is the strategic workforce body for NHS Wales with statutory functions that include education and training, workforce planning, workforce development and transformation, leadership and succession planning, and careers. Our purpose is to develop a workforce that delivers excellent care to patients/service users and excellent population health. We are a Special Health Authority working closely with our partners; Social Care Wales, education providers, professional and regulatory bodies and Welsh Government.
HEIW’s is committed to developing an internal culture of choice. Our Values reflect our thoughts, feelings and beliefs in how we will, and will not, behave and treat others:
- Respect for All in every contact we have with others,
- Ideas that Improve: Harnessing creativity and continuously innovating, evaluating and improving,
- Together as a Team: Working with colleagues across NHS Wales and with partner organisations.
HEIW received the HPMA Award for Employee Engagement in 2019.
What you can expect:
- a corporate induction and 90 day Welcome itinerary,
- compassionate leadership,
- a meaningful values based performance appraisal process,
- the opportunity to impact upon health and social care services and the lives and wellbeing of the people of Wales.
Many of our colleagues and stakeholders have commented on the buzz and atmosphere we create by working together as “One HEIW Team”. Do you want to join that team?
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
You will be able to find a full Job description and Person Specification attached within the supporting documents or please click “Apply” now to view in Trac.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Masters level qualification in workforce/people management plus demonstrable experience in a workforce role.
- Evidence of recent and relevant continuing professional development.
Desirable criteria
- PG Cert in Strategic Workforce Planning.
- CIPD registration.
- Qualification in People Analytics or demonstrable experience in developing effective people analytics.
Experience
Essential criteria
- Significant experience of working within a workforce role.
- Experience of strategic workforce planning.
- Experience of analysing workforce datasets and producing actionable insight for decision-makers.
- Experience of developing, supporting or utilising workforce data, forecasting and/or scenario analysis (workforce, service, capacity, demand/supply) to workforce plan or influence workforce transformation.
- Experience of leading and implementing change at an organisational or national level.
- Experience of working with staff at senior and national levels and of developing constructive relationships working across organisational boundaries.
Skills
Essential criteria
- Detailed knowledge of workforce metrics and an understanding of the challenges with people data.
- High level analytical abilities: able to assimilate and analyse information quickly, identifying issues, priorities and potential solutions.
- Able to visualise and present understandable data and insight in ways that effectively influence others.
- Advanced digital skills to apply innovative, data-driven approaches to complex workforce planning challenges, enabling the development of forward-looking and impactful workforce solutions.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
Welsh language skills are desirable
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Cath Mulligan
- Job title
- Head of Strategic Workforce Planning
- Email address
- [email protected]
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