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Job summary

Main area
Operational Finance
Grade
Executives / VSM: Leadership-Gp7
Contract
Permanent
Hours
Full time - 37.5 hours per week
Job ref
164-8284275
Employer
Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust
Employer type
NHS
Site
City Hospital
Town
Nottingham
Closing
23/09/2026 23:59

Employer heading

Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust logo

Director of Operational Finance / Deputy Chief Financial Officer

Executives / VSM: Leadership-Gp7

Job overview

A Career-Defining Finance Leadership Opportunity

 

Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust is seeking an exceptional finance leader to join our team as Director of Operational Finance & Deputy Chief Financial Officer.

This is a unique opportunity to help lead one of the largest teaching hospital trusts in England, serving over 2.5 million people and employing more than 18,000 colleagues across a diverse portfolio of acute, specialist, research and teaching services.

Reporting directly to the Chief Financial Officer, you will lead Operational Finance, Financial Services, Procurement and Finance Transformation, while acting as Deputy CFO for the Trust. You will play a pivotal role in driving financial sustainability, delivering operational improvement and supporting the delivery of outstanding patient care.

We are looking for an accomplished, strategic and collaborative finance leader with a strong track record of delivering results within large, complex organisations. You will bring deep financial expertise, experience of leading high-performing teams, and the ability to influence and inspire at Board level and beyond.

You will be a CCAB/CIMA-qualified accountant with substantial senior leadership experience, a strong understanding of NHS finance and a passion for developing people, improving services and delivering sustainable results.

Main duties of the job

This role offers the opportunity to:

  • Help shape the future direction of one of the NHS's most significant organisations. 
  • Lead major programmes of financial improvement, transformation and value creation. 
  • Contribute to significant investment and redevelopment programmes across the Trust.
  • Work with an ambitious executive team committed to improving outcomes for patients, staff and the communities we serve.

At NUH, you will find scale, complexity, challenge and the opportunity to make a genuine difference.

If you are ready for a role with significant impact and visibility, and are passionate about shaping the future of healthcare, we would love to hear from you

Working for our organisation

With over 19,000 staff, we are one of the biggest employers in the city with a central role in supporting the health and wellbeing of our local population. We play a leading role in research, education and innovation.

Come and join our wonderful team at NUH. We are big believers in diversity and welcome new ideas to help develop our team in order to deliver world class healthcare to the vast patient populations we serve. With endless personal development opportunities available, at NUH we will endeavour to turn your job into a career!

We particularly welcome applications from people who identify as Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic, or Disabled, as we are striving to be better represented at NUH.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The Director of Operational Finance plays a crucial role in ensuring the financial health and sustainability of our Trust. The role leads delivery of financial services and management to support our operational objectives while ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements and best practices. This position requires strong leadership skills, financial insight, deep understanding of healthcare finance, and the ability to deliver high-quality, cost-effective healthcare services.

The role reports into the Chief Financial Officer and is responsible for directing the Financial Services and Finance Management teams, the Procurement Directorate, and strategic oversight of the transformation of the Finance team, ensuring a high quality provision of service to the Trust. The post holder will lead and motivate teams effectively as well as building strong relationships with a range of stakeholders and partners.

 

The role work collaboratively with the whole Financial leadership team, and in particular with the Director of Strategic Finance, the Chief Financial Officer and ICS finance colleagues. Close working relationships will ensure that operational financial planning and performance arrangements are designed in a way which takes into account capital and revenue, and supports delivery of strategic financial plans and financial architecture and incentives.

For a full list of key job responsibilities please see the attached Job Description.

Person specification

Training and Qualifications

Essential criteria
  • Educated to degree level (or equivalent)
  • CCAB accounting qualification with significant post qualification experience.
  • Must have significant evidenced continual professional development
Desirable criteria
  • Doctorate/ Masters in a subject relevant to the role or equivalent level management / operational experience

Experience

Essential criteria
  • Expert understanding of the NHS finance regime
  • Experience of delivering complex change programmes
  • Experience of applying programme management techniques
  • Experience in managing teams
  • Experience working in a senior leadership role within a large, complex organisation
  • Must be able to demonstrate substantial experience of leadership across multiple financial disciplines and multiple stakeholders.
  • Must be able to demonstrate significant experience of strategic financial leadership at a personal level across multiple financial disciplines; with evidence of achieving cross-discipline, targets/goals.
  • Must be able to demonstrate substantial experience in financial management of both capital and revenue budgets; including evidence of cost improvements/efficiencies as well as in financial planning.
  • Must be able to demonstrate experience in dealing with complex people issues and providing pastoral leadership to teams
Desirable criteria
  • Experience of working at Board level with exceptional track record of achievements.
  • Deputy or Director level experience

Communication and Relationship Skills

Essential criteria
  • Proven track record of building successful teams
  • Able to work collaboratively with partner organisations
Desirable criteria
  • To have received media training

Analytical and Judgement Skills

Essential criteria
  • Knowledge of NHS policies and regulations
  • Able to manage a multiplicity of targets and objectives
  • Strategic thinker
Desirable criteria
  • Able to judge value for money in its broadest sense
  • Able to analyse highly complex and technical information within tight timescales

Planning and Organisation Skills

Essential criteria
  • Ability to interpret national, health and broad organisational policies and establish the way in which these will be implemented and interpreted
  • Able to manage and prioritise conflicting demands and meeting various deadlines required for producing highly complex tasks requiring a high level of accuracy and attention to detail
  • Proven record of pro-active performance management
  • Able to work independently and on own initiative

Physical Skills

Essential criteria
  • Able to work across the local health community and travel often at short notice
  • Advanced IT skills to manage and report on highly complex performance management information

Employer certification / accreditation badges

Trust IDApprenticeships logoNo smoking policyAge positiveDisability confident leaderArmed Forces Covenant Gold AwardMindful employer.  Being positive about mental health.Care Leaver CovenantNHS Rainbow badgeCareLeaver Covenantadded for NUH

Applicant requirements

The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Documents to download

Apply online now

Further details / informal visits contact

Name
Helen Johnson
Job title
EA to Chief Financial Officer
Email address
[email protected]
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