Head of Operations

Talent 4 Good are working with a UK leading provider of community healthcare to recruit their new Head of Operations.

Role Title: Head of Operations (Region)

Location: Nationwide

Salary: DOE £60,000 - £70,000 pa

Department: Central Operations

Reports to: National Director of Hospital Operations

Role Purpose:

Accountable for delivery of contracted activity, operational throughput and margin performance across a region. Owns the end-to-end delivery from referral through to treatment, maximising utilisation, eliminating bottlenecks and ensuring efficient patient flow.

The role is focused on “operational engine management” maximising activity, optimising utilisation, driving financial performance, and ensuring all operational infrastructures (people, processes, systems and supplies) are aligned to deliver against contracted volumes and business targets. This role is responsible for translating demand into delivered activity at optimal cost.

Role Responsibilities:

Activity & Throughput Leadership

• Own delivery of referral-to-treatment (RTT) flow, ensuring patients move efficiently through the pathway.
• Drive activity vs Indicative Activity Plans (IAP’s) plans, ensuring all sites meet or exceed contracted volumes.
• Manage capacity vs demand, optimising theatre utilisation, clinic throughput and scheduling efficiency. Lead forward capacity planning aligned to demand pipelines and commissioner requirements.

Operational Focus

• Ensure all sites are operationally ready to deliver activity at planned levels:

Equipment availability

Stock and consumables management

Estates readiness

• Oversee supply chain performance, ensuring no disruption to service delivery.
• Act as escalation point for operational constraints impacting delivery.
• Oversee and act as a point of escalation for the hospital sites to ensure the physical environment is fit for purpose. Create a resolution plan where needed in conjunction with the Estates & Facilities team and escalate areas of concern / non-compliance to the Director of Operations.

Financial Management

• Accountable for regional operational P&L performance drivers (activity, utilisation, cost base).
• Drive margin improvement through:

Productivity optimisation

Efficient rostering models

Agency cost reduction

Session utilisation

• Partner with Finance to:

Track performance vs budget

Deliver recovery plans for underperformance

• Ensure maximum revenue capture through accurate coding, pathway completeness, and activity delivery.

Performance Optimisation

• Hold Hospital Managers accountable for:

Activity delivery

Operational KPIs

Data quality

• Lead monthly operational performance reviews focused on:

Activity vs plan

Utilisation

Cost efficiency

• Provide clear reporting to Director of National Hospitals on:

Risks to delivery

Recovery plans

Growth opportunities

Knowledge, Skills & Experience

Essential

• Significant senior operational leadership experience in a multi-site, high-volume environment (healthcare, diagnostics, elective care, or comparable throughput-driven sector)
• Experience in independent healthcare / NHS elective care / outpatient services
• Proven track record of delivering activity growth, utilisation improvement, and operational performance against targets.
• Deep understanding of:

Operational throughput and capacity planning

Demand vs capacity modelling.

Scheduling optimisation (clinics, theatres, diagnostics)

• Strong commercial awareness, including:

Revenue drivers

Cost levers

Margin improvement

• Experience working with data, KPIs, and performance dashboards to drive decision-making and accountability.
• Understanding of supply chain and logistics management within a service environment
• Experience leading operational change, transformation, or scale-up programmes.