Head of People Services

Job summary

Division: Corporate

Band: 8b

Interview date: 29th July 2029

We are seeking a highly motivated individual to Medway NHS Foundation Trust as our Head of People Services. This roleis responsible for leading the Trust's People Services, People Solutions and People Business Partnering service and ensuring that this supports and promotes the development of a Just Culture and results in a fair and consistent means of dealing with Employee Relations and change management issues at all levels. Medway is a large and complex organisation undergoing programmes of organisational and culture change this represents a high-profile role within the Trust, requiring prior experience of managing highly complex People Business Partnering and sensitive employee relations issues at a senior level and excellent knowledge of Employment Law.

Main duties of the job

The role will be responsible for developing and implementing a Business Partnering and Employee Relations strategy as part of the overall People Experience Strategy, aimed at improving the overall partnership working, Employee Relations environment and management of people polices throughout the Trust, thereby improving employee wellbeing and experience of working at the Trust, reducing the Trust's exposure to Employee Relations financial and reputational costs and risks; including dismissals, tribunals and other employment claims.

The postholder will set clear targets and standards and lead and develop the team to ensure the delivery of high quality, professional, customer-focused and timely Employee Relations and organisational change management advice and support throughout the Trust. They will provide expert leadership, professional advice and support on the most highly complex and sensitive Employee Relations matters and organisational change management issues, including being involved at Employment Tribunal or in other legal employment claims.

About us

Do you have the ambition and vision to deliver our mission of the*Best of Careby the Best of People providing excellent care, every time?

Here at Medway, we pride ourselves on working together as one to ensure that our sharedvisionis achieved for our patients.

As a key partner in the healthcare of our local population, we are keen to deliver this as an outcome of our Trust-wide strategy -Patient First. Using an Operational Excellence approach to align our priorities and operational management structures, we are just over a year and half into ourPatient Firstdeployment. We are looking for creative, skilled people to join our Transformation Team and further support us on this journey.

Our culture and values define us here at Medway NHS Foundation Trust and are the heartbeat of who we are as an organisation.

OurBESTvalues underpinPatient Firstand are at the core of the care we give to our patients, the support we offer to our staff and our overall leadership approach:

B - Bold

E - Every person counts

S - Sharing and open

T - Together

Our Trust is a great choice for people who want to develop their career in an ambitious and dynamic environment; our employees are able to choose the coverage and supplemental benefits that best fit their needs and those of their families. This includes the promotion of flexible working opportunities across the Trust.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Transformation and Organisational Change

Act as the Trust lead expert on the management of organisational change, setting organisational policy and providing expert professional and technical advice, best practice insights, leadership and support to managers dealing with the design, planning, implementation and outcomes of large scale/highly complex organisational change and service reconfiguration programmes, including potential redundancies or redeployment of staff and TUPE transfers in/out of the Trust.

Employee Relations

Provide expert leadership, professional advice and support on the most highly complex and sensitive Employee Relation matters and organisational change management issues.

Lead the Trusts Employee Relations service, ensuring that this supports and promotes the development of a Just Culture and results in a fair and consistent means of dealing with Employee Relations change management issues at all levels

People Business Partnering

Lead and develop the People Business Partnering Team to effectively deliver the support needed, implementing and upholding the Trust policies and procedures to minimise any employment risks and ensuring equality, inclusiveness and consistency in all aspects of people management practice and service delivery.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Active membership of CIPD (or equivalent)
• Evidence of ongoing professional development

Knowledge

Essential

• Significant proven experience of successfully leading an HR function in a large, unionised multi-disciplinary organisation
• Thorough understanding of the National, Regional and local HR agenda
• Specialist knowledge of a range of complex HR topics including Learning & OD, Resourcing, Organisational Change, EDI, Metric analysis and use, development of workforce strategy and
• Excellent knowledge of Employment Law (current and proposed).
• Knowledge of designing and delivering specialist HR Training working in a complex fast moving, multi professional environment

Experience

Essential

• Experience of performance management and performance standards to manage a team and ensure the provision of high-quality services to senior leaders and managers at all levels.
• Experience of working with external stakeholders and/or system partners
• Experience of working at a senior level, presenting proposals, developing strategy, representing the organisation externally, presenting and articulating data and writing and presenting quality reports/ presentations
• Significant experience of planning and supporting the delivery of transformation and change.
• Experience of developing and delivering customer focused HR services, working in close partnership with HR colleagues and wider stakeholders

Skills

Essential

• Able to develop, review, consult on and implement organisation-wide people policies and procedures
• Able to advise and support senior managers in dealing with a range of complex operational and strategic people matters encountered in a large, complex organisation, e.g. matters relating to sickness absence, disciplinary and capability
• Use of People Software packages and trackers e.g. ESR or similar staff HR & payroll system, Recruitment systems, People Management systems and Casework Trackers.
• Manage multiple work strands, priorities and complex and large-scale projects Delivering a complex workload in a fast-moving environment and often to challenging deadlines
• Experience of consultation and working in partnership with trade union partnerships.

Other Attributes

Essential

• Demonstrable leadership skills with the ability to establish credibility quickly
• High level communication with written and verbal skills that can be adapted in accordance with the environment and needs of the audience.
• Ability to develop and maintain relationships across a wide range of managers/ clinicians and staff at all levels

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 (Opens in a new tab).

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 (Opens in a new tab).

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Employer details

Employer name

Medway NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Medway Maritime Hospital

Windmill Road

Gillingham

ME7 5NY

United Kingdom

Employer's website

https://www.medway.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)

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