Job responsibilities
To be responsible of the provision of financial information, advice and support to the Associate Director of Operations, Associate Medical Directors and Service/Departmental Managers, meeting regularly with members of the management team to ensure that the financial position of the Division and the Trust is understood and that any potential financial problems are identified early enough for corrective action to be taken. The post holder must be capable of influencing the team to ensure achievement of the Trusts financial objectives and balancing the budget.
The post holder is required to have extensive expert knowledge and experience of financial management as they will have overall responsibility for all aspects of budgetary management within the division, including monitoring of performance and providing advice on corrective action as necessary. To take a lead role in the division in the annual budget setting process.
The post holder will be responsible for leading in the delivery of financial plan for the division and for the management/monitoring of cost improvement and cost control programmes to support the achievement of the plan.
The post holder is required to have expert knowledge of financial and accounting procedures, and NHS finance policies.
To undertake where relevant lead responsibility for the implementation and monitoring of recharging mechanisms to improve budgetary control. To take responsibility for the financial aspects of the Approval to Recruit process to ensure that funding is available.
The post holder will lead their team in the production, interpreting, forecasting and reporting of the financial position of the Division in accordance with both internal and external requirements as well as providing performance reports and formulating action plans as necessary.
The post holder will be responsible for the preparation of revenue budgets which are consistent with the financial control objectives and business plans of the Trust and which are relevant to the needs of the managers concerned and the changing requirements of Trust reporting. All plans to be negotiated and agreed with relevant stakeholders. This will include ensuring that resources match activity and income plans and monitoring performance against them during the year, taking/recommending action were necessary.
The post holder will work with the Trusts management to ensure that the needs of patients and clinical targets are met and delivered within the available resource envelope, ensuring compliance with Standing Financial Instructions and achievement of financial balance. Achieve financial duties in face of conflicting resource demands and multiplicity of service targets.
The post holder will assist the Associate Director of Operations, Associate Medical Director, and other managers in identifying and achieving cost improvement targets, income generation targets and ensuring value for money, undertaking reviews of all existing practices with the aim of improving efficiency.
The post holder will provide regular financial advice and support to the Management Teams, Service Managers, other Heads of Department and Lead Nurses on complex and sometimes confrontational issues. Creating performance, monitoring and correction reports where appropriate to allow informed decision making to take place.
The post holder will provide the Deputy Chief Finance Officer with corporate information necessary to enable corporate financial reporting. This will include explanation of significant variance movements for inclusion in the corporate Finance and Performance Executive reports and report to the Board of Directors.
The post holder will ensure that for the areas of responsibility, Budget Setting, Financial Planning, Forecasting, Monthly monitoring and Reporting to the division are done to the required standards and timetables.
The post holder will participate in the development of new costing and budgeting methodologies to provide information for both managerial and commercial purposes.
The post holder will review, for the division, the Trusts costs relative to national norms and other provider units and establishing verification of significant variations.
The post holder will monitor the service provided by the division to other Trusts in accordance with the Service Level Agreements. To discuss and renegotiate these SLAs as necessary.
The post holder be responsible for the financial aspects in any competitive tendering process to ensure that best value is achieved. To prepare financial option appraisal reports for presentation to the Board of Directors incorporating recommendations.
The post holder will increase the financial capability of management teams through the provision of financial awareness training and continuous support for senior managers and service leads within the division.
The post holder will participate in ad-hoc working groups on particular issues as required, representing the finance department.
The post holder will be responsible for the day to day management of the financial management team including identifying training and development requirements in line with the Knowledge and Skills Framework requirements and ensuring that Personal Development Plans are in place and completed according to timescales.
The post holder will provide input as required to the Trusts statutory financial reports.
The post holder will ensure that the Trusts standing financial instructions and codes of procedures are adhered to at all times.
The post holder will assist generally in the financial management of the Trust.
The post holder will be responsible for ensuring that Clinicians within the Division are fully involved in all aspects of financial management of the Division.
The post holder will ensure that staff are fully engaged in the process of change management, and in particular, that Clinicians are fully involved at the forefront of service improvement projects.
The post holder will ensure that mechanisms are in place to discuss service improvement initiatives with Clinicians and to monitor the effectiveness of actions taken as a result of such discussions.
The post holder will ensure that information is made available to Clinicians to enable them to play an active part in the development of Service Line Reporting.
The post holder will be responsible for the design and development of Service Line Reporting, which is an information system, to meet the needs of the Divisional users.
The post holder will support the review of demand and capacity within the Division and analyse the impact on the Divisions financial position.
The post holder is expected to influence strategic planning and provide challenge to the Associate Director of Operations, /Associate Medical Directors and management team. The post holder will communicate highly sensitive, complex and contentious information and will need to influence the team to ensure that services are planned in line with the strategic direction of the Trust. Highly developed communication skills and political awareness are necessary to the successful functioning of this role.
The post holder will work with the Divisional team and the Senior Finance Manager (Strategic and Financial Planning) to provide robust financial risk evaluations of business cases, service developments.
The post holder will liaise with clinicians / service managers to ensure all options have been considered, model assumptions are correct and to provide advice on accessing funding.
The post holder will work with the Divisional team and the Senior Finance Manager (Strategic and Financial Planning) to analyse the financial impact of capital equipment proposals and purchase options.
The post holder will work with the Senior Finance Manager (Corporate Financial Information) and their team to develop a corporate approach to streamline financial information production as well as develop the Trusts approach to Service Line Reporting.
The post holder is responsible for supporting the Senior Finance Manager (Corporate Financial Information) in the full roll-out of the Service Line Management to the Divisions.
The post holder will work with the Senior Finance Manager (Financial Services) to ensure that any statutory returns are completed and also understand the cashflow implications of the financial position.
The post holder will be required to communicate/present complex financial issues to clinicians and non-finance managers. The postholder will be required to convey financial concepts clearly and persuasively.
The post holder requires expert knowledge and experience of all finance systems and must be able to interrogate financial information systems and manage the data to provide managers with high quality and timely information for decision-making. Ability to use experience and knowledge to identify income and expenditure trends, and project year-end positions.
The post holder will be responsible for the financial management input into the design and development of a budget system as well as the introducing any new ledger upgrades or systems for managing the financial and accounting practices with the department.
Creates complex spreadsheets using advanced spreadsheet skills to provide ad hoc costings/information to managers. Uses other software packages for specific purposes e.g. Database.
To ensure that own professional skills and knowledge are regularly updated through mandatory Continuing Professional Development (CPD).
Plans own workload and manages the team on a daily basis whilst ensuring that staff meet financial timetables/priorities/deadlines set by Deputy Chief Finance Officer.
Any other duties as commensurate with the grade of the post.
