Finance Business Partner – Strategic Finance

Job description

Job responsibilities

Financial Strategy and Planning

1. Support the production of multi-layer financial medium/long term plans of Trust ensuring incorporation of the effects of all risks and opportunities across the Trust. The post holder will work with data, facts and situations requiring analysis, interpretations and comparisons on a range of options.

2. Supporting the delivery of the strategic finance function by providing future focussed project decision support, technical financial advice and business intelligence.

3. Building effective relationships, internally, to effectively challenge performance, decision-making and outcomes.

Strategic Developments, Transactions and Trust-wide Business Cases

1. Support with business case development including Five Point Case Approach. This includes financial modelling, detailed financial analysis (including demand & capacity modelling), and investment appraisal in support of improving the quality of business cases and expediting decision-making, implementation and benefits realisation. Taking responsibility for the accuracy of the financial analysis. This includes the application of recognised investment appraisal techniques to proposals to improve decision making and ensure that developments can withstand robust financial scrutiny.

2. Support negotiation of commissioning agreements with external organisations for services provided or received to ensure that income is maximised or best value for money is achieved respectively e.g. local price reviews, PLICs/Reference costs.

3. Support with benchmarking and value for money audits to ensure best practice and optimal utilisation of resources in projects.

4. Support the Trust in setting realistic and achievable waste reduction/efficiency targets and developing robust plans that ensure and maximise delivery; both on an annual basis and for the medium/long-term plans.

5. Identification and achievement of waste reductions and productivity improvements using benchmarking and other comparative data to inform this process e.g. PLICs, GIRFT, Model Hospital etc that impacts modelling.

Governance

1. Support the maintenance of the Standing Financial Instructions and internal financial control procedures to ensure these operate as designed and provide appropriate levels of assurance on accuracy, completeness and anti-fraud measures.

2. Support with ensuring that strategic financial risks are identified and properly assessed so that adequate arrangements for managing them can be implemented.

Communication

1. The post holder may be required to support with writing high quality papers/business cases on all financial accounting, reporting and related issues; with appropriate consideration of purpose, background, guidance i.e. relevant accounting standards, laws and regulations, policies etc., materiality, analysis, risk, conclusions/recommendations.

2. The post holder may be required to present highly complex and highly sensitive financial information to small audiences of varying experience, disciplines and seniority.

3. Represent the Finance Department and its interests at internal meetings/events as required, acting independently, and effectively.

Service Delivery and Improvement

1. Maintain an up to date, in depth specialist knowledge theory and experience of financial and accounting procedures, financial aspects of relevant legislation and financial policies (governmental and NHS).

2. Identification and analysis of the consequences and risks of short and long term changes; ensuring that any impacts are communicated/escalated and understood.

3. Maintain a good understanding of Standing Financial Instructions (SFIs) and ensures they are followed across the Trust, involving training and advising staff and monitoring compliance. Where breaches are discovered, ensure appropriate action is taken, in compliance with Trust policies.

4. Supports innovative and continuous process review and improvement for Strategic planning activities, to ensure that:

i. Processes and procedures are up-to-date, relevant and efficient, minimising manual transactions, and delivering standardisation;

ii. Reporting solutions are cutting edge and effective;

iii. Financial systems are appropriate, efficient and effectively used; and

iv. Governance arrangements are aligned and adequate.

5. Contributes to and influences process improvement and transformation throughout the Trust to ensure financial requirements are appropriately met and financial governance is maintained.

People Management and Development

1. Support motivating staff to meet deadlines and targets, recruitment, training, appraisal, implementation of HR policies and dealing with disciplinary/performance issues.

2. Support the personal development of any staff and ensure that every member of staff is regularly appraised, has a Personal Development Plan and is compliant with statutory and mandatory training requirements.

Patient Care Delivery

Ensures the best use of resources to support patient care

Learning and Development

Attend mandatory training updates as required.

Undertake training as necessary in line with the development of the post and as agreed with the line manager as part of the personal development process.

Achieve and demonstrate agreed standards of personal and professional development within agreed timescales.

Identify own learning needs and jointly plan training requirements with your line manager

Participate in the Trusts appraisal process to discuss how your role will help deliver the best possible care to our patients and help to deliver any changes in service.

This job description is an outline of the role and responsibilities. From time to time due to the needs of the service, we may ask you to flexibly undertake other duties that are consistent with your role and banding, including project work, internal job rotation and absence cover.

The job description and person specification may be reviewed on an ongoing basis in accordance with the changing needs of the department and the organisation.

Person Specification

Professional Registration

Essential

• Acquisition of the skills below is considered to require experience in a relevant financial department, demonstrating experience equivalent to a Master's degree. Part-qualified CCAB Evidence of participating in Continuing Professional Development to the required level expected of a Professional Accountancy Body.

Experience/ Qualifications

Essential

• Experience of preparing Business Cases to support changes to service delivery and advising on the revenue consequences. Experience of working on a diverse set of projects at one time and to meet imposed deadlines. Experience Medium/Long Term Financial Planning

Desirable

• Experience of supporting Business cases through governance process Experience Presenting Medium/Long Term Financial Planning to senior audience, Experience of Patient Level Costing and Service Line Reporting

Specific Requirements

Essential

• Ability to participate in setting the short and medium term objectives for the department. Ability to set priorities for a team of professionals to ensure operational objectives are met within a deadline. Excellent organisational and prioritising skills. Evidence of meeting challenging corporate and personal targets Expert with Excel Microsoft Office applications

Freedom to Act

Essential

• Ability to work autonomously, liaise and coordinate the Team on a day to day basis and to take appropriate action as necessary. Identify and adhere to best practice. Responsible for own professional actions and have sufficient autonomy for the delivery of the role. Works to achieve agreed objectives and is given freedom to do this in own way, working within broad professional policies; acts without reference to manager; acts as lead specialist in a particular financial area.

Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion

Essential

• Evidence of having undertaken own development to improve understanding of equalities issues
• Evidence of having championed diversity in previous roles (as appropriate to role).

Skills

Essential

• Evidence of having undertaken own development to improve understanding of equalities issues Able to work with a high degree of accuracy in a time constrained environment

People Management and Development

Essential

• Supporting people to help resolve financial/project issues.

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

University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust (279)

Address

University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust

21 Farncombe Road,

Worthing,

BN11 2BW

Employer's website

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