Job Introduction
Programme Manager – Absence Improvement Programme
Contract: Fixed Term 12 months, 37.5 hours
Location: Orbis Riverside Road, Derby DE24 8HY/Quad Rowland Hill House, Dock Walk, Chesterfield S49 1HQ with regular travel across DHU locations.
Band: Band 8a
Salary: £55276 - £62421 per annum
Help managers build healthier, more supportive teams.
An exciting opportunity has arisen for an experienced Programme Manager to support the delivery of DHU Healthcare’s Absence Improvement Programme across our services and sites.
As Programme Manager for our Absence Improvement Programme, you will be at the heart of a high-profile piece of work with real potential to improve working lives and support excellent patient care. Partnering closely with the Programme Lead, you will turn strategic workforce and service priorities into a clear, achievable plan and create the momentum needed to deliver meaningful, sustainable change.
You will connect teams across clinical and corporate services, bringing structure, insight and energy to a complex programme. By using workforce data to understand what is driving absence, you will help shape fair, compassionate and practical improvements across policy, processes, leadership, management capability, occupational health and staff wellbeing. You will have the scope to influence senior stakeholders, solve challenges and help embed changes that last.
At DHU Healthcare, we are a team driven by compassion, respect and encouragement, where contributions are valued and every voice is heard. Together, we make a meaningful impact for our colleagues, patients and communities.
Working across multiple DHU locations, you will support the implementation of programme initiatives, translating programme plans into practical local activity. You will identify risks and barriers, support the embedding of new tools and processes, and help ensure programme outcomes are delivered consistently and effectively
As a Programme Manager, you will:
- Turn strategy into action by building an integrated programme plan with clear milestones, ownership, dependencies, resources and timescales.
- Keep delivery moving by coordinating workstreams, following up actions and bringing clarity to priorities, decisions and next steps.
- Enable confident decision-making by preparing high-quality briefings, dashboards, reports and recommendations for programme boards, executive meetings and stakeholder sessions.
- Bring insight to the challenge by analysing workforce, quality, operational and financial information to identify trends, inequalities, hotspots and opportunities for improvement.
- Shape and test practical solutions across policy, processes, workforce systems, management capability, wellbeing, occupational health and rehabilitation pathways.
- Build strong partnerships with executive, clinical, operational and corporate colleagues, trade unions or staff representatives, and external partners.
- Provide trusted assurance by maintaining clear oversight of risks, issues, dependencies, resources, change and benefits, escalating when senior intervention is needed.
- Support and challenge workstream leads to overcome barriers, maintain momentum and protect staff wellbeing, service continuity and patient care.
- Maintain financial grip by monitoring budgets, procurement and suppliers where applicable, and reporting forecasts, variances and risks.
- Make change stick by supporting evaluation, lessons learned, benefits realisation and the transition of successful improvements into business as usual.
You’ll bring:
- Degree-level education or equivalent knowledge and experience, plus a recognised programme or project management qualification or substantial experience of applying structured programme methods.
- Strong experience supporting a Programme Lead, senior responsible owner or senior sponsor to deliver a complex, multi-workstream programme.
- A track record of turning strategic decisions into practical plans and creating the governance, pace and follow-through needed for successful delivery.
- The confidence to make sense of complex workforce, quality, operational and financial information and translate it into clear options and recommendations.
- Excellent organisation and prioritisation skills, with the judgement and resilience to navigate competing demands in a busy environment.
- Clear and persuasive communication skills, including experience producing briefings, board papers, dashboards, presentations, options appraisals or business cases for senior audiences.
- A collaborative style and the ability to build trust, secure commitment and offer constructive challenge across professional and organisational boundaries.
- Sound judgement, discretion and political awareness, alongside a strong commitment to confidentiality, equality, data protection and professional standards.
- An understanding of programme governance and benefits realisation, and how attendance, wellbeing, staff experience and safe staffing influence service continuity and patient care.
- Above all, a proactive, dependable and compassionate approach, with the initiative to move work forward while recognising when to seek guidance or escalate.
For you, benefits that work.
We’ll support your health, happiness and future with benefits that put you first:
Access to the NHS pension scheme
Wellbeing support
Flexible working options
Career growth and development opportunities
For more information on the full range of benefits available, click here.
Learning, leading, shaping healthcare.
At DHU Healthcare, we support your growth at every stage of your career. With clear career paths, tailored training and the DHU Academy, you’ll have the tools and encouragement to explore new skills and opportunities, take the next step and make an impact.
From leadership programmes and apprenticeships to essential role-specific training, development is part of how we work and shape healthcare together.
Together, reflecting our communities.
We believe great care starts with people feeling valued, respected and supported. That’s why we’re proud to reflect the diversity of the communities we serve and welcome colleagues from all backgrounds.
As a Disability Confident Employer, we welcome candidates to share any support or reasonable adjustments they may need during the recruitment process.
We proudly support the Armed Forces community, recognising the strengths and dedication they bring.
For more information on how DHU can support you, please click here.
Ready to make the difference?
If you are passionate about supporting managers, improving colleague experience and helping create healthier, more resilient teams, we’d love to hear from you.
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