Job overview
Pathology is central to the delivery of safe, effective and timely patient care, underpinning the majority of clinical decision making across acute, community and specialist services. LSC Pathology delivers a single, integrated pathology service on behalf of four NHS Trusts across Lancashire and South Cumbria, operating at scale across multiple sites and disciplines.
The Assistant Director of Operations is a senior leadership role within LSC Pathology, supporting the Associate Director of Operations in the operational leadership, performance delivery and ongoing development of the single pathology service. The individual will provide professional leadership and performance management of Biomedical and administration staff across the network. The post holder will provide day to day senior operational leadership across the network and will act as deputy to the Associate Director of Operations as required.
Main duties of the job
Working closely with clinical, scientific and operational leaders, the post holder will ensure services are safe, effective, efficient and resilient, supporting delivery of agreed performance, workforce, quality and financial objectives. A significant aspect of the role involves leading operational transformation, embedding standardised ways of working, supporting service redesign and contributing to system wide improvement.
Working for our organisation
At LTH, we have 10,000 fantastic people working hard to deliver quality services to our patients. Whatever your role, you help look after 370,000 people in our local area & give specialist care to 1.8 million people across Lancashire & Cumbria.
LSC Pathology has more than 800 clinicians and scientists operating across eight sites in Lancashire and Cumbria.
Working with us gives you the knowledge and sense of pride that every activity you do genuinely does make a difference to support our patients & staff, ensuring we keep thriving & delivering outstanding healthcare right across our local towns.
You'll make an impact, be challenged to think differently, be bold & help innovate to keep improving things. Everything we do centres around patient care and enhancing their experience which means your role is pivotal and something really to be proud of.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Operational Management
·Accountable for the effective delivery of the Pathology service, ensuring safe, efficient and high‑quality operational performance.
·Engage clinical and non‑clinical staff in Trust and Directorate objectives, developing systems and processes designed around patient needs to support excellent healthcare delivery.
·Work collaboratively with clinical teams to support optimal patient care and evidence‑based decision‑making.
·Build patient‑centred operational processes and promote active involvement of patients as partners in service delivery.
·Maintain a clear focus on achieving all performance, activity and quality targets.
·Promote and sustain a culture of strong financial management, ensuring robust financial control and awareness across all staff groups.
·Hold responsibility for the Directorate budget, ensuring delivery of cost‑improvement targets and effective use of financial resources.
·Hold staff to account through effective performance management, appraisal and objective setting.
·Lead the management of complex complaints at senior level, demonstrating sound judgement, emotional intelligence and a patient‑focused approach.
·Be accountable for laboratory operational decisions, ensuring they are well‑informed, balanced and aligned to organisational priorities and available resources.
·Benchmark the Directorate against high‑performing organisations to inspire continuous learning and development.
·Support, develop and motivate staff while maintaining high standards of service delivery and professional accountability.
·Contribute to building and strengthening partnerships across health, social care, academia and wider system partners.
·Operate effectively across all Trust sites with a high degree of autonomy, using discretion and judgement to manage a varied, unpredictable and fast‑paced workload.
·Manage capacity and operational planning, developing plans to respond to service pressures and maintain resilience.
·Lead the capital replacement and equipment lifecycle programme for Pathology.
Leadership and Management
·Provide visible, effective leadership to staff within the Pathology Directorate and ensure appropriate structures, policies and practices are in place to deliver high performance.
·Embed a continuous improvement ethos across the Directorate being responsible for maintaining professional standards and competency of more than 500 Biomedical Scientist and ancillary staff across 8 sites.
·Lead the Directorate’s contribution to business case development and collaborative working models.
·Develop, negotiate and manage Service Level Agreements for internal and external customers.
·Develop Directorate budgets aligned to business plans and resource requirements.
·Lead the marketing and commissioning interface for Pathology services, ensuring effective contract negotiation and income generation.
·Ensure the Directorate’s objectives are met within available resources, monitoring and responding to variances as required.
·Monitor resource utilisation and ensure alignment with planned performance.
·Model and promote high standards of customer care, ensuring timely resolution of concerns and complaints.
1. Maintain effective communication across Pathology, ensuring all staff are informed and engaged with Directorate aims and priorities.
Service Development
·Lead service innovation and develop strategies aligned with Trust, regional and national priorities.
·Develop business cases, service models and supporting documentation including analytical data, graphs and diagrams.
·Work with Divisional and Clinical Directors to ensure successful delivery of key projects.
·Develop annual and longer‑term business plans that support organisational objectives.
·Lead the development and implementation of Standard Operating Procedures and operational policies.
·Promote service redesign and new ways of working that improve patient experience and clinical outcomes.
·Ensure meaningful patient and stakeholder involvement in service development and evaluation.
·Build and maintain effective external partnerships to support innovation and collaborative service delivery.
·Provide specialist advice on complex policy development and implementation within Pathology.
·Ensure the principles of modernisation, redesign and continuous improvement are embedded in all areas.]
Human Resources
2. Provide senior leadership for all Pathology departments.
3. Develop workforce and training plans aligned to service needs.
4. Develop strategies to meet sickness, wellbeing and attendance targets.
5. Ensure annual leave is managed effectively to maintain service delivery.
6. Ensure staffing levels and skill mix align with Divisional workforce plans.
7. Lead recruitment, retention and workforce development activities.
8. Ensure all staff have objectives and PDPs; ensure appraisals are completed on time.
Governance
9. Ensure high standards of probity and compliance with Trust policy and governance frameworks.
10. Ensure services are informed by evidence, research and best practice.
11. Work with Divisional Governance Leads to maintain robust governance systems.
Person specification
Qualifications & Education
Essential criteria
12. Registered Biomedical Scientist
13. Educated to degree level or able to demonstrate equivalent operational experience
Desirable criteria
14. Formal leadership development qualification (NHS or equivalent)
15. Qualification in service improvement, project management or change management (eg Lean, Six Sigma, PRINCE2)
Knowledge & Experience
Essential criteria
16. Significant operational management experience within a complex healthcare environment
17. Demonstrable experience of delivering performance, quality and operational targets
18. Experience supporting major service change or transformation
19. Strong understanding of governance, assurance and regulatory compliance in healthcare
20. Experience of workforce planning, safe staffing and rota management
21. Experience of managing budgets or contributing to financial delivery
22. Experience of working with clinicians, scientific staff and managers to support service delivery
23. Experience of developing operational processes, SOPs and cross site ways of working
24. Experience of building relationships with system partners, support services and external organisations
Desirable criteria
25. Experience supporting services across organisational boundaries
26. Experience of digital transformation, workflow automation or LIMS change
27. Experience supporting operational resilience, business continuity or incident response