Associate Director of Pay and Pension Services

Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust; Topsham; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading healthcare provider in Devon is seeking an Associate Director of Pay and Pension Services. This role requires significant leadership experience in organisational change and transformation. You'll be responsible for designing and overseeing a new integrated Pay and Pension service, ensuring compliance and operational excellence. Join us to influence how the NHS supports its staff and drive digital transformation.

Benefits

Diversity and inclusion initiatives

Professional development opportunities

Qualifications

• Proven track record of leading organisational change and transformation.
• Ability to balance operational delivery with strategic vision.
• Exceptional relationship management and influencing skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead the design and establishment of the Pay and Pension Services.
• Ensure compliance with national, statutory and local requirements.
• Drive complex organisational change and transformation.

Skills

Organisational change management

Strategic leadership

Relationship management

Digital transformation

Team development

Job description

About Us

Stretching across Northern, Eastern and Mid Devon, we have a workforce of over 15,000 staff, making us the largest employer in Devon. Our core services, which we provide to more than 615,000 people, cover more than 2,000 square miles across Devon, while some of our specialist services cover the whole of the peninsula, extending our reach as far as Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.

We deliver a wide range of emergency, specialist and general medical services through North Devon District Hospital and the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital (Wonford). Alongside our two acute hospitals, we provide integrated health and social care services across a variety of settings, including community inpatient hospitals, outpatient clinics, and within people’s own homes. We also offer primary care services, a range of specialist community services, and Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARC).

Our state-of-the-art equipment, leading technologies and strong links to local universities put us at the forefront of research and innovations, enabling us to provide world-class care to our local communities.

Our values are at the heart of everything we do. It has never been a more exciting time to join the Royal Devon, as you will help to shape our services as we continue along our integration journey.

Role Summary

At the Royal Devon, we know that delivering excellent care starts with supporting our people. To achieve this, we are introducing the pivotal role of Associate Director of Pay and Pension Services – a senior leadership position that will bring together and oversee Payroll, Pensions and Benefits across the whole of Devon into one consolidated, system-wide function.

This role will lead the design and establishment of the new service, ensuring its successful transition into a fully operational, sustainable model. Beyond implementation, you will provide ongoing strategic and operational leadership, ensuring pay and pensions services are consistently accurate, compliant and future-focused. With experience of delivering organisational change, you will understand how to balance the sensitivities of transformation with the need to maintain service excellence, ensuring colleagues across the system benefit from a high-quality, modern and consistent service that enables them to focus on patient care.

About the Role

This role is central to the delivery of the One Devon vision. You will be the system’s subject matter expert for Pay, Pensions and Benefits, responsible for creating and embedding a single function that delivers both strategic impact and operational excellence. Working closely with Finance, Operations, HR colleagues, and national partners, you will lead the transition to a streamlined, digitised service model, making use of automation and innovative digital solutions to improve experience and efficiency.

In this role you will:

• Provide strategic leadership to design, implement and oversee a fully integrated Pay and Pensions service for the Devon system.
• Ensure compliance with all national, statutory and local requirements, managing processes that cover over £1.9bn in pay, tax and pension contributions annually.
• Shape and deliver consistent policies, procedures and service standards across multiple NHS organisations, ensuring high quality outcomes for staff and stakeholders.
• Lead on the introduction of Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and digital transformation, ensuring our systems are future-ready and aligned to the national NHS Future Workforce Solutions programme.
• Act as the system’s expert advisor on pay, pensions and benefits, including support for senior remuneration and governance through Remuneration Committees.
• Manage and develop a high-performing team, building capability, resilience and knowledge across the service.
• Represent Devon regionally and nationally, providing assurance, expertise and innovation to the NHS Scaling People Services agenda.
• Drive complex organisational change and transformation, with the sensitivity and strategic insight required to bring multiple organisations together behind a single shared vision. This will mean not only managing the mechanics of service redesign, but also leading cultural change, influencing senior leaders, and supporting colleagues through uncertainty and transition.

The Ideal Candidate

We are looking for a highly experienced and credible pay and reward leader who brings more than technical expertise. You will have:

• A proven track record of leading organisational change and transformation at scale, ideally within a complex, multi-stakeholder environment.
• The ability to balance operational delivery with strategic vision, ensuring new services are embedded successfully and sustainably.
• Exceptional relationship management and influencing skills, with the confidence to engage with senior stakeholders across finance, operations, HR and national bodies.
• A collaborative and inclusive leadership style, with the resilience to navigate challenge and the empathy to support colleagues through periods of significant change.

This is a rare opportunity to take on a role of significant scale and influence, with the chance to pioneer new ways of working, drive digital transformation, and play a key part in shaping how the NHS supports its people for the future.

Working Pattern: 37.5 hours per week

Interview Date: To be confirmed

As an inclusive employer, the Royal Devon values diversity and is committed to creating a culture of inclusivity where everyone can be themselves and reach their full potential. We believe in fostering a sense of belonging and actively encourage applications from individuals of all backgrounds, cultures, and abilities. We recognise the advantages of having a diverse workforce that reflects the communities we serve.

Preference will be given to staff with ‘Priority’ and 'At Risk' status including NHS At Risk staff throughout Devon.

The Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust was established in April 2022, bringing together the expertise of both the Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust and Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust.

We are an equal opportunities employer and welcome applications from all sections of the community.