Contracts Manager
Job Description
Job summary
We are seeking an experienced Contracts Manager to join the Integrated Care Boards Procurement and Contracts team. The Contracts team supports putting arrangements, and the management of a large portfolio of contracts for services that support the delivery of health and care across Humber and North Yorkshire.
As a Contracts Manager you will have a portfolio of primarily non-healthcare and digital services contracts and work closely with colleagues from all parts of the organisation. The role will involve day-to-day management of contracts within a portfolio to support effective service delivery and performance. The role will align and will be responsible to the Head of Procurement.
To be the successful candidate you will be highly organised, an effective communicator, competent with technology, and with experience of co-ordinating multiple stakeholders and handling sensitive documentation.
The postholder will ensure appropriate governance is followed for the award of contracts and ongoing contract and performance management is in place, across a range of suppliers, working as part of a multi-disciplinary team.
As part of the wider Finance Directorate, the role of Contracts Manager will be busy and rewarding and offer you opportunities for personal growth and development.
Main duties of the job
The postholder will have working knowledge and experience of contracting in the NHS and public sector. This will be supplemented with ensuring that contracts within their portfolio follow and adhere to contract governance processes, which will include keeping contract registers and contract documentation up to date and compliance with the organisational requirements.
The postholder will need to be able to communicate effectively, verbal and written, both internally and externally.
The postholder will possess specialist skills and knowledge to be able to digest and interpret complex contractual information and data, which will support the day-to-day management and performance of contracts within their portfolio.
The postholder will provide specialist advice in relation to all contractual arrangements and related policies.
About us
NHS Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board (ICB) is responsible for planning and arranging the provision of NHS services to meet the diverse health needs of a population of 1.7 million people. Our area reaches over 1,500 square miles and includes the cities of Hull and York and the large rural areas across East Yorkshire, North Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire. The ICB is part of the Humber and North Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership, one of 42 Integrated Care Systems (ICS) across England to meet health and care needs, coordinate services and plan in a way that improves population health and reduces inequality between groups. The Health and Care Partnership comprises of NHS organisations, local councils, health and care providers and voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations.
Job responsibilities
The post holder will support the Contracts and Procurement Team to deliver contract management services, supporting the management on a day-to-day basis the delivery and negotiation of contracts across the dimensions of service delivery, activity, performance, quality and cost. The post holder will ensure robust contract and performance management of a range of providers working as part of a multi-disciplinary team.
The role will be required to build relationships with other stakeholders in the contracts ensuring they are appropriately involved in the shaping of the commissioning intentions, management of the contracts, and that there are mechanisms in place to understand local ICB concerns and issues and ensure that feedback is provided on these.
The Contracts Manager will have responsibility for ensuring day to day issues relating to the contracts are resolved quickly and effectively.
Core Functions
Deliver a range of functions to support the contractual processes for the contracts within the portfolio to ensure that the quality of contracted services is of a consistently high standard;
Develop day-to-day working relationships with stakeholders;
Input to the development and improvement of contract management processes, working with other functions within the ICB and key staff in partner organisations;
Support the systematic review, analysis and report on contracts within the portfolio, meeting ICB requirements;
Support the agreement of robust plans with providers to recover off track performance and assist with monitoring and managing recovery in line with agreed plans;
Support delivery of the agreed process to negotiate new contracts and re-negotiate existing contracts relevant to the portfolio so that customer priorities are met and contracts are agreed in accordance with Department of Health / NHS England guidance;
Maintain the contract governance processes for contracts within the portfolio including ensuring that the contract registers and contract documentation is up to date and complies with national requirements;
Support processes to forecast contract activity, performance and cost for contracts for which the post-holder is responsible and assist in contract modelling processes that support contract negotiations;
Assist with the process to ensure that contract activity and payments are validated;
Support the identification of opportunities for efficiencies and better value for money within and across contracts and recommend actions to the ICB;
Assess the performance of providers within the portfolio against trend analysis and benchmarks;
Develop knowledge on contract currencies including local prices and assist in managing the process to ensure that prices are applied in accordance with applicable PBR guidance and represent value for money;
Assist in the management of the process of monthly contract review. Assist with the process of ad-hoc contract review meetings ensure that agreed actions are undertaken;
Deputise for the senior colleagues in the Procurement and Contracts Team as a point of contact for contract delivery issues for contracts within the portfolio, ensuring that issues are escalated as appropriate and resolved;
Input to the gathering and dissemination of soft provider intelligence to stakeholders;
Provide contract support to procurement exercises;
Undertake ad-hoc reviews of specific contracted services, for example to support commissioning decisions, working with complex data, facts and situations requiring analysis; interpretations and comparisons on a range of options and making recommendations on the most appropriate approach;
Establish consistent standards and procedures for contracting. Interface with finance and performance teams to ensure appropriate use of national and local data sets in contracts;
Development and production of information systems and reports and supporting analysis to inform commissioning decisions, contract planning, and the ongoing monitoring of contract performance, including the production of formal contract documentation and ongoing development process to support contract variations;
Act as a contract specialist within the ICB, responsible for the negotiation and agreement, monitoring, review and reporting performance against contracted levels of finance and activity as well as key performance indicators and quality measures. Maintaining a robust and professional approach to contract management and ensuring all appropriate contract levers are utilised;
Keep up to date with all relevant guidance, legislation and NHS targets, and ensure the effective dissemination of relevant information;
Require a high level of specialist skills and knowledge and will be able to assimilate, interpret and apply highly complex guidance, information and data, relating to contracting, activity, performance and quality;
Provide specialist advice in relation to all contractual arrangements and related policies;
Provide specialist advice to the development of services through active participation in programme management and service development & transformation;
Support and represent senior colleagues in the Procurement and Contracting Team across a wide range of internal and external meetings and working groups;
Manage providers, service users and patients as necessary. This will require the post holder to discuss sensitive issues in relation to decisions, including directly to service users and carers as may be required from time to time;
Responsible for developing complex management reports, including the presentation and analysis of statistical data pertaining to performance and quality. Ensuring invoices presented for payment align with the contractual agreements and passed as such in a timely manner.
General Duties:
Ensure ICB Board decisions are implemented effectively.
Any other duties as agreed with the Strategic Contract Lead / Head of Contracts and the Assistant Director of Procurement and Contracting.
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