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Assistant Director of Services

Please Note: The application deadline for this job has now passed.

Job Introduction

The role of Assistant Director Services is:

  • To play a major part in the leadership and drive of all the services that Diabetes UK provides to people living with diabetes, through leading the operational excellence and through growing our support to meet the scale of need. 
  • To take strong strategic leadership roles in the Operations Directorate, in building strong external partnerships to help us achieve scale and reach, and in the leadership and support of key cross organisation programmes of work.
  • To provide strategic leadership of other strategic assets, ie safeguarding, our Diabetes professional conference, leadership of the Type 1 work across the charity and the Customer Care Centre.

Location: Preferably based in London but will consider applicants outside London noting that team primarily located in Aldgate, London

Interview Dates: Telephone interviews 19 – 21St December; main interview Thursday 10th January.

Role Responsibility

  • Build, lead and develop a high performing team and create a shared sense of purpose across all of our UK service provision to people with diabetes, and more broadly across the wider charity, so that we directly deliver significant growth in reach and support for people living with diabetes, and our services increase engagement and support of the charity.
  • Grow and develop our leading professional/ academic conference and ensure that our Customer Care Centre evolves with the changing needs of people who contact us and respond to us
  • Deliver all programmes of work and services to people in well-defined target segments, co-created with people living with diabetes, underpinned by robust market knowledge, business planning and project management processes so that our services have the appropriate scale and reach given the size of the crisis in diabetes
  • Build operational functional excellence in all our programmes and services ensuring that our methods and standards of delivery are leading edge and provide great customer service, are responsive to demand and that we robustly monitor performance and impact and take remedial action where necessary
  • Ensure that our programmes and services reach a wide cross section of people living with diabetes especially for those with the greatest risk of complications
  • Build innovative partnerships with external organisations that help extend our reach, service and impact and develop our capacity to use new channels to market and to view marketing as a core element of our provision.
  • Provide high level leadership on a number of overarching areas of work across Operations eg in assessing the impact and outcomes in our work; in improving our customer service culture; in the leadership of substantial thematic work
  • Build productive relationships at all levels of Diabetes UK to ensure that the work of the department is well integrated and supported by other teams and that you and your teams support the work of other colleagues
  • Work collaboratively and strategically with the Director Operations and the AD Local Impact to develop and strengthen the Operations Directorate to increase the directorate’s capacity to respond to organisational and external change so as to meet the needs of people living with diabetes
  • Keep abreast of best practice and new ideas externally across a range of sectors to enable us to adopt new practices and to capitalize on new opportunities and encourage and foster innovation, and evolve the role of AD to meet the new opportunities and challenges that will emerge
  • Lead by example and through robust management processes, so that the Services team deliver best practice in all areas of keeping “Keeping safe and legal” and ensure that safeguarding within Diabetes UK is robust and well embedded through the work of the Safeguarding Lead.
  • Embrace Diabetes UK volunteering activities including your own participation through active volunteering within Diabetes UK.

The Ideal Candidate

We are looking for an experienced leader to play a major part in the leadership and drive of all these services, to help build operational excellence and develop external partnerships. 

You will have proven experience of leading high performance services, balancing the need for efficiency with sensitivity towards service users.  In addition, you will have senior level strategic influencing skills to deliver complex projects to a high standard.

Package Description

What we can offer you: 

  • Generous annual leave starting at 25 days plus bank holidays 
  • A Cash Healthcare Plan (giving you up to £1,600 towards a range of out of pocket health expenses like new glasses, dentist, chiropractor or osteopath appointments) 
  • Early finish Friday and flexible working 
  • Discounts on gym membership and days out 
  • Employee assistance programme to give you support on any issues that come up in life  
  • Annual season ticket loan 
  • Very active social scene including sport teams, gardening and other activities 
  • Generous pension provision, life assurance and permanent health insurance 

About the Company

Diabetes is the most potentially devastating – and fastest growing – health crisis of our time, requiring ongoing high-quality care and support. There are currently 4.6 million people in the UK living with diabetes, and 12.3 million more at increased risk of getting Type 2 diabetes. Those diagnosed face the risk of life-changing, and life-limiting, complications, unless they are given the very best care and the support they need to manage their condition well. As a society we need to work together now – and take action now – to fund critical research, improve healthcare and treatment, and prevent yet more people developing this potentially life-threatening condition. 

Diabetes UK is a forward thinking and commercially focused organisation, and is the leading charity for the 4.6 million people with the condition in the UK.

As we continue to improve our processes, through continual development and change, this is an exciting time to join us. With established funding streams and following on from the success of our previous five-year plan, we are in a strong position to continue developing and responding to changing environments.

We rely heavily upon the expertise and motivation of our staff in order to work towards our many aims and meet objectives. We aim to be an equal opportunity employer; the organisation recognises and respects the value and diversity of all. We gladly make the adjustments required for people with disabilities to join us. Our diverse functions mean that we can offer you a wide range of rewarding career opportunities.

Diabetes UK is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable and expects all staff and volunteers to actively support this commitment. 

Diabetes UK recognises and respects the value and diversity of all. 

We have a vision of a world where diabetes can do no harm – if you’d like to be part of that, why not join us? 

To learn more about the work we do - Click here

Diabetes UK

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