Senior Programme Operations Manager

Our Future Health is building a health research programme at a scale that can help improve the prevention, detection and treatment of disease. Delivering it depends on effective recruitment operations: well-planned participant pathways, reliable clinical and recruitment services, and the successful collection of data and biological samples.

We’re looking for a Senior Programme Operations Manager to provide operational leadership across our participant recruitment activities. You’ll oversee the performance and development of our recruitment suppliers, help shape how recruitment is delivered, and make sure our pathways meet programme expectations for quality, cost and delivery.

This is a senior role in our Clinical Operations team and its leadership team. You’ll bring substantial clinical research operations experience, a strong understanding of epidemiology and the UK research environment, and first-hand experience managing participant recruitment through external suppliers. You’ll understand the commercial and contractual side of delivery too: how to set clear expectations, manage performance against targets and KPIs, address issues, and plan for future capacity and procurement needs.

You’ll work across Our Future Health and with external partners to translate recruitment priorities into effective operations. That means balancing participant, clinical, financial and programme needs; using data to identify what is working and where change is needed; and making sure risks, dependencies and quality are managed across the recruitment pathway.

As Senior Programme Operations Manager, you will:

• Lead operational oversight of Our Future Health’s recruitment suppliers and the delivery of recruitment activities
• Help develop the recruitment strategy and turn agreed priorities into practical operational plans
• Manage supplier performance against contractual obligations, KPIs, service levels, quality standards, budgets and delivery targets, working closely with Contract Management colleagues
• Build constructive supplier relationships, addressing performance concerns, resolving issues and escalating when needed
• Use recruitment and supplier data to understand performance, inform decisions and identify improvements and future requirements
• Lead continuous improvement across recruitment routes, helping create consistent and effective approaches for participants
• Plan recruitment operations while balancing clinical, financial, quality and wider programme priorities
• Contribute to the design and implementation of new recruitment pathways, working with internal teams and external partners
• Lead and contribute to recruitment workstreams, keeping a clear focus on shared organisational goals and targets
• Chair key supplier and stakeholder meetings, supporting effective governance and timely decision-making
• Identify and manage operational risks, dependencies and contingencies across the recruitment pathway
• Line manage and develop a team of Programme Operations Managers, setting clear priorities and accountability while supporting their growth and development
• Work collaboratively across Our Future Health so that recruitment activity supports wider programme objectives

Requirements

You’ll have experience leading clinical research or programme operations and delivering against clear operational objectives. You’ll understand how to make complex recruitment pathways work in practice, and you’ll have managed participant recruitment through external suppliers yourself.

You’ll bring:

• Strong knowledge of Good Clinical Practice (GCP), the UK clinical research environment and relevant regulations
• An epidemiological background and the ability to understand how research design, cohort needs and operational delivery connect
• Experience managing external suppliers or partners, including performance management, negotiation, issue resolution and escalation
• A strong grasp of complex contracts and experience contributing to contract discussions and managing the relationships that support delivery
• Confidence working with targets, KPIs, service levels, budgets and performance data to guide supplier and operational decisions
• Experience of operational risk management, including identifying, assessing and mitigating risks and planning contingencies
• Proven line management experience, including setting priorities, managing performance and developing team members
• Strong stakeholder management and influe…