Case StudyPublic Sector Consultancy
5 August 2022
Multi-role interim recruitment for Greater Manchester ICS
In line with NHS national strategy of integration and innovation, aligning health and social care, Greater Manchester is in the process of closing 10 CCGs and forming a single Greater Manchester Integrated Care System (GMICS).
The Challenge
The GMICS Finance Programme Director identified a challenge with capability and capacity for financial accounts across the ten-CCG footprint, as well as a looming issue with seven programme workstreams tracking behind the progress curve. Retaining permanent staff was proving difficult due to the “at risk” status of all staff pending ICS TUPE; permanent recruitment was on hold. Attracting interim staff to the CCGs was difficult due to a shortage of supply in a very competitive market. Also, the approaching demise of the CCG bodies reduced the attractiveness of even short-term roles for temporary workers with other, longer-term options available.
The Solution
To ensure we had a clear understanding of the challenge, we recruited a Finance Lead and a Project Manager to complete a ten-day diagnostic to assess the extent of the capability and capacity issues and to define the wider project management needs. The results were used to form a business case to build a central team to provide finance and project management skills to the whole ICS footprint. Working closely with the Finance Programme Director, we defined a need for 12 roles initially, made up of a blend of finance and project managers. By hosting the team centrally in the shadow ICS, we overcame the issues associated with the unattractiveness of roles within the CCGs. Furthermore, due to pooled funding, we were able to ensure value for money through shared resources.
The Outcome
We successfully recruited all posts in the defined team structure. Due to the success of this, the team have subsequently expanded the offering to 24 posts, supporting the CCG closedown, and project managing the seven workstreams across the ICS Finance Programme. Furthermore, a “fair share” funding allocation has been agreed, with all ten CCGs contributing to a central fund to support the programme. The programme was successfully delivered on time, and within the agreed budget.
“The team at Seymour John has provided vital skills and capacity to the ICS Finance programme in Greater Manchester. Their understanding of the national health and social care agenda, as well as the knowledge of Greater Manchester’s NHS organisations allowed them to quickly recruit a team that was a good cultural fit, operationally effective, and strategically compatible. I would happily recommend working in partnership with them for future complex projects that require a combination of sector knowledge and expertise.”
Ben Galbraith
GM ICS Finance Programme Director
Since 2020, Seymour John has made a total of 1,277 temporary placements across all specialisms to UK public sector customers, at the time of writing.
5 August 2022