Download the job description & person specification here

MiP are looking to recruit a head of operations to lead and help shape a vibrant and growing trade union organisation that defends healthcare managers and promotes public services.

MiP prides itself on being a great place to work, with a well-established collaborative team focused on advancing the interests of our members and supporting each other to achieve that. We work hard to maintain a culture that gets the best from people who enjoy their work and making a difference. We offer a highly competitive remuneration package that includes a good salary, defined benefit pension scheme and opportunities for training and development. 

Managers in Partnership is a partnership between the FDA and UNISON, with our members belonging to both unions. As head of operations you would be employed by the FDA, and the post will be located at FDA’s headquarters in London, on a hybrid working basis.

For 20 years, we have been an effective, pragmatic trade union organisation representing senior managers and leaders working in the NHS and the wider health and care sectors across the UK. We have attracted an influential membership of 9,000 senior managers, including NHS chief executives and system leaders. We are not party-political and seek to improve our members’ working lives and the services they deliver through individual representation, negotiation, collective bargaining and campaigning. Ours is a powerful voice for health care managers and the value of their contribution. 

This is an exciting time to join MiP, as we respond to the government’s seismic job cuts and system changes. Our membership is growing at pace, and we are actively investing in our network of workplace representatives. As our head of operations you will be personally responsible for overseeing effective casework and organising and its contribution to improving our members’ working lives. You will be part of a small senior team actively amplifying the voice of managers and seeking to shape a more humane and effective management of change in the NHS and wider sector. We are an energetic, nimble organisation, campaigning to make sure that our members’ essential role in delivering the nation’s healthcare is understood and that the NHS gets the management it needs to perform.  

Does that sound like the sort of union you’d like to be part of? 

There’s no escaping that this is a challenging role: you will need to manage a team, think and lead strategically but also deliver operationally.

This is a leadership role, requiring effective people-management skills, an ability to think and act strategically and a capacity to make big decisions autonomously. You will be a self-starter, who seeks out responsibility and is comfortable prioritising across a demanding workload. You will enjoy working collaboratively within a small organisation to mobilise emerging thinking, existing talent and available resources for improvement and growth.

You will be confident working with significant autonomy and engaging with a senior management community. You will play an active role in leading MiP, whose members play a vital role in delivering health and care services, predominantly in the NHS.

Based at the FDA’s head office at London Bridge, you will be the senior manager responsible for MiP’s operational services, focused on improving our members’ working lives. This includes managing the officer team including their casework and collective representation work, developing our organising capability and delivering national negotiations and campaigns.  

The head of operations is a challenging job requiring you to think and lead strategically, make big decisions, and develop areas of national policy as well as directly manage a team.

Together with our chief executive, you will be part of a senior leadership team developing our strategy, planning our organisational development, and ensuring we comply with our partner unions’ governance frameworks, including those for health and safety, data protection and complaints handling.

You will directly support the work of our National Committee and deputise for the chief executive as needed. 

The FDA employs MiP’s head of operations and offers a great package of terms and conditions including:

The FDA and MiP are committed to equality of opportunity and treatment, both in our services to members and as an employer.

To apply, please send us a curriculum vitae together with a cover letter of no more than 750 words, outlining why your skills, experience and motivation make you the right person for the job. Submit your CV and cover letter by email, for the attention of Esther Farnese, to info@fda.org.uk.

You can download the full job description and person specification here.

If you would like to discuss the role with a member of the senior management team before applying, please contact info@fda.org.uk.

The deadline for applications (CV and cover letter) is 30 June 2025.
Interviews will be held at our head office in London Bridge on 16 July 2025.