Operational Manager - IPS Grow 

The Opportunity  

This is an exciting time for the organisation. As of Summer 2026, Social Finance will be delivering Fidelity Reports and supporting IPS services with their SMART action plans as part of the DWP’s Connect to Work programme. This role will be part of a brand-new team, working together to ensure that Connect to Work IPS services have the insights and plans needed to deliver the highest quality outcomes for IPS clients. 

We are recruiting an Operational Manager to lead and develop a remote team of IPS Grow Fidelity Reviewers operating across England and Wales. This includes responsibility for recruiting, onboarding, and engaging a new cohort of consultant Fidelity Reviewers, and supporting them to deliver high‑quality Fidelity Reviews and reports. Through this, the role plays a key part in driving continuous improvement in IPS quality and delivery partner performance nationwide. The postholder will work collaboratively with the Connect to Work Management team to coordinate resources to ensure that contract KPIs are met.  

This is a national role working closely with the Head of Programmes – Connect to Work and wider IPS Grow senior team to align Connect to Work activities with IPS Grow’s national objectives. There is a mix of remote and in person working across England and Wales. The postholder should expect regular travel to IPS services, and travel to in-person meetings in London at least monthly. Travel expenses are covered.  

The Team 

The IPS Connect to Work team sits within the wider IPS Grow team. IPS Grow is a national programme designed to support the expansion of Individual Placement and Support (IPS) services across England and Wales. It is funded by NHS England (NHSE), the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), and the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID).  

Responsibilities 

Building, Leading and Supporting a High‑Quality Fidelity Reviewer Workforce 

• Lead the recruitment, onboarding and engagement of a new team of consultant Fidelity Reviewers, building a capable, motivated and high‑performing workforce. 

• Mobilise and develop the reviewer team, embedding consistent ways of working through coaching, supervision, field mentoring and reflective practice. 

• Oversee the delivery of high‑quality Fidelity Reviews and Communities of Practice across an assigned portfolio, identifying barriers and shaping practical solutions to improve IPS quality and delivery partner performance. 

• Provide induction, training and ongoing support to consultant and internal reviewers as required, ensuring consistency, quality and alignment of practice. 

• Establish and maintain quality assurance, learning networks and Communities of Practice, promoting shared learning and continuous improvement. 

• Oversee and assure the quality of reviewer outputs, using data, research and evidence‑based practice to strengthen impact. 

• Contribute to the ongoing development of the staffing strategy and workforce model, including recruitment planning and capacity considerations. 

• In the future, the role may include line management responsibility for internal Fidelity Assurance Leads, subject to service needs and organisational structure. 

Stakeholder engagement and delivery of targeted interventions to support IPS services to deliver better outcomes 

• Engage and build meaningful relationships with strategic stakeholders. 

• Coordinate scheduling and planning to ensure fidelity reviews, communities of practice and SMART action plan refinement support is delivered in line with key performance indicators. 

• Provide hands on operational support to ensure all contract KPIs are met. This may include delivering fidelity reviews and supporting communities of practice and action plan development with services.  

• Working with the Head of Programmes to plan and deliver national Communities of Practice and forums for Connect to Work providers.  

• Maximise resources to support services to deliver better outcomes for clients. 

Work across IPS Grow and contribute to national objectives 

• Identify delivery risks and issues and flag these with the Head of Programmes – Connect to Work. 

• Contribute to regional and national reports and presentations for funders/stakeholders.  

• Continuously refine practice and skill by engaging with IPS experts and other stakeholders in the UK and internationally to bring the best and most up-to-date understanding of “what works” to programme delivery. 

About You  

Skills, Experience & Qualifications 

• Managerial and leadership experience: Substantial experience managing teams and projects to successful delivery of performance expectations; leading by example and supporting the team to translate research into effective on the ground practice. 

• Delivering tangible results in an IPS context: Previous background in an IPS leadership capacity; demonstrated ability to drive tangible improvements in outcomes for clients and work effectively with senior system stakeholders to unblock issues; deep understanding of the IPS model and how it applies in practice. 

• Project management: Experience delivering complex projects against project plans, timelines and deliverables that are results focused. 

• Data and IT: Strong IT and data analysis skills; ability to interpret and translate data meaningfully. 

• Negotiation skills: Highly advanced negotiation and influencing skills and a willingness to tackle difficult conversations where needed to achieve the right results for services and clients. 

• Collaborative approach: Skilled in building consensus and fostering cooperation with diverse groups. 

• Workload management: Allocating and delegating tasks as necessary, able to deal with multiple and competing priorities using analytical skills to prioritise and meet deadlines. 

Personal Attributes & Competencies 

• Empathetic and person centred: Driven by core belief in in evidenced-based employment support; takes a ‘people first’ approach in all aspects of service delivery and management. 

• Relationship building and senior stakeholder influencing: Ability to build strategic relationships, and influence decision makers to drive system-wide changes. 

• Managing in an agile way: Working within a complex and changing system with multiple stakeholders; comfortable with changing approaches and ambiguity. 

• Refining and implementing strategy: Commitment to working collaboratively and constructively as part of a team to shape our strategy and roadmap for national project delivery. 

• Building a learning culture: Commitment to learning and developing your own practice and that of the team; builds a ‘one team’ culture with a strong focus on cross team collaboration. 

• High level of trust, integrity, empathy and commitment to driving social change. 

• Thoughtful and effective communicator. 

• Strong attention to detail and accomplishes tasks with thoroughness, accuracy and reliability, e.g., quality assuring fidelity reports 

About Social Finance 

We are an ambitious not for profit organisation that helps to design, fund and scale better solutions to complex social problems. Our vision is a fairer world where together we unleash the potential of people and communities. We do this by working in partnership with local and national governments, funders, communities and the social sector to tackle complex and enduring social problems in the UK and across the world.  

Our skills include financial analysis, data and digital insight, outcomes-focused partnerships, strategy, research and design. We combine these specialisms in different ways to address specific social challenges. We create effective solutions that blend the expertise of communities and professionals to deliver better outcomes in issues such as homelessness, domestic abuse, children’s services, health, employment and skills. 

Ready to make your own impact on these issues? Then come and join us.  

Our multi-skilled team of over 120 people come from diverse backgrounds in the public, private and charity sectors, all sharing a passion for making change happen. We provide a high-quality training and development programme in-house with great opportunities for career progression. We’re a friendly and intellectually curious bunch, always up for a debate. Read more about what it’s like to work here.  

Our values 

Everyone at Social Finance believes that change for communities is possible. To help us achieve it, we have three core values that guide everything we do. We are curious, empathetic and pioneering. 

Working at Social Finance 

The fixed salary for this position is £60,500 per annum. Working for a mission driven organisation is more than just what we pay though, it’s about our culture, our approach and what else we offer. Read more about working at Social Finance here. 

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion 

We actively encourage applications from under-represented and minoritised groups, including those with lived experience of the social issues we are working to address. We are an equal opportunities employer. 

We support a range of flexible working options and welcome UK based applications from outside of London/the Southeast so far as they can meet the in-person meeting requirements for the role. We can also accommodate secondments and part-time working. Read more about our approach to equity, diversity and inclusion here. 

We work on some projects where our clients may require different levels of DBS checking for our employees. Candidates deemed suitable for a role after interview will be asked to declare any unspent convictions to ensure that we are able to resource them to projects appropriately.  

Closing date for applications: 9am Tuesday 5th May 2026 

Online interviews will take place on Weds 13th and Thurs 14th May  

Face to face interviews will take place on Weds 27th and Thurs 28th May.  

If you have any queries regarding the role, please contact david.venables@socialfinance.org.uk