Deputy Director of Intelligence

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

 Provide senior leadership and direction for the organisation’s intelligence function, ensuring it operates as a coherent, integrated service rather than a set of disconnected analytical activities.

Set the strategic vision for how intelligence supports system leadership, enabling proactive planning, prioritisation and decision-making in line with Model ICB guidance.

Lead the transition from reactive, demand-led reporting to a more planned, outcomes-focused intelligence service that anticipates system needs and informs where organisational focus should be directed. Act as the senior point of accountability for aligning intelligence activity across platforms, teams and stakeholders, ensuring clarity of purpose and avoidance of duplication.

Ensure the intelligence service has the appropriate capability, capacity and operating model to support both day-to-day assurance and longer-term transformation and planning.

Champion the effective use of intelligence across the organisation, embedding evidence-based thinking into executive, programme and place-level decision-making.

Provide senior oversight of intelligence prioritisation, ensuring that competing demands are managed transparently and aligned to agreed organisational priorities.

Represent the intelligence function at executive and system forums, regionally and nationally, providing assurance on the organisation’s intelligence capability and readiness to meet national and system expectations.

Lead the continuous development and maturity of the intelligence service, ensuring it remains responsive to changing policy, system and organisational requirements.

Analytical and judgement skillsProvide expert judgement on the interpretation and application of complex analytical insight, including population health analytics, risk stratification, segmentation, service utilisation, outcomes evaluation and system performance.

Advise executive leaders on evidence-based decision-making, balancing analytical rigour, uncertainty and practical system constraints.

Interpretation, Assessment and Use of Data / Intelligence

Provide executive-level leadership and assurance on the interpretation, assessment and use of data and intelligence across the organisation and system.

Ensure intelligence used to inform strategic decision-making, planning, commissioning and transformation is robust, coherent and appropriately interpreted. Oversee how intelligence is generated, contextualised and applied, ensuring consistency and proportionality in its use.

Support executive leaders to understand the implications, risks, limitations and trade-offs arising from analytical insight. Ensure intelligence is used ethically, transparently and in line with organisational objectives, statutory responsibilities and system priorities.

Act as the senior authority for resolving complex or contentious issues relating to the interpretation and use of intelligence.

Planning and Organisation

Lead the strategic planning and prioritisation of intelligence delivery across platforms and analytical services.

Ensure intelligence capability is aligned to organisational priorities, national planning guidance and Model ICB core functions.

Oversee delivery roadmaps, ensuring appropriate balance between business-as-usual delivery and transformation activity.

Work with other ICB and ICS functions to plan system-wide adoption of end-to-end intelligence capabilities, supporting the organisation to shift-left by utilising a strong evidence-based approach

Policy and Service Delivery

Lead the development of the organisation’s intelligence strategy, operating model and policies.

Ensure intelligence services support prevention, proactive care, reduction of inequalities and value-based decision-making.

Contribute to system-wide strategy and service redesign through provision of high-quality insight.

Financial and physical resources

Hold delegated responsibility for intelligence budgets, including staffing, platform investment and development funding. Ensure effective use of resources and value for money, including oversight of business cases, benefits realisation and investment prioritisation.

People management, Training and Development

Provide senior leadership to multidisciplinary intelligence teams, including analysts, data scientists, engineers and product owners.

Set clear direction, promote professional development and ensure a resilient, skilled and motivated workforce.

Foster a culture of collaboration, continuous improvement and analytical excellence.

Information management

·   Ensure effective governance, quality, security and appropriate use of data and information assets.

·     Oversee the safe and compliant operation of intelligence platforms,    including adherence to information governance and data protection requirements.

·  Ensure platforms are reliable, performant and aligned to agreed standards.

·  Oversee development of self-service and supported analytics capabilities.

Research and development

Promote innovation in analytical methods, evaluation approaches and use of new data sources.

Support research, evaluation and continuous improvement to strengthen the evidence base for system decision-making.

Information Governance and Assurance

Holds accountability for information governance, data protection and assurance across the intelligence service.

Ensure compliance with legal, regulatory and ethical requirements relating to the use of data and intelligence.

Set and maintain governance frameworks, controls and escalation mechanisms for the safe and appropriate use of information.

Provide senior assurance to the organisation and system on the security, integrity and lawful use of data, including patient-level and sensitive information on intelligence services platforms.

Act as the escalation point for high-risk or complex information governance issues for intelligence services.

Ensure intelligence services operate within agreed risk appetite and governance standards.