The post holder will carry out the following main duties of the job: Manage a portfolio of providers in accordance with the NHS Commissioning Framework for Specialised Services Review, in detail the performance of providers against financial, operational, access and clinical/outcome measures Develop, with the provider and ICB colleagues, remedial action plans to address performance failures or mitigate service sustainability issues Lead on the negotiation of contracts within portfolio, ensuring that contracts are signed within national timescales Organise and chair contract routine performance meetings with providers Manage the relationship between NHS England and contracted providers, including appropriate escalation and brokering consensus solutions between providers where specialised services are adversely affected by inter-provider disagreements Review high cost patients and manage interventions to control spend, or facilitate complex patients receiving the correct treatment in the correct setting where there are access difficulties Monitor service quality and compliance with service specifications, taking action to address quality risks and using contractual levers to support providers to comply with standards Question and challenge models of care, analyse demand and appropriateness of delivery to ensure that national service specifications, models of care and quality standards are delivered within designated service areas and Trusts Identify and implement, with provider and ICB colleagues, plans to reduce variation in spend, and deliver commissioner and whole-system efficiency savings from pathway improvements, waste reduction, demand control and other efficiency and productivity initiatives Act as business/managerial lead for service change and pathway changes in relation to providers within portfolio Within portfolio, lead on implementation of new national commissioning policy, service specifications, or nationally directed procurement actions Act as subject matter expert for the wider commissioning team on a designated clinical service area, lead for the team on cross-provider initiatives within this subject matter area and represent the team in relation to regional and national programmes Work closely with ICB; ICS colleagues to align the specialised commissioning function to local commissioning processes and structures wherever possible, maximising the provider management activities which are undertaken through joint/shared forums Where directed, proactively support ICS to take on delegated commissioning responsibilities, and assist in developing and implementing the assurance/supervision framework for these delegated functions Where commissioning functions are delegated, manage the interface with the delegated commissioner and undertake ongoing assurance in line with agreed framework