The Organisation
Q-support and C-support offer aftercare to people with QVS fatigue syndrome, chronic Q fever, post-COVID and long-term complaints after a COVID-19 vaccination, respectively. In addition, they share their knowledge with (care) professionals about these conditions and their consequences for patients and society. They also stimulate research and provide advice on this subject. Both foundations work on behalf of the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS). Q-support and C-support fall under a management foundation. The heart of Q-support and C-support is formed by more than 80 aftercare advisors and approximately 10 medical advisors, working in teams spread across the Netherlands. In addition, approximately 40 staff and project employees work there.
In the aftercare for patients, both foundations distinguish themselves with a demand-driven, multidisciplinary approach. With attention to all aspects of life that the disease has an impact on: physical and mental health, social life, education and work & income. They have specific expertise in-house in the medical, legal and labour fields and work structurally on building and sharing knowledge about the conditions and their consequences on life.
Q-support and C-support are founded on the academic triad of patient care, research and education. Within the foundations, columns are connected between which cooperation is normally not self-evident: the medical domain, the (psycho-)social domain and the domain of work and income.
The management foundation is managed by one director-manager. This director-manager is accountable to the Supervisory Board. In this way, it is ensured that the Supervisory Board of the management foundation exercises integral supervision over the management of Q-support and C-support and that governance is also set up in accordance with the Supervisory Board model. The works council (OR) advises the director-manager, both solicited and unsolicited, on the policy regarding the personnel employed within both foundations. Through the right to advise and approve in accordance with the Works Councils Act, they have influence on the business operations of the organisation.
Q-support and C-support consider the involvement of patients in policy-making and service provision to be important. To this end, the Patients and Experts by Experience Platform (PEP) was established, which advises the director-manager both solicited and unsolicited. The PEP consists of a delegation of the patient groups from the organisation. In addition, a core patient participation team has been set up, whose task is to safeguard patient participation within the departmental processes. In addition, patients are involved in projects or adjustments to service provision through sounding boards, focus groups and/or they are part of the relevant project team.
Q-support and C-support employ 130 people. The foundations are financed with subsidies based on the number of patients supported. Due to the resignation of the current director-manager due to her retirement age, we are looking for a new director-manager as of August 1, or as soon as possible.
For more information about the services provided by the foundations, please refer to the websites: www.q-support.nu en www.c-support.nu.
Future and challenges
Q-support and C-support are both project organisations. They are working on a vision of the future in which they may develop into a knowledge and information centre for post-infectious diseases with an associated pilot function. The new director-manager will lead the transformation from a project organisation to a future-oriented and structural organisation. Important points of attention in this are, among other things, retaining essential knowledge within the organisation, the transition of patients to the regular field and the search for adjacent funding streams.
The function
This is a challenging vacancy at an impactful organization. A position in a very complex field in the triad of care, research and education. The director-manager is ultimately responsible for the strategic course, positioning and transition of Q-support and C-support to a future-proof organization. This includes building a broad network, acquiring additional subsidies, optimizing cooperation with partners and further strengthening the lines with politics, always with the patient perspective as a starting point. In addition, fundraising and future-proofing, while retaining all the good, are important topics.
The managing director is responsible for:
- Strategic and substantive further development of the organization to possibly become a structural knowledge and information centre for post-infectious diseases.
- Transition management and organizational development, where multidisciplinary teams work together effectively and the organizational culture is strengthened. This includes securing financing and knowledge.
- External positioning and political-administrative influence, including maintaining and/or strengthening ties with ministries, scientists, patient representatives and stakeholders.
- Financial sustainability, with an eye for fundraising, subsidies and alternative revenue models.
In this role, you will continuously switch between different levels: from patient to minister, from strategy to operation, from inside to outside, but especially outside to inside. You explore the current field of post-infectious diseases, collect developments and explore the needs of patients. You connect the organization with external partners and strive with ambition to keep and/or get the consequences of post-infectious diseases on the political map. The task is therefore very broad and comprehensive. The new director-manager must be politically sensitive, a networker, someone who can position the organization externally and at the same time someone who knows how to keep the internal organization in order. The director-manager is accountable to the Supervisory Board and works closely with the Management Team, the Works Council and the Patients and Experts by Experience Platform (PEP).
The profile
We would like to get in touch with candidates who can sustain the unique aftercare work of Q and C support and bring it into the future.
This broad role requires a versatile and experienced director-manager. This requires a combination of administrative decisiveness, change management insight, political sensitivity and a strong network in the regular fields at government agencies. You have an affinity with Q fever and post-COVID patients, patients with other post-infectious diseases and patients with long-term complaints after a COVID-19 vaccination and know how to approach these target groups with empathy. You are able to position the organization at a national level. In addition, you have financial knowledge and are familiar with the world of marketing and fundraising or you are able to quickly understand it. Because it takes quite a bit to transform from a project organization to a structural organization, we are looking for a connecting and strategic leader with experience in complex healthcare and knowledge organizations.
The ideal candidate has:
Strategic and change leadership:
- Experience with transition and organizational development in the healthcare or non-profit sector.
- Ability to transform a project organization into a sustainable knowledge organization.
- Proven experience in change management and culture change.
Political-administrative sensitivity and networking:
- Experience with high-level collaboration within government, politics, policy organizations and patient organizations.
- Strong lobbying skills and the ability to secure structural financing.
- A relevant network within VWS, knowledge institutes, the healthcare sector and the social domain.
Financial-strategic insight:
- Experience in fundraising and developing alternative financing models.
- Knowledge of budgets, subsidies and financial management within subsidized institutions.
Strong leadership and team development:
- Demonstrable experience in leading multidisciplinary teams.
- Experience with hybrid working and promoting collaboration between various areas of expertise.
- Coaching leadership with an eye for employees, development and organizational culture.
External communication and profiling:
- Strong communication skills, both oral and written and with both internal and external stakeholders.
- Experience as a spokesperson and representing an organization in the media and politics.
- Ability to increase social awareness of post-infectious diseases.
Our candidate has a well-developed moral compass and you identify with the core values of
Q-support and C-support: customer-oriented, involved, expert and decisive. You fit in a position where you are both the inspiring director-manager for the employees and the one who represents the organization externally.
You recognize yourself in these personal characteristics:
- Strategically and analytically strong, with an innovative mindset
- empathetic
- Trustworthy
- Organization sensitive
- Curious
- Decisive and steady
- Enterprising
- Decisive
- Clear and transparent
- Honest, with a well-developed moral compass
- Flexibility
We would like to hear what drives you to be the inspiring figurehead of these foundations, why you want to contribute to putting the consequences of post-infectious diseases on the map? What shows that you are passionate about this subject? Why do you enjoy a position in which you have to switch, where you need a lot of energy, courage and creativity?
Offer and procedure
The salary is classified in scale 16 of the CAO Social Work. You can respond until June 1st.
A case assessment can be part of the procedure. You must be able to provide a VOG and we ask you to sign an integrity declaration.
The procedure will be supervised by Nicoline Franken (06-28887623, nfranken@bosmanvos.nl). We would like to receive your motivation and CV via the website of Bosman & VosWe would like to read why you fit this specific profile.
