Strategic and hands-on center leader for CSI (Fælleshåb and Skovbakken)

Do you want to lead two specialized residential facilities and create the best possible framework for the people who live here? Then you may be Middelfart Municipality's new center leader for the Center for Specialized Interventions.

In the Center for Specialized Interventions we are seeking a center leader who has the heart in the work with people with disabilities. You are genuinely focused on the citizens' lives, possibilities and self-determination, and you are able to translate this engagement into clear leadership direction, high professional quality and a stable everyday life at the residences Fælleshåb and Skovbakken.

In Middelfart Municipality we work based on the vision “Room to grow – space to live.” In the welfare area this means that we want to create good conditions for people to live a good life on their own terms – also when they need help and support.

As center leader you must stand for this approach in the continued development of Fælleshåb and Skovbakken. You must help ensure that citizens are met with presence, professionalism, and a holistic view, and that everyday life provides opportunities for development, participation and security.

Your task

CSI was established on April 1, 2025 as a common organizational framework around the residences Fælleshåb and Skovbakken. The center is therefore still a relatively new operating community. There has been targeted work to seize the opportunities in the new organization, and the first traces of a common structure and direction have been laid.

As center leader you must ensure continuity in this work. You must follow decisions through to the end and ensure that the professional and organizational initiatives are fully implemented and have lasting effects – for the benefit of residents at Fælleshåb and Skovbakken.

We want a center leader who

• is visible and accessible at both residences and has a curious approach to residents, relatives and colleagues,
• leads strategically and at the same time takes action when a concrete situation requires it,
• sets a clear professional direction, anchored in the citizens' needs, desires and right to a dignified life,
• ensures high professional quality in a 24-hour area with multiple professional groups and complex tasks,
• creates continuity and follows decisions through to the end, so the development of professional quality becomes stable practice,
• strengthens collaboration between Fælleshåb and Skovbakken and at the same time has an eye for the fact that the two residences may have different needs,
• gives department heads freedom and a real management space while being close with clear expectations, support and sparring,
• unites the engaged leadership team around common goals, systematic work and learning across,
• is a bearer of decent, transparent and mentalizing collaboration with citizens, relatives and colleagues,
• keeps a firm hand on operations and budget and at the same time develops and profiles the specialized disability area.

What you should be able to and want to do

You have solid leadership experience from a complex welfare area. We would like you to have experience from the disability sector and in-depth knowledge of managing around-the-clock operations. It is important that you know the area's professional, human and operational conditions – and that you know this is where you want to place your engagement.

You can set strategic direction and translate it into concrete practice together with colleagues. You work systematically, follow up and create clarity about responsibilities, decisions and progress. At the same time you are present and accessible: you listen, stand firm and act when needed.

You navigate safely in a politically governed organization and manage to translate political decisions and strategic goals into professional quality, sustainable operations and meaningful solutions for citizens. At the same time you have an eye for future challenges and opportunities in the disability field and can drive development in close collaboration with politicians, partners and the organization.

You have a strong financial understanding and can create alignment between professional quality, safe operations and a balanced budget. Above all, you are driven by creating good lives and good frameworks for people with disabilities. Citizens' quality of life, self-determination and well-being are your natural starting point.

You will be part of

CSI is the framework for the two residences, Fælleshåb and Skovbakken, with dedicated staff and leaders who every day work to ensure professional quality, create security, development and quality of life for the citizens.

The leadership group consists, in addition to you as center leader, of three department heads with strong engagement, high professionalism and need for both freedom and common direction.

In establishing CSI, a number of tracks have been laid for the development of the organization, and your task will include creating continuity and anchoring. At the same time you will be part of the center leadership group in the Social and Psychiatry Department, where we work on development across centers. In the department there is an important agenda concerning the development of our day activities, which have great significance for residents of Fælleshåb and Skovbakken.

Employment terms

The position is full-time and salary is according to the applicable collective agreement.

You report to the head of Social and Psychiatry and are part of the Social and Health Administration's management community. Your responsibility includes the overall professional, personnel, financial and organizational leadership of CSI.

Start no later than January 1, 2027.

If you would like to hear more about the position, you are welcome to contact the head of Social and Psychiatry, Michael Metzsch, via email [email protected].

Application

Send your application and CV no later than October 30, 2026 via Middelfart Municipality's recruitment system.

First interviews are expected to be held on November 12, 2026, second interview on November 23, 2026. Candidates proceeding to the second interview must undergo a candidate test and for the second interview a case will be used as the basis for discussion.

Profile description

Profile description – Center Leader.

• Introduction

Middelfart Municipality is seeking a strategic and present center leader for the overall management of the two specialized residences Fælleshåb and Skovbakken. The center leader must as a leader have the heart in the work with people with disabilities and be genuinely concerned with citizens' lives, possibilities and self-determination. The task is to translate this engagement into clear leadership direction, high professional quality and a stable everyday life – while ensuring continuity and progress in the continued development of the Center for Specialized Interventions (CSI).

• About Middelfart Municipality

Middelfart Municipality is a well-run and ambitious municipality with a short path from thought to action and a culture characterized by trust, collaboration, and high professional quality.

We work from the vision "Room to grow - space to live". In the welfare area this means that we want to create good frames for people to live a good life on their own terms – also when they need help and support.

As center leader you must stand for this approach in the continued development of Fælleshåb and Skovbakken. You must help ensure that citizens are met with presence, professionalism and a holistic view, and that everyday life provides opportunities for development, participation and security.

In social and psychiatric areas we work to strengthen the quality of the core task and create a robust and sustainable organization that can both meet current and future citizens' needs. It requires professional curiosity, cross-cutting collaboration and courage to develop practice when needs change.

Middelfart Municipality is a smaller municipality where we meet across areas and organizational levels. It provides good opportunities for close collaboration and for translating decisions into action.

As a leader you will be part of a workplace with high well-being, strong social capital, high professionalism and an informal tone. We prioritize a good working environment and also expect our leaders to take responsibility for the whole and actively contribute to the shared leadership space.

• Organizational context

The center leader reports to the head of Social and Psychiatry and is part of a close collaboration with the other leaders in the Social and Health Administration. The position includes the overall professional, personnel, economic and organizational leadership of CSI. The center leader leads through the department heads but must also be visible and accessible at Fælleshåb and Skovbakken with a curious approach.

• About the Center for Specialized Interventions

The Center for Specialized Interventions (CSI) was established on April 1, 2025 as a common organizational framework around the residences Fælleshåb and Skovbakken. The residences have 32 and 24 residents respectively. The purpose of the common organization is:

• To strengthen the professional communities and create a solid foundation for continued development.
• To identify and realize professional synergies that increase quality for citizens with a high need for specialized pedagogical and/or health professional interventions.
• To create greater robustness in both residences and ensure the quality of the services and supports to which citizens are admitted.
• To realize relevant administrative synergies.
• To establish a mutually binding leadership community between Fælleshåb and Skovbakken.

At Fælleshåb, in recent years there has been work to strengthen both health-related and social professional quality, including training programs and closer daily coordination between the four houses. As part of the establishment of CSI, an additional department head was hired, so there are now two department heads, each responsible for two houses, as well as a number of cross-center tasks.

At Skovbakken, since autumn 2024, a quality program has been developed to raise health-related and social professional quality and support a good working environment. As part of a capacity adjustment, the city council decided in August 2025 to close one of the residence's four houses. The last resident has moved out of the now-closed house, and the use of the nine living units and common areas is being clarified. The Skovbakken department head is supported by two coordinators for health-related and social-related areas.

At both residences, a good and trustful collaboration with the citizens' relatives is prioritized. Collaboration takes place both in ongoing individual dialogue and at joint meetings about new initiatives and measures. At Skovbakken the collaboration is also formalized through the well-established relatives' association Skovbakken's Friends.

• Purpose of the position

The purpose of the center leader position is to ensure high quality in the core task and good, stable frameworks for the citizens' daily life. The center leader must create continuity in the direction that has been set, follow decisions through to the end and ensure that professional and organizational initiatives are implemented and have lasting effects. At the same time, the center leader must support professional development, well-being and cohesion across CSI.

The center leader is a leader of leaders and must be able to create common direction through others. This involves:

• Creating clear frameworks, clarifying responsibilities and supporting the department heads in their management space.
• Giving the department heads freedom and a real management space – and at the same time being a present, accessible and clear sparring partner.
• Gathering the leadership group around common goals, systematic work and learning and at the same time being mindful that Fælleshåb and Skovbakken may have different needs.
• Tasks

As center leader you shall

• Set strategic and organizational direction with a focus on citizens' good lives, professional quality and coherence.
• Create continuity, follow decisions through to the end and ensure implementation of agreed initiatives.
• Support the professional development of interventions based on citizens' needs, desires and self-determination.
• Lead and develop the department heads and unite the leadership group around a common direction.
• Be visible and accessible at both residences and have knowledge of the citizens, colleagues and daily life at the sites.
• Support proper, transparent and mentalizing collaboration with citizens, relatives, leaders and staff.
• Use data and professional insight to qualify decisions and development.
• Prioritize competency development, learning and a good working environment based on the core task.
• Balance professional quality, safe operations, strategic development and a balanced budget.
• Actively contribute to the Social and Health Administration's overall leadership community and profile the specialized disability area.
• Competences

The center leader must combine strategic leadership with presence in daily practice. It requires a leader who can lead upwards, downwards and sideways, create clarity and direction and build trusting relationships. The center leader must be able to stand firm, act when needed and at the same time work mentalizing, curious and inclusive.

Educational background

Relevant higher education.

Relevant leadership education, preferably at diploma level or higher.

Professional background

Solid experience with leadership in a complex welfare area. Experience from the disability sector is highly valued, as is experience with or extensive knowledge of managing around-the-clock operations and multidisciplinary staff groups.

Personal

Strategic perspective and ability to translate direction and decisions into stable practice.

Strong financial and budget understanding.

Curious, present, clear and trust-building with a mentalizing and relationship-building approach.

• Further information

The recruitment process will take place through interviews on November 12, 2026 with the possibility of a second round. The selection committee consists of the head of Social and Psychiatry plus the center's MED committee. That is, the three department heads and representatives of the employees.

On Middelfart Municipality's website, www.middelfart.dk, you can find information about the municipality, its political and administrative organization, as well as relevant policies, visions and leadership principles.

Join our dedicated team and help make a difference!

Middelfart Municipality would like to be known for an attractive and flexible workplace with a healthy working environment, good leadership and many opportunities for development. Based on our life-stage policy, we will do what we can to meet your desires and needs. We are a municipality where there is not far from idea to action. You can read more about our workplace at job.middelfart.dk

Are you considering applying for a job at Middelfart Municipality? You may also be thinking about moving here. Contact our relocation consultant Anne Marie Klausen on tel. 2240 0049 or [email protected] and hear what Middelfart can offer you and your family. Read more at www.opdagmiddelfart.dk