The Future of NHS Leadership, it’s a Gas, Gas, Gas!

Well last Thursday was a mixed day of fortune for some. There was the strange story of the two men who fell into a vat of chocolate in a Mars bar factory in the US, but thankfully they were safely rescued before the chocolate set. Not such good news for Aiden Aslin, Shaun Pinner and Saaudun Brahime who on day 106 of the war in Ukraine were all sentenced to death by a Russian ‘kangaroo court’ for being so called mercenaries. Likewise, poor Justin Bieber gets a diagnosis of Ramsay Hunt syndrome which has left his face partially paralysed. Perhaps not unsurprisingly, Conservative Junior Minster, Heather Wheeler seemed unable to tell the difference between Birmingham, Blackpool or somewhere godawful she had once visited. This was on the day the Prime Minister was visiting Blackpool (thankfully I was out of town on Thursday), which of course is one of the 24 areas chosen for significant ‘levelling up’ funding. It was also the day that it cost J £92 to fill her little car up with petrol.

But last Thursday, J and I were also able to go and see the Rolling Stones at the start of their UK tour. 60 years on from when they first started, and they made Anfield stadium rock! I have seen them perform on a number of occasions and have never been disappointed. Last Thursday’s concert was no different, they were simply fantastic. It may be the last time, I don’t know, (although I am searching for tickets to the Hyde Park concerts later in the month and early July).

Last week also saw the publication of the much anticipated independent review of health and adult social care leadership. It has been described as the biggest shake-up in health and social care leadership in a generation. Time will tell. There is certainly nothing in the report that people would want to argue against. Indeed the 7 recommendations have been accepted without alteration by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. Time will also tell whether the necessary funding and resources required to take the recommendations forward will be forthcoming. As the report’s authors note, anyone can have great ideas but, if they don’t lead to action, they are for nought.

Health Service leadership has long been one of my passions. Way back in 1995, I joined Manchester Metropolitan University as a Senior Lecturer. I had just left the NHS and had written and developed a distance learning degree programme called Practitioner Leadership. It proved to be very popular, partly I suspect because it was a programme that required only two days attendance at the university for group work, although this wasn’t mandatory. I think also, partly because it was totally accessible to anyone working in health or social care. Students could also undertake the course at their own pace. I was the Programme Manager and got to know all the students as they worked their way through their studies. Many of whom were mature students who might never have contemplated undertaking a traditional degree. Some of the students I never met until they graduated which sparked an interest in how students experienced such long distance relationships in academia.

In 1999, my co-programme facilitator, Sheila Stark, and I published a paper based on some focus groups and interviews with our students. What emerged from this research was the importance of students experiencing a sense of ‘connectedness’ with the module tutors. The students described such connectedness as a feeling of belonging. Where the students didn’t feel connected and had no sense of belonging, then their experience was poor and impacted upon their overall academic achievement.

It was an outcome that acted as a catalyst in shaping my thinking as to whether it’s actually possible to teach people leadership. With my co-writer and researcher, Professor Sue McAndrew, I then went on to develop this line of thinking eventually coming to believe that leadership is better ‘caught than taught’. Of course, it’s entirely possible to expose folk to theories and concepts of leadership, whether these be traits, styles, behaviours or beliefs, all of which are worthy points for reflection and contemplation. Having this knowledge however will never make you an effective leader. The reality is, and here I may be at odds with the report’s authors, even if you don’t know any of these theories or concepts, you can still be a successful and effective leader.

For many years I described myself as having a transcendental leadership style on my CV. This was based on my conviction that a leader’s role is to serve others. My experience has shown me this is best way of ensuring the contribution from others is creative, authentic and productive. I have been very fortunate throughout my career to have many mentors, coaches, and people who helped me through my journey of becoming. I call these folk my rabbis. They have pointed me in different directions, helped me work through choices and decisions, and shown me opportunities where I didn’t see any. I’m thankful to each and everyone of them, and have long made it my mission to try and do the same to those folk I meet along the way as they seek to develop their careers.

I’m privileged to work in an organisation that values its people. I can point to some great teams and inspirational leadership aplenty. We find ways to demonstrate the lived experiences of putting our values into action, and becoming a well-led Trust is a shared ambition across all levels of our organisation. So, I for one, won’t be shooting the messenger when it comes to taking the report’s recommendations forward. The future of NHS leadership? – it’s a gas, gas, gas.