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Bringing people together through shared purpose and identity: lessons learnt from NHS Providers CEO Sir Julian Hartley
  1. Richard James1,2,
  2. Julian Hartley3,
  3. Laura Stroud1,2
  1. 1Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Leeds, UK
  2. 2Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
  3. 3NHS Providers, London, UK
  1. Correspondence to Dr Richard James, HR, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Leeds, UK; richard.james14{at}nhs.net

Abstract

Introduction The healthcare sector is facing increased demand with reduced resources, yet despite these challenges, leaders such as NHS Providers CEO Sir Julian Hartley have created cultures where the workforce can realise shared values, through a focus on staff engagement. This article describes Julian’s journey, through the eyes of a doctor-in-training working in an organisation he has led, to understand what we can learn from his approach to leadership.

Narrative As a manager, Julian saw how many different people it takes to make the NHS work, and decided the role of an NHS leader was to bring people together, through a strong sense of shared purpose and identity. As CEO of Trusts in Blackpool and Leeds, he put this focus on staff engagement into practice to great success. Julian then introduced lean methods that flourished in the culture he had created, and when external factors such as COVID-19 began to erode that culture, returned to refresh that underpinning shared purpose.

Reflection Julian has developed a toolkit of behaviours and approaches, refined through experience and reflection, to help him elucidate and bring to life both the values and goals of the workforce. Because he shares these values, he has been able to lead with authenticity, creating engaged workforces, empowered to drive continuous improvement. We can reflect on Julian’s approach as leaders ourselves: how can we align the values and visions of our staff, and ensure they are empowered to realise both?

  • lean
  • medical leadership
  • Senior medical leader
  • values
  • continuous improvement

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Footnotes

  • Contributors JH developed the concept for the article, which was further developed by RJ and LS. JH shared his story with RJ, who authored the article, under supervision from LS. Review and redrafting was done by all authors.

  • Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

  • Competing interests None declared.

  • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.