Archive for the 'Leadership' Category

Show #013: NHS Employers Conference 2008

Published by Karen Wormwell on 12 November, 2008 in NHS Employers Conference 2008, Talent Management, Employee Engagement, HR Leadership and Leadership. 0 Comments

The NHS is the largest employer in Europe and the annual NHS Employers Conference was held in Birmingham last week. This month’s show comes straight from the event.

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Leading Workforce Thinking, is the conference theme and in addition to some high profile plenary sessions there are 4 strand themes - Engaging Staff for Success, Facing the Future, Focus on Fundamentals and Policy into Practice.

The conference featured some highly inspirational and informative sessions and in this episode, we hear from a selection of the speakers across the three days. First up, is Sian Thomas and Alastair Henderson, Joint Acting Directors of NHS Employers who tell us more about the conference.

Podcast running order and timings (in minutes and seconds)

  • 00.00 - 00.44 Introduction

  • 00.45 - 02.55 Sian Thomas and Alastair Henderson talk about the challenges ahead for the NHS HR community and the key elements of the new workforce proposals

  • 02.56 - 06.20 Professor Beverley Alimo-Metcalfe, Professor of Leadership Studies at Bradford School of Management and Chief Executive of Real World Group, talks about the style of leadership that is best suited to today’s workplace

  • 06.21 - 07.36 Dr Anthony Hesketh, Senior Lecturer at Lancaster School of Management, gives us his views on whether the HR function as we currently know it, has outlived its usefulness

  • 07.37 - 09.48 Sahar Hashemi founder of Coffee Republic, shares her thoughts about how to turn your vision into reality

  • 09.49 - 13.12 Rachael McIlroy Policy Officer at the TUC and Paula McDonald, Deputy Director, Public Service Workforce Reform at the Cabinet Office, tell us more about their joint Drive for Change initiative

  • 13.13 - 14.51 Andy Randall Ex Chief Executive of iGrasp and Advisor to leading edge businesses explains how on-line recruitment will develop in the future

  • 14.52 - 17.56 Steve Sonsoni, bestselling author, motivational speaker and Fellow in the Centre for Management Development at London Business School gives his top 3 leadership tips on how to boost productivity and performance

  • 17.57 - 20.16 Professor Derek Mowbray from Organisation Health talks about the prime cause of stress in the workplace and the best way an employer can overcome this

  • 20.17 - 21.59 Gareth Malone, Choirmaster for the London Symphony Orchestra is probably best know for his achievements in the BBC2 documentary ‘The Choir’ he explains how he helps people to believe in themselves in order to fulfill their potential and how they can then turn that  into team achievement

  • 22.00 - 23.21 Steve Barnett, Chief Executive of NHS Confederation reflects on the success of the Conference and the things he would like delegates to take away  

  • 23.25 - 24.25 Finally we hear from some of the delegates to find out their thoughts on the conference

  • 24.26 - 25.00 Close

Listening to the show is simple, you can do it in a number of ways and you don’t need an iPod or MP3 player. Simply click on the grey arrow underneath the show heading and it will play through your computer.

Alternatively, you can easily download the file and listen to it later, or transfer it onto an MP3 player, just right click on ‘Download’ and select ‘Save Target As…’ The show can also be played on iTunes.

To make sure that you never miss an episode, you can subscribe free via email, or by clicking the orange RSS icon or iTunes button. Each new show will then be delivered automatically to your computer, along with notes about the show, useful contact details and links to additional information.

I would love to hear your feedback and any suggestions for further shows. Either email me directly at karen@publicsectorhrpodcast.co.uk or click on ‘Comment’ underneath the show title and type away.

Show #001: Leadership

Published by Karen Wormwell on 28 October, 2007 in Leadership. 2 Comments

Effective Leadership is the topic of this first show which features Gillian Hibberd, Corporate Director (People and Policy) at Buckinghamshire County Council and Jack Hegarty, Managing Director of Wychavon District Council. 

To listen to the podcast, click the grey arrow below.

 
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Gillian started her career in retail with the Kingfisher Group, but quickly moved into the Public Sector to take advantage of the excellent training opportunities available. During her career, she has held HR positions at Oldham, Decorum BC, LB Hackney and Hertfordshire CC, before joining Buckinghamshire CC. Gillian and her team have recently won an award for Innovation in HR and she is also the Lead Officer for Leadership for the PPMA (Public Sector People Managers Association).

In this interview, Gillian explains what makes a good leader and shares some advice on how to set up a leadership development programme. (Interview length 10:51 minutes).

Her advice includes:

  • DEVELOP YOUR OWN KNOWLEDGE ON THE SUBJECT - conduct ‘organisational raids’, read relevant texts - for example ’Good to Great’ by Jim Collins  Attend conferences and training events and be confident about your knowledge

  • CARRY OUT A DIAGNOSTIC PHASE - then tailor your programme to your organisation’s individual needs. A helpful publication is available from The Leadership Centre

  • SAY WHAT IS GOING TO BE DIFFERENT - explain what will be better as a result of the programme

For more information on Gillian’s work you can contact her at ghibberd@buckscc.gov.uk or call her on 01296 383127.

The second interview is with Jack Hegarty, MD at Wychavon District Council. Jack has spent his career in Local Government. A planner by profession, he joined Wychavon to rescue a failing planning department. Following his success in this position, Jack was asked to take on the role of Managing Director. After shadowing his predecessor for 12 months, he took up his new post in April 2004. Recently, Jack has been named ’Best Leader’ in The Times Best Council To Work For Survey this, combined with other accolades bestowed on the Council, including LGC Council of The Year 2007, speaks volumes for Jacks Leadership skill.

Jack describes his views on ‘Effective Leadership’ and what approaches work for him. He also shares tips on how to spot leadership talent. (Interview length 14:06 minutes).

Jack’s winning formula includes:

  • HAVE CLARITY OF VISION - for yourself and the organisation, make sure everybody understands the core vision and values

  • BE HIGHLY VISIBLE, INCLUSIVE AND APPROACHABLE - spend a lot of time with staff and have empathy with them, happy employees deliver a better service

  • GAIN RESPECT - achieve this through what you do

  • LEADERS EMERGE - look for the potential in someone and point them in the right direction. They will need the ability to take strong decisions, balanced with desire to ensure that the organisation goes with them

To find out more about Jack, visit www.wychavon.gov.uk  or contact him on 01306 565000.

Listening to the show is simple, you can do it in a number of ways and you don’t need an iPod or MP3 player. Simply click on the grey arrow underneath the show heading and it will play through your computer.

Alternatively, you can easily download the file and listen to it later, or transfer it onto an MP3 player, just right click on ‘Download’ and select ‘Save Target As…’ The show can also be played on iTunes.

To make sure that you never miss an episode, you can subscribe free via email, or by clicking the orange RSS icon or iTunes button. Each new show will then be delivered automatically to your computer, along with notes about the show, useful contact details and links to additional information.

I would love to hear your feedback and any suggestions for further shows. Either email me directly at karen@publicsectorhrpodcast.co.uk or click on ‘Comment’ underneath the show title and type away.