System Leadership

Non-urgent advice: Welcome to the System Leadership page

Aerial view over the iconic Cotswold village of Painswick, with its honey coloured limestone cottages deep in the bucolic countryside of Gloucestershire, UK, framed by vibrant green patchwork fields and clear blue summer skies. ProPhoto RGB profile for maximum color fidelity and gamut.
Aerial view over the iconic Cotswold village of Painswick

System Leadership

One way of understanding system leadership is that of working beyond organisational boundaries on challenges of mutual concern that cannot be solved by any one person or institution. The system is no longer focused on operating as sole organisations and calls for a collaborative approach across a variety of new boundaries.

We recognise the complexity of these challenges upon the system and ask of leaders across the health and care system to embody future focused, inclusive leadership qualities. In response to local need, we have developed a suite of priority offers to support our South West leaders.

See below for System Leadership offers available to you from within and outside of the NHS.

Non-urgent advice: Foundations in System Leadership (National Programme)

The Foundations in System Leadership; collaborating for health and care programme is open to all colleagues working in health, care, local authorities and voluntary sector partnerships, who have a desire to improve the way they collaborate across organisational, professional and hierarchical boundaries to design and deliver better health outcomes for the communities they serve.

Click here to find out more

Non-urgent advice: Leadership Learning Zone (LLZ)

Leading Transformation for Integrated Care – This development series is based on insights and experience drawn from work with a number of Integrated Care Systems across England. It will explore what partnership working looks like across teams and organisations. What does this mean for leaders? It is co-designed with input from with the NHSLA and local representatives to understand their current challenges and opportunities.

Click here to access via Leadership Learning Zone.

System & Relational Leadership Modules – Various Systems & Relational Leadership video modules, including links to practical tools and approaches, as well as opportunities for more in-depth study and learning.

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System OD and Transformation Learning Modules – Our new series of bitesize online learning has been developed to support system leaders. Through these short videos and activities, you will enhance and develop your skills to lead, influence and challenge organisational and system transformation.

Covering five key themes of system OD and transformational change, each theme contains 5 to 6 short learning videos, with self-directed activities.

Click here to access the modules via the Leadership Learning Zone

Non-urgent advice: Leading for System Change

Providing practical, place-based support to help build collaborative leadership thinking across all areas of Integrated Care Systems (ICS). The programme supports cross sector teams that are working on complex issues relating to ICS strategic priorities.  

Click here to find out more

Non-urgent advice: System Leadership Behaviours Framework

The shift towards a system wide approach to address population health requires leaders to work in a different way. A significant system wide piece of research was undertaken and tested with a wide range of cross sector colleagues resulting in a deeper understanding of the kinds of behaviours needed to enable effective system leadership across the public sector.

The approach enabled the exploration of what this different kind of leadership might look like, acknowledging the scale, diversity and complexity of the system and the importance of collaboration and co-creation. The research identified four overarching themes, each underpinned by a series of supporting behaviours in a System Leadership Behaviours Framework.

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Non-urgent advice: Coaching & Mentoring Opportunities

Coaching is one of the key approaches through which leadership within organisations can be developed. Coaching is a method of developing an individual’s capabilities in order to facilitate the achievement of organisational success.

Mentoring is a developmental relationship in which one person (the Mentor) – usually someone more knowledgeable (though ‘peer’ mentoring can be as successful) helps another (the Mentee) to discover more about themselves, and develop their potential capability.

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Non-urgent advice: Leadership in Systems – Leadership Academy

Whether we realise it or not, the teams and areas in which we work within the NHS are all part of and linked to wider systems. The work that we do in our own teams and areas often has an impact on other areas of the wider healthcare system and having awareness of this is essential as a leader. 

In this short bitesize learning course, we’re going to look at Leadership in systems

Click here to find out more

Non-urgent advice: System Thinking Practitioner Apprenticeship – Level 7

The System Thinking Practitioner Apprenticeship supports decision-makers in strategic and leadership roles to understand and address complex and sometimes even ‘wicked’ problems through provision of expert systemic analysis, advice and facilitation.

Click here to find out more

Non-urgent Systems thinking for civil servants

Guidance – How to use systems thinking to drive improved outcomes in complex situations.

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Non-urgent advice: Project M

A place and space for team leaders and managers to connect, share and learn together. Providing practical tools, resources and guidance for effectively leading their teams during challenging times.

Click here to find out more

Click here to view our Systems Leadership Resources