Digital Transformation: "It's not the tech that holds us back, it's the culture that needs to change"
Duncan Enright
Experienced Councillor with Cabinet experience of transport, development, planning and economic issues. Leadership expert, speaker, trainer and executive coach. Award-winning book publisher for cancer care professionals.
Sometimes someone says something that just hits the spot. Yesterday I was at NHS Expo, a gathering of the great and good of the UK healthcare system. The new Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Matt Hancock, comes from a career in the family software business, via a stint as digital minister, to the position as Cabinet Minister in charge of the NHS. He is known for his tech enthusiasm, but in a speech laying out his vision in six key points it was the sixth that I applauded most of all:
"The truth is, it is not the technology that is holding us back. Just being able to make the best use of technology that has already been invented would transform health and care in this country. In all my experience of digital transformation it’s no different. Only 10% of the challenge is the tech. 90% of the challenge is the culture.
To make the changes that are needed we must work together and have a common vision. We need to couple this with an agile culture where we constantly improve systems and champion the innovators.
We, at the centre, must support them by creating the environment where technology can deliver and continue to deliver against ever-changing needs."
You can read his full speech here. It's worth it if you work in the health sector anywhere, as the challenges are the same worldwide.
In my white paper, recently published by Routledge, I share my learning from years engaged in the journey to digital. In it I look at successes and failures, observing that
"Leaders throughout the public, private and third sectors face the same challenge: to excavate and articulate core purpose, describe how it will be pursued in the new digital world, and plot a course through digital transformation. Leaders need to become transpersonal – leading beyond the ego. All departments and all staff, as well as partners, clients and customers, contribute to and operate under the climate and culture. In particular, this paper is for the board and the division or team leading digital development, giving insights into the perceived reluctance of other departments and stakeholders to engage."
I would be delighted if you would read my paper - freely downloadable here, and let me know what you think in comments on this article.
Peter Drucker said "Culture eats strategy for breakfast". I believe the right culture, behaviours and leadership styles can help you feast on technology. Get in touch if you want to discuss how.
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6 年Hi Steve: You identify some of the major issues which need to be resolved but I would suggest that without a real change away from traditional leadership approaches together with a focus on improving the culture, none of these major issues have a hope of being resolved. I do not think of leadership or culture being linear solutions - they are in themselves both complex and often counter-intuitive to our default brains. But they really are needed to provide the foundation and environment for improved sustainable performance. A lot of this is explained in Leading Beyond The Ego https://www.leadershapeglobal.com/lbte referenced in Duncan's white paper.
Chairman Hospitals Foundation Trust
6 年I agree it is the culture - but that is also a bit simplistic as merely using the words leadership and/ or culture can suggest the idea of linear solitons. There are the other dimensions of a fragmented service where the commissioner/ provider model and marketisation model has probably run its course but will not be addressed ( for all manner of political reasons); rising and inexorable demand linked to demographics ( with associated and unprecedented budget deficits in most trusts); ossified professional architectures that place no, real value in technology but with a growing shortage ( oxymoron I know) of people - the list could go on. Digital is a big part of the future for sure but there are no quick or easy or even straightforward solutions to the NHS’ many challenges. Good post to provoke thoughts
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6 年Excellent observations and suggestions Duncan. The technology is actually the easy bit when it comes to creating successful organisations. It is the behaviours (especially how leaders relate to other people) and bringing those great values to full consciousness in everything we do that will create the success. It sounds easy but actually these are often counter intuitive. We all need to overcome some our non-conscious default behaviours that inhibit great realtiosnhsips and collaboration.