Why Does Leadership Development Matter? The Case of Hybrid Professionals

My commitment to the UCL Global Business School for Health (UCL GBSH) as the world’s first business school dedicated to healthcare is based on several assumptions. First, the mantra that health is the greatest wealth is a key motivator. Second, I believe that building capacity to drive changes in healthcare through leadership development at all levels is critical for personal, organisational, and national development. Third, I support the view that leadership is the most influential factor in shaping organisational culture. 

Drivers for healthcare systems changes

Health Education England’s strategic framework 15 indicates key global drivers for change: demographics (of the general population and healthcare workforce); technology and innovation; social (e.g., inequalities), political, economic, and environmental changes; service models; and the expectations of patients and staff. A recent Deloitte report has highlighted healthcare transformations needed in mental health and well-being; environmental, social and governance (ESG); health care delivery model convergence; the future of medical science; and in re-imagining public health. 

The practical priorities of dealing with the enormous backlog of elective procedures have exacerbated pre-pandemic healthcare challenges like the complex demands of ageing populations in many countries, funding incentives, reducing health inequalities, and ensuring high quality and consistent standards of care. Pressures have also intensified for healthcare leaders to pay attention to workforce motivation, morale, shortages, and skills development. In England, government policy on integrated care systems (ICS) for a population in a specific geographical area offers the prospect of less fragmented user experiences and greater engagement with local communities.

Strengthening leadership capacity

Leadership is about being inspiring, understanding context, systems and processes, building constructive and trusting relationships, and behaving ethically in delivering results. It is not just about formal authority or seniority. 

Importantly, the Messenger Review on health and social care leadership in England is seeking to improve processes and strengthen the leadership of health and social care in England to address key challenges. The review’s focus is on strengthening leadership, including clinical leadership, and sharing examples of outstanding management to drive innovation and efficient ways of working. The terms of reference for the review are also concerned with reducing regional disparities in efficiency and health outcomes as we build back better following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Undoubtedly, healthcare professionals have shown considerable adaptability during the COVID-19 pandemic. Greater workplace demands, however, make it difficult for them to find the time and energy to reflect on their roles as change agents and innovators. The shocks of the pandemic and conflict in Ukraine, for instance, have highlighted the need for healthcare leadership to balance attention to immediate as well as grand challenges such as the UN’s sustainable development goal of ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all at all ages. 

Against this backdrop, many healthcare workers are exhausted from longer hours, growing workloads, and staffing shortages. How do they develop the capacity to lead further changes to improve patient healthcare outcomes, productivity, and staff satisfaction? This is a key question we are grappling with on the MBA Health programme. Yet, as Gary Hamel and C.K. Prahalad once remarked in Harvard Business Review, the ability to set clear professional and organisational goals during turbulent times may seem like map making in an earthquake zone.

Hybrid professionals

My research has focused on qualitative case studies of hybrid or blended professionals who are from one profession and who manage professional colleagues and staff in other disciplines/functions. Hybrid leaders include clinical directors, partners in law firms, and business school deans. They can be much more effective than specialists because they speak multiple organisational languages. The challenge for these professionals is retaining credibility amongst their professional peers as well as executives. They need to ensure that they do not become out-of-date and out of touch with former colleagues who may consider that they have gone over to the “dark side” of management. 

For my PhD at Warwick Business School, I researched business school deans as hybrid upper middle-level leaders. They act as brokers in mediating relations between an important academic unit and the central university as well as external stakeholders. With Graeme Currie at Warwick University and Ewan Ferlie at King’s Business School, I have looked at collaborations between business schools and other academic departments as well as links between business and medical schools. Currently, I am conducting a longitudinal study on clinicians’ transitions into Advanced Clinical Practitioner roles, exploring their sense of identity and liminality. 

I particularly admire Sir Patrick Vallance who was head of UCL’s Department of Medicine, an NHS consultant, and researcher. He was a member of the GSK Board and corporate executive team. As Chief Scientific Adviser in the UK Sir Patrick was highly influential in supporting the vaccine task force to navigate the machinery of government. Currently, in his role as Head of Government Science and Engineering Profession, and National Technology Adviser, Sir Patrick represents a role model of professional hybridity in collaborating with universities, government departments, and businesses.   

The value of postgraduate business degrees in health

Finally, in reflecting on the kinds of leadership behaviours we need for inclusive, innovative, interdisciplinary, and impactful healthcare provision, I see UCL’s MBA Health, Executive MBA Health, and DBA Health as important elements in the healthcare ecosystem where health now accounts for more than 10% of global GDP. The MBA Health in GBSH includes a two-week overseas immersion field experience for the Global Health Challenge, the Health Consultant Project (a consultancy project delivered with one of our partner organisations), business discipline focused teaching blocks, and customised careers coaching as well as networking with executives in residence, guest speakers, and dedicated GBSH faculty. 

It is interesting to see the development of the MD MBA in the USA to equip clinicians with business and management skills. Now I am seeing growing interest from dentists and other clinicians, research and social scientists in the MBA Health programme. These individuals are actively seeking to develop themselves and their management consulting, research, entrepreneurship, and project skills to make a positive impact in global healthcare systems. I look forward to working with the next generation of senior and hybrid leaders in the healthcare sector and to addressing issues of gender equity in senior healthcare leadership.