‘A strong sounding board for our leadership team’
Chief Executive Matthew Trainer leaves our Trust his week, heading back to where his NHS career first started, King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.
Reflecting on his time with us (the longest he’s spent in one place in his career), Matthew looked back of one of his proudest achievements - our Shadow Executive.
Launched in 2022, the scheme gives junior members of staff an opportunity to influence decision-making, by attending our Trust Executive Committee (TEC) and providing our Executive team with a fresh perspective.
Matthew (above) said:
I’m really proud of how our Shadow Exec has become a strong sounding board for our leadership team, helping us to understand the views and experiences of staff across our organisation.
It’s made our decision making more grounded and open. Our Executive team meet regularly and we know each other well, including how we make decisions, which risks them being predictable and unchallenged.
The point of the Shadow Exec is to bring a different set of opinions from colleagues who are at varied stages in their careers. It’s also more representative of what our workforce looks like. We’ve had some brilliant contributions over the years and some real insight into how the organisation works, which we wouldn’t have heard otherwise.
Taz (above), Head of Improvement for Women’s and Children’s, is among former members who have benefitted:
Being on the Shadow Exec helped me develop a broader understanding of strategic priorities and decision-making, and build relationships with our Executive team, understanding their roles better, which you don’t usually get as a junior member of staff.
It 100% gave me the confidence to go for a promotion. I felt my input had value, especially when I’d hear things I said repeated at TEC meetings.
Inaul (above), lead pharmacist for anticoagulation and haematology, added:
It was the best thing ever, working directly with Execs; I was really inspired by them. It was good to understand how decisions are made and it really helped me with project management work.
It gave him the confidence to draft a business case for replacement pharmacy robots, and secure the £1.5m investment needed - and now the robots are in place!
Amanda (above), Office Manager for our Dieticians team, couldn’t believe her luck when she secured a place on the Shadow Exec and it gave her the confidence to challenge her role banding when she took on more responsibility.
She said:
I went from a band 3 to a 4. My role now is very different than when I started; I manage all our clinic bookings, ensuring they’re full. It was about knowing I was making a difference and being efficient, but I probably wouldn’t have had the confidence without doing this.
That confidence extended to taking a request to make patients more comfortable all the way to the top, enlisting Matthew’s help to provide more seating for cancer and elderly patients at Queen’s Hospital, after noticing a long corridor on the way to their appointments had limited seating.
Now on its fifth group, our Shadow Exec will continue to provide insight to our Executive team as Matthew moves on.