Tweets of the Week, 21 May 2021

The Horizons team features many influential Twitter users. This curates a wealth of insights, knowledge, and information about transformation in health and care from other thought leaders across the world. (Tip: to read an article or watch a video mentioned in a tweet, click on the blue text. To view the original tweet, click on the image).

The School for Change Agents 

The first School for Change Agents live session was held this week! If you missed the session, don't worry! You can watch the recording and catch up with key highlights in the thread.

Helen shared the Slide deck from the School live session. A key theme from the session was that leaders of change need agency (power for change) as well as capability (skills for change & improvement).

"When spider webs unite, they can tie up a lion" This Ethiopian proverb was popular in first #S4CA live session. When we join together we can achieve so much! We hope you can join us for the second session on Tuesday 25th May 3pm, find out more here.

If you haven't signed up for School yet, there is still time! We have participants starting this week too, like Jess - welcome to School Jess! Sign up here...

... And some of our participants have recently finished the School so congratulations to our new graduated change agents! Well done and thank you Gemma!

Joanna has been thinking about different forms of power this week! Thank you for sharing, Joanna

Improvement

As we plan for a different post-covid future, some people may suggest the solutions are linear & straightforward, like the programme plan. Then we open the door to the real world of change. Making change in a complex system needs complex system thinking.

A real-life example is a powerful way to explain a way of working. This blog describes how System Convening combined with Programme Management improves patient experience.

Many colleagues say they can't make even small improvements at work as they "don't have permission".  Yet research shows leaders favour team members who show "self-initiation" & "change orientation".

We should embrace and support the mavericks, rebels, heretics & renegades in our organisations. Rather than being difficult troublemakers, they may just be the brilliant people who can shift us into a different future.
When we answer "YES, BUT", we close down discussion & possibility - we make others think their ideas are dismissed.If we use "YES, AND", we can build on the ideas & open ourselves up to being changed.

Leadership 

If there's one thing we've learnt about leadership since #COVID19 hit, it's the importance of the "soft stuff". Why leadership humility is going to work a lot better than arrogance in the future.

Most systems have a "formal" hierarchy of leadership & an "informal" system with influencers at the heart. Many formal leaders don't engage in enough dialogue with the informal system & don't know who the informal leaders are. How to influence.

The NHS is moving to a "systems" mindset (rather than single organisations/silos) so we can better support people in their health & care. We must role model "systems" in how we think & behave as leaders.

We are all tired after 14 months of disruption caused by the pandemic. We just need to avoid being the kind of leaders who regard fatigue as a badge of honour. High performing leadership is built on rest.

Virtual working

There's lots of articles & blogs being posted now on how to run "blended" or "hybrid" meetings where some people are face to face & some are virtual. It's a key leadership skill for our current time. Here's the best one Helen has read so far.

After 14 months of virtual working from home, many of us feel it's getting even harder to focus on the things we need to do. Here are some tips on how to resist distraction & increase cognitive grip. Aimed at educationalists but relevant to many others. Thank you @ImpactWales.

A field guide to procrastinators. What kind of procrastinator are you? This could be used at the beginning of a virtual team meeting as a check in/energiser activity.