Increasing &

Articulating

Political Awareness

Facilitator: Ian Govier

Welcome

Croeso

RCN Clinical Leadership Programme

Increasing & Articulating

Political Awareness

Facilitator: Ian GovierRCN Clinical Leadership Programme

opportunitynowhere

Increasing &

Articulating

Political Awareness

ABMU NHS Trust – Political Aw

areness Workshop

• Explore what we mean by the term

political awareness?• Examine how we can increase our

political awareness• Articulate our political awareness to

improve services and patient care

What do I want to

ACHIEVE or CHANGE

as a result of this workshop?

Permanent White Water (Vaill, 1996) (Covey, 2006)

ILL

The Constants

Change Choice

Principles (Covey, 2006)

“The one indisputable fact that characterises organisational life, is that…

…is inevitable.”

(Beverley Alimo-Metcalfe, 2005)

“If you want to

see change…

…be the change

you want to see”

Choice

http://www.principles.ie/pws/Home.ice

Increasing &

Articulating

Political Awareness

‘Before I served as a consultant to President Kennedy, I had

believed that the process of decision-making was largely

intellectual and all one had to do was walk into the President’s

office and convince him of the correctness of one’s view.

This perspective I soon realized is as dangerously

immature as it is widely held’. Henry A. Kissinger

Politics may be defined as:

“the assumptions or principles

relating to a theory or activity in a

society or organisation especially

concerned with power and status.”New Oxford Dictionary of English (2001)

Politics shape the health service and the policies that impact on the health and well being of people.

(Antrobus, 2004)

So what is political

awareness?

Political awareness is an

understanding of:• the bigger national, political picture about health care;

• the key agendas for one’s own organisation;

• power and authority;

• how to influence so as to lead and shape policy and services at a local level.

Political awareness is an understanding of:

the bigger national, political picture

about health care

Seeing the bigger

picture!

Zoom

The Department for Health and Social Services is responsible for:

• advising the Welsh Assembly Government in setting policies and strategies for health and social care in Wales

• contributing to making legislation in the field of health and social care

• providing funding for the NHS and other health and social care bodies

• managing and supporting the delivery of health and social care services

• monitoring and promoting improvements in service delivery

the key agendas for one’s own organisation

Political awareness is an understanding of:

Local Health Board

How political is your

organisation?

Examples of good political awarenessExamples of poor political awareness

Lunch Time

power and authority

Political awareness is an understanding of:

Let’s explore

politics, power

& healthcare!

Perspectives on Politics

Questionnaire

What type of player are you?

Owl, Fox, Donkey

or Sheep?

Action with

integrity

Politically Unaware

Psychological Game Playing

Politically AwareClever

InnocentInept

Wise

Maps and

Territories!

"Those who do not know the plans of competitors cannot prepare alliances.

Those who do not know the lay of the land cannot manoeuvre their f orces.

Those who do not use local guides

cannot take advantage of the ground."

Sun Tzu, The Art of War

Power – the currency

of leaders?

how to influence so as to lead and shape policy and services

at a local level

Political awareness is an understanding of:

Positive Influencing

Put your main effort into trying to understand the other person. Ninety per cent of the time influencing goes wrong is because we put all our effort into expounding our own views;

Listen, and show you are listening, by using the skills ofsummarizing and clarifying;

Know yourself: understand how you appear to others; recognize your own unhelpful ‘hot-buttons’ and work on eliminating them;

Ask open questions and listen carefully to the answers;

Create authentic rapport with the other person through usingappropriate body language;

Let people find their own solutions. Develop alternatives to giving others advice.

Develop a range of styles appropriate to the occasion – don’t just rely on one of two ways of influencing; 

Stay open to being influenced yourself. Ask for feedback and learn from it; 

Act on the belief that you have the right to be heard and to say what you want; 

Create common ground through your enthusiasm and your focus on the positive.

Exerting Influence

- where do I begin?

Final Thoughts

ABMU NHS Trust – Political Aw

areness Workshop

• Explore what we mean by the term

political awareness?• Examine how we can increase our

political awareness• Articulate our political awareness to

improve services and patient care

Political awareness is an

understanding of:• the bigger national, political picture about health care;

• the key agendas for one’s own organisation;

• power and authority;

• how to influence so as to lead and shape policy and services at a local level.

What will I

do differently as a result of this workshop?

opportunitynowhere

Increasing &

Articulating

Political Awareness

Increasing &

Articulating

Political Awareness

Facilitator: Ian Govier

Diolch

Thank You

RCN Clinical Leadership Programme

Increasing & Articulating

Political Awareness

Facilitator: Ian GovierRCN Clinical Leadership Programme