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Story: NHS IT: A critical case for treatment

Something should be done. And not just with regards to health care. But locking away the best and brightest people away in an ivory tower isn't going to cut it. Likely it's going to make it worse.

Problem is that you need to have the real-life raw deal field experience to know what details actually matter and not only in one field of expertise but several. And then you need to combine that with great leadership, project and program management skills. Combined with great insights in financials, logistics, sales, politics, legal affairs, contract management, liability, business processes, maintenance, availability, security, organizational requirements and what not. While knowing how to handle back stabbers, small kingdoms, lobbying, hidden agenda's, power struggles and every other dirty trick in the book some people actually call career making. And this all isn't even half of what's needed.

So basicly what's needed is a team effort by people that are and stay experienced while keeping eachother honest and dedicated to the team goals because they want to, are asked to and are actually allowed to achieve that while being trusted and backed up all the way by the brass but questioned at every step of the way nonetheless (tell it, explain it, get backing for it, test it, show it, proof it, do it, maintain it). Many people could do that for a while since enough people have front line experience in at least some areas and are creative and clever enough to come up, certainly within an outstanding team, with lasting solutions that actually work.

I've seen it happen so it's possible. And basicly it was about making the right people (by the right people) fully responsible for the whole aftermath as well. No grey areas No assumptions. Full disclosure. Crystal clear definitions with unquestionable and repeatable mutual independant performance measurement at any given moment.

So my out-of-the-top-of-my-hat proposal would be to come up with some sort of 'community service' in which outstanding professionals (definition? how to find them? how to exclude the sponsored ones with hidden agenda's?) are called up to do their "tour of duty" of, say, two years. Ofcourse, details will need to be worked out but one thing is clear: brains need experience and vice versa. But once stored away in a comfort zone they'll peak but there after will slowly but surely loose the "cutting edge" they once had. So after a while they'll need to be send to the frontlines again to keep their skills sharp.

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