Friday, 4 January 2013

Organisations as thought leaders; some healthcare examples

Thought leadership is not just about individuals. For many organisations, their mission is to be the thought leader in their sector.  I’ve listed below the healthcare related organisations that I believe to be thought leaders.


·     The Health Foundation  in London practices a pragmatic and sensible thought leadership. They base their knowledge around programs of work, linked the more academic reviews. They share knowledge very well and a great example is their work on Self Managements where all the materials can be accessed, free of charge, including train the trainer packs.  They take on new ideas and put them to work in programs. They are prepared to take risks and their work is subject to evaluation – which is also shared.  They are a charity so have no need to sell – and this shows.

·     The Kings Fund, London,  is a traditional thought leader for healthcare. They’ve moved into blogs and videos, and other social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, as a means to share their news and views – and to help others connect. They are best loved for the discussions they hold. These are tough questions with a wide range of people taking part. They empower thought leadership in others, which is very magnanimous of them.

·     The Nuffield Trust is another UK based organisation which is a thought leader, in a fairly tightly packed thought leadership arena. They are probably best known for their sharp and necessary evaluations and reviews of policies and programs. They are trusted because they are independent and not in anyone’s funding pocket. They do blogs, publications, videos and some excellent charts.

·    The Institute for Healthcare Improvement  in Boston.  This is a well-known organisation for its work in developing strategies for improvement and in bringing together groups of interested people to share. Like any organisation, they have something to sell. However, they are quick to share new ideas in white papers and make many of their materials available to anyone, free of charge. (excepting their conferences which are notoriously expensive).

i    The other articles in this series are:
  1. What or who is a thought leader
  2. Being a thought leader


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