IABC Change Management SIG: Power, Agency & Change: Why learning about change from the healthcare sector is relevant to all

Healthcare systems everywhere have never faced more change. Data shows that staff enthusiasm for change and their willingness to engage with it are falling. The gap between the speed with which leaders want to execute their change programmes and the appetite among staff for that change continues to grow. It means that the question of how communication professionals help navigate their organisations through change has never been more urgent. This thought-provoking conversation aims to challenge some of our most deeply held assumptions about how change actually works. This isn't about managing change from the top down; it's about navigating a human system through uncertainty. Helen’s work goes beyond structures, programmes and operating models, and focuses on the human conditions for change: purpose, relationships, networks, agency and energy. She brings a deep understanding of how change is experienced by people on the ground, and what helps organisations sustain momentum in demanding environments.

About Dr Helen Bevan: Dr Helen Bevan is one of the most influential voices on large-scale change in healthcare. She has spent more than three decades working inside the National Health Service in England, supporting leaders, teams and systems to navigate complex, large-scale change. She is currently a Strategic Advisor with NHS Horizons, a Professor of Practice at Warwick Business School, and a Senior Fellow at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement in the USA. She advises health and care leaders across the globe on their change strategies and connects with thousands of frontline healthcare change agents through her social media activities related to the practice of change.