After graduating from Loughborough University in 2007 with degrees in electronic engineering and finance and management, I completed the BAE Systems graduate programme in their weapons and vehicles di...
Byron Ford, Consultant
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It's the people that make Berkeley different to other consultancies. Bright, friendly, down-to-earth people who are both thinkers and doers. Working by your side, as consultants and colleagues, to get the right results.
We’re about being there for our clients when it really matters. When it absolutely has to be right. Doing the right thing is both our ethos and sweet spot. And it’s why clients turn to us again and again.
Whatever your long term career goals, we’re here to support you. Through an open dialogue, we help our people to build the capabilities, experiences and networks they need to boost their careers.
Home > Sectors > Healthcare & NHS Consulting
At Berkeley, we work with a wide variety of clients from across the healthcare sector, including the NHS. We’re very proud of the outcomes we’ve delivered for the NHS over the last 15 years and this is reflected in both the relationships we’ve developed and the feedback we’ve received from those who have worked with us. We combine experience with global household names in the private sector with detailed knowledge and experience of the public sector to better support our healthcare clients with their most challenging projects and change initiatives. However, this is not what makes us different. What makes us really stand out is that we don’t take over, but deliver collaboratively and constructively in small teams; we only employ experienced people (average is 14 years); and our Partners often work alongside our Consultants in a hands-on capacity. This is why over 95% of our work is repeat business or referrals. We’ve worked across the whole system, including both NHS and Private Providers, CCG Commissioners, central Government and Regulators, Local Authorities, Health Insurance Companies and Medical Suppliers. In addition to formulating business, IT and commissioning strategies and new operating models, our NHS work typically focuses on commissioning reform, digital transformation including EPR Programmes, estates transformation and the development of integrated care.
At Berkeley, we pride ourselves on not only the quality of our work, but also on our approach. We don’t take over, but deliver collaboratively and constructively in small groups (typically 1 or 2 people) and aim to become trusted members of our client teams. To this end, we pay a lot of attention to effective clinical and stakeholder engagement, bringing together the different and appropriate voices from the local health economy to co-design solutions that everyone buys into. We ‘wear your badge’ as part of your team, allowing your people to run the programme longer term and take forward the necessary activities that we initiate. We also help to develop your people and build your internal capability. This is a key part of how we work with our clients to deliver lasting solutions in highly complex and critical situations.
Berkeley only employs experienced, cross-skilled and ‘well rounded’ Consultants with a powerful combination of business, technology, change and people skills; we have no juniors. Consultants have on average 14 years’ experience, rising to 23 years for Partners. This means we can often achieve considerably more at a faster pace than individual contractors, or large teams of juniors. While every job is unique, we are often able to leverage best practice, previous approaches, frameworks and templates from similar work at other clients, which together can help to speed up delivery.
We designed Berkeley to be different by putting your interests first. We have no sales or utilisation targets and our people are only incentivised based on the quality of work and client feedback. We’re also independent and impartial with no commercial agreements with other third parties. Our Partners work alongside our Consultants in a hands-on capacity. Often Partners are on site several days a week (if not more) and will attend key meetings and workshops, helping to shape inputs and outputs for key sessions.
While a staged return to normal life may take many months, forward-thinking organisations are already plotting a course to succeed in the environment that will follow. For example, one Acute Trust that fast-tracked implementation of significant service change and new ways of working asked Berkeley for advice on how best to the make the beneficial changes ‘stick’ and to review their current plans for both digital and clinical transformation. Other private sector organisations are refreshing or refining their business’ strategy. In many parts of the country, the impact of having to manage a coordinated response to the pandemic across traditional organisational boundaries is accelerating the move towards Integrated Care Systems. While your Executive team is fully engaged in managing the current Covid-19 crisis, do you need help or additional support to look ahead to life beyond lockdown and the ‘new normal’?
The role of CCGs is changing. CCGs are coming together to gain economies of scale, lead the development of Integrated Care Systems, and take a more ‘population-health’ based approach to commissioning. We often work with CCGs to define new operating models that bridge the gap between an agreed strategic direction and the delivery of a roadmap of change to achieve the required outcomes. Over the last two years, we’ve been supporting a large group of CCGs in the South of England on their journey to shape a new strategic direction for commissioning of healthcare services and deliver improved health outcomes for their local population. Our support offer includes not only the expertise to shape and design new operating models, but experienced people change management practitioners to manage the transition to new ways of working and new organisational structures, including the development of leaders, teams, and cultures. We also offer specific 1:1 coaching for leaders making the difficult transition into new roles with ever increasing responsibilities and workloads.
Whilst traditional IT-enabled change is not new, the nature, pace, and different technologies available today make digital strategy and transformation a very different prospect. The recent Health Infrastructure Plan (HIP) made a commitment to reduce the burden of old technology by delivering new systems such as EPRs, improving the integration of existing systems, and capitalise on data and new innovations such as AI. The recent Covid-19 pandemic has also demonstrated just how important digital working will be in the future. As experts in delivering IT enabled change, we know first-hand that while ‘going digital’ brings many opportunities, understanding what this actually means, and realising the full potential benefits requires on-going investment and a structured, well thought-out, approach to implementation, people change management and benefits realisation.
Electronic Patient Records
Electronic Patient Record (EPR) systems are becoming more crucial in helping clinicians deliver safer patient care and delivering a better staff working experience through providing rigour balanced with clinical flexibility. Covid -19 has shown how beneficial EPRs can be to aid patient monitoring, data collection and quickly being able to adjust to changing circumstances which paper based and legacy ICT systems can’t do. This can now be done remotely through EPRs changing the way a model of care is delivered. EPRs undoubtedly deliver significant benefits to healthcare organisations but are among the most complex organisational transformation programmes. To be successful the need to be founded in robust clinical and operational engagement and not just established as a large IT delivery programme. We are experts in mobilising, delivering and assuring transformation programmes across large healthcare organisations to ensure successful delivery on flagship programmes, such as EPR. We can bring experience in working directly with EPR suppliers and can support healthcare organisations through the different types of and feasibility of an EPR programme, the typical risks organisations face or supporting the delivery of an EPR programme.
Not only is building new infrastructure a significant financial undertaking, fraught with its own challenges, but any development needs to consider the impact on the wider system, the impact on internal capacity and capability to deliver, and the impact on people. In short, it is a rare opportunity to change more than just the ‘bricks and mortar’. From our recent experience in estates transformation programmes, we understand what is required to set up for success. On these types of programmes, we can bring to bear all of our key services including strategic thinking, getting the most from your people, making the technology work for your organisation and delivering the transformation.
We have significant experience in supporting the development of integrated care at every level – be it engaging System Leaders to agree a clear way forward, developing new models of care at ‘Place’ level, or facilitating the creation of Primary Care Networks at ‘Neighbourhood’ level. In our experience, local leadership is key. However, we know first-hand how difficult it can be for leaders to find the time to invest in building trust and collaborative relationships when ingrained competitive behaviours have created significant barriers to partnership working. This is why clients often turn to us to help accelerate agreement and why they value our approach and way of working. Executive Teams have never been more stretched than they are today. We have 15 years’ experience in supporting the delivery of integrated care initiatives and Integrated Care Systems. We can provide hands on support, some light-touch independent assurance, or just some advice.
Organisations revisit their strategies for many different reasons. There are lots of possible triggers and lots of different approaches. The challenge, however, is to come up with a good crisp and actionable strategy – one that’s well thought through, has identified what the choices are, and sets a clear and practical direction. The development of Integrated Care Systems requires a clear strategy, increased collaboration, new ways of working and innovative thinking. An individual organisation can’t act in isolation. We have experience in delivering strategies that last. Our NHS healthcare sector experience includes many examples of CCG commissioning strategies, clinical strategies, estates strategies, IT/digital strategies, strategic and financial modelling, and future visioning. For a flavour of our private sector experience, refer to Services > Setting Strategy on our website for more information.
The above is just a snapshot of how we can help. Please do get in touch. We’d be happy to share what we’ve learned and help you on your journey, whatever that may be!
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Across healthcare, the landscape is changing. Commissioning reform and integrated care are driving greater collaboration and partnership working. Investment in infrastructure and digital innovations are providing new opportunities to change old ways of working, free up clinical time and provide better care. In a post Covid-19 world, thoughtful analysis is required to understand which service changes are here for the long-term as we transition to a ‘new normal’. We can help to shape, manage or accelerate this change, working with your people to define the strategies and deliver the projects necessary to improve the health outcomes for your local population.
Richard Marsden
Partner
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